non-Western Perspectives Research Articles

Understanding hybrid warfare

As the introduction to the special section on hybrid warfare, this paper establishes the contours of the contemporary debate about the topic, outlines the arguments made by the three papers that follow, and locates hybrid warfare in the broader realm of strategic thought. Enhancing the conceptual basis that hybrid war is grounded in allows us to understand the broader strategic implications of ambiguous uses of force. Collectively, the papers in this section offer fresh insight into non-Western perspectives of the concept, create original typologies for understanding the actors involved in its prosecution, and analyse the implications for international norms and institutions.

Ethnic minority cultural festival experience: Visitor–environment fit, cultural contact, and behavioral intention

This study aims to identify significant factors that influence visitors’ experience in ethnic minority cultural festival and to examine the underlying relationship between attendees’ experience and their future behavioral intention. The study used an exploratory sequential mixed method combining qualitative and quantitative stages. A grounded theory approach was adopted in analyzing the qualitative data collected from 20 in-depth interviews with past festival attendees and 453 online review posts from social network platforms. The developed conceptual framework was empirically tested by a quantitative study of 276 additional festival attendees through intercept data collection. The results indicate that cultural contact determines festival attendees’ future behavioral intention, while visitor–environment fit, including facilities, environmental functions, and activity knowledge, influences attendees’ experience of cultural contact. The study provides a non-Western perspective regarding ethnic minority cultural festival experience.

Intimate architectures: a cultural geography of doors

ABSTRACT This article seeks to contribute to geography’s continued interest in architecture through a focus on the ‘intimate architectural space’ of the door. Its aims are threefold; the first section seeks to extend knowledge of the door within geographic literature as it becomes a key site in which ‘events are gathered’ and through which politics can be encountered; the second section takes a ‘minor theory approach’, using a range of non-western, feminist, and class-based perspectives, exploring the social and political affordances of the door through the themes of ‘body’ and ‘performativity’. Whilst the conclusion uses these discussions to demonstrate how intimate architectures might further develop our knowledge of built spaces, providing an additional framework to engage with the often-overlooked aspects of architecture. In doing so, the door is presented as a site that structures how we move and relate to our bodies in physical space; most notably that the door’s capacity as a barrier maintains a distinct exclusionary politics which reinforces class and racial divisions through the built environment.

The Single’s Struggle: Discovering Involuntary Singleness in Indonesia Through Gender and Religious Perspectives

Singleness emerges as a theme in studies on contemporary relationships across societies, including in Indonesia. While in most Western societies, singleness reflects an individual’s personal preference, marriage is viewed as cultural imperative in Indonesia, and being single is often held involuntarily by most never-married adults. This study outlines the reasons of why Indonesian individuals remain involuntarily single. The interviews of 40 never-married adults aged 27–52 years ( M age = 33.14; SD = 4.04) revealed that gender and religious differences regarding marriage expectation are central themes in understanding involuntary singleness. The study particularly revealed four gender-specific reasons for why individuals remained involuntarily single: obtaining a career, having an incompatible marriage expectation, having dependent family members, and having temporal perspectives of singleness. Two themes emerged regarding the religious perspective of singleness: religious interpretations about singleness and religion-related coping ways of being involuntarily single. The themes suggest that marriage is not a mere personal fulfillment as cultural and religious values determine individuals’ marriage feasibility. While offering a new perspective of involuntary singleness from non-Western perspective, the results inform strategies to cope with unwanted singleness, particularly in the marriage- and religion-preoccupied societies.

Religion, Science, and Space Exploration from a Non-Western Perspective

Religion and science are often set up as polar opposites in Western philosophical and religious discourse and seen as representing different epistemological perspectives that juxtapose rationality with faith. Space exploration is largely viewed as a scientific and engineering problem and, thus, has tended to set aside the issue of religion as it relates to human movement off-planet. However, as we have moved increasingly toward the idea of colonization of the Moon and Mars, social scientists and philosophers have increasingly come to recognize that human movement into space also needs to be understood as a social phenomenon. As a social phenomenon, there is an inherent necessity to consider how religion may play a role in or influence the process of human exploration and settlement of space. However, what do we mean when we say “religion?” One of the fundamental problems of thinking about the relationship between religion, science, and space exploration is that the meaning of the word religion is rarely well-defined. Do we mean faith-based religions such as Christianity or Islam? Or do we mean practice-based religions such as Shinto and some forms of Buddhism? This paper will explore the question of religion and science from the perspective of Japanese religions as a way of problematizing the manner in which we think about and define religion as it relates to the practice of space exploration.

Performing nationalist populism in Turkey: an exploration of anti-Western, anti-elite and Muslim conservative undercurrents

ABSTRACT The growing body of research on populism has recently turned its attention towards global populisms, populist leaders and their political communication strategies. This article introduces a non-western perspective to the literature which has generally been dominated by European, Latin American and more recently North American contexts. The article analyses nationalist populism in Turkey as performed by Recep Tayyip Erdogan – the country’s ruling leader for the past eighteen years. Through a discussion of Erdogan’s mediated public performances and encounters with ‘the people,’ the article reveals the ideological components and manifestations of right-wing nationalist populism in a Muslim-majority country. Focusing on how and why Erdogan and his associates portray themselves as the true representatives of ‘the people’ and ‘the nation,’ the article argues that the articulations of anti-elitism and nativism in the Turkish context are primarily driven by anti-western and Islamist sentiments.

Realist avenues to global International Relations

Realism has long been criticized by global IR, but the former can contribute to the latter and thereby improve explanations of international relations. Global IR criticizes that realism supposedly applies universally, sidelines non-Western perspectives, and misunderstands much of foreign policy, grand strategy, and international affairs. Reviewing global IR’s case against realism, however, exposes avenues for realism to complement global IR. Realism can contribute to a more global understanding of international relations through its most recent variant: neoclassical realism (NCR). This newest realism allows for contextualization and historicization of drivers of state behavior. It can embrace and has already been engaging global questions and cases; global thought and concepts; and global perspectives and scholarship. Mapping 149 NCR publications produced by 96 scholars reveals a slow shift in knowledge production away from North America toward Europe and to a lesser extent Asia and Africa. Creative research designs and scholarly collaboration can put realism in fruitful conversation with global IR. This has implications for theory building and inclusive knowledge production in realism, global IR, and the wider discipline. Only when we discover new avenues for realists to travel can they contribute to a more global IR. In turn, when global IR scholars engage realism, they may be better able to address the Western versus non-Western dichotomies they challenge.

The Chinese definition of internationalisation in higher education

ABSTRACT The current discourse on higher education internationalisation is mainly Western, and there is a need to examine non-Western perspectives on internationalisation informed by different contexts, traditions and goals. Reported in this paper is a study that aims to glean the Chinese conception of internationalisation in higher education among 37 Chinese professionals, all working in the international education portfolio from 37 different institutions in mainland China. Based on the thematic analysis of a written interview with open-ended questions, the study ventures to provide a Chinese definition of higher education internationalisation based on Chinese institutional goals, approaches and challenges in internationalisation. The study provides insights on how a country in non-Western context learns, selects and adapts Western practices in a flexible and creative manner to meet national needs.

Demographic and Socioeconomic Influences on Sleep Patterns among Adolescent Students

Although proper sleep is an important topic in adolescent health, little is known about the sleep patterns of adolescents from a longitudinal and non-Western perspective. To fill this gap, the present research conducted a longitudinal study of the impact of demographic and socioeconomic factors on sleep patterns among Korean adolescent students. The relationship could positively or negatively affect sleep. Therefore, it is important to understand which demographic and socioeconomic factors are related to sleep patterns. This study used nationally representative panel data from the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey. A series of descriptive analyses were conducted to provide overall characteristics of the sample. Furthermore, mixed effect regression analysis techniques were employed to test the relationship between demographic and socioeconomic factors and sleep patterns. Paternal employment status was associated with adolescent sleep patterns, while maternal employment status was not. Adolescents with both parents working compared to adolescents with one parent or none working showed different sleep patterns on weekdays but not on weekends. Both parents possessing college degrees, household income, living in an urban area, and family type were associated with adolescent sleep pattern indicators to varying degrees. Some of these associations varied according to adolescent sex. This study provides insight into the impact of demographic and socioeconomic factors on weekend and weekday sleep patterns among adolescent students by sex. These findings provide information for the promotion of healthy sleep in adolescents by addressing demographic and socioeconomic factors.

Cape Town’s gay village: from “gaytrified” tourism Mecca to “heterosexualised” urban space

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to ascertain the factors that led to Cape Town’s gay village to transform from a “gaytrified” tourism mecca to a “heterosexualised” urban space, from a gay leisure space owner perspective. Design/methodology/approach Empirical observations of the six remaining gay leisure space owners in De Waterkant (population) are taken into account by using semi-structured interviews. All narratives are analysed in Altas.ti – qualitative data analysis software – to identify applicable factors, which participants believe are contributing to the “de-gaying” of Cape Town’s gay village. Findings From the conducted analyses, it becomes apparent that Western theorisation of the “de-gaying” of gay villages is not universally applicable as certain factors contributing to De Waterkant’s demise appear to be location-specific, suggesting that Western theory is insufficient to explain gay spatial realities in non-Western contexts such as South Africa. The identified factors responsible for the “de-gaying” of De Waterkant adversely affect Cape Town’s status as a gay capital and its ability to market this gay neighbourhood to attract the gay tourism market. This may result in lost socio-economic opportunities considering the financial contribution of gay travellers to the local tourist economy. Originality/value This study is the first of its kind to use first-hand narratives of the six remaining gay business owners in De Waterkant and marks the first attempt to investigate the factors, from a non-Western perspective, which led to the “de-gaying” of Africa’s only gay village. Taking into account the socio-economic value added by gay tourism, the findings provide the first non-Western perspective on the demise of Africa’s and South Africa’s only gay neighbourhood from a gay leisure space owner perspective, including the possible repercussions on Cape Town’s local tourist economy. Some tactical considerations and recommendations are suggested to ensure the continuation of gay tourism in the city.

Exploring the relationship between servicescape, place attachment, and intention to recommend accommodations marketed through sharing economy platforms

ABSTRACT Over the past decade, the world has witnessed the rise of the short-term accommodation rental (SAR) industry. However, customers’ attachment and loyalty to SARs in which they have stayed have received little attention. this study empirically proposes an eight-factor servicescape framework and examines its impact on customers’ intentions to recommend SARs via place attachment from a non-Western perspective. Findings reveal that interior décor, kitchen amenities, room view, residential density, perceived similarity, and suitable behavior of hosts exert significant impacts on place attachment dimensions. Findings provide significant insight that could help hosts retain customers by increasing their attachment to SARs.

Value-Creating Perspectives and an Intercultural Approach to Curriculum for Global Citizenship

Several recent scholarly works have challenged the Western dominated paradigm underlying the UNESCO led agenda of global citizenship education. This includes the heavy influence of Enlightenment liberalism. Further discussions must also be centered on integrating non-Western perspectives so that the practice of global citizenship has a more critical and intercultural focus. This paper offers suggestions to develop curriculum for global citizenship based on a study of leaders and their movements, including Wangari Maathai and Daisaku Ikeda who have inspired people to act within their local communities based on their personal values that are rooted in their experiences with being engaged in both Western and non-Western modes of thinking.

How the contextual constraints and tensions of a transitional context influence individuals’ negotiations of meaningful work – the case of Vietnam

This study explores meaningful work in the transitional context of Vietnam under Đổi Mới – the renovation policy implemented in 1986. Based on 60 in-depth interviews with participants from various industries, the study emphasises how features of a transitional context can deeply influence the way people make sense of meaningfulness in the workplace. Institutional constraints (institutionalised corruption and lack of institutional support), social constraints (low social trust and sense of insecurity), spiritual yearnings (engaged Buddhism) and other tensions relating to occupational, gender and age differences are found to influence and shape participants’ distinctive views of the qualities of meaningful work (pragmatic, reflexive, self-transcendent, and ethical). These views differ from Western ways of conceptualising meaningful work, and affect individuals’ negotiation of meaningful work. This study contributes a non-Western perspective on meaningful work, introducing meaningful work through the lens of Buddhist principles and offering a contextualised framework.

Local voices against violence: women challenging extremism in Iraq and Syria

ABSTRACTA significant proportion of research and initiatives challenging violence within Iraq and Syria centres on the international threat posed by Islamic State (Daesh). Consequently, much of this work is funded, designed, managed and implemented by external actors, with a security focus on Salafi-Jihadist groups and the mobilisation of (male) combatants. This paper has a dual purpose: to review and evaluate the progress of localised initiatives inside Iraq and Syria that focus on social cohesion and resilience to violence, and to explore and showcase the engagement of local women in this field. Drawing on multi-sector accounts of women serves to highlight and better understand their individual experiences, and the challenges and opportunities for female voices to be considered, amplified and impactful. This scope provides insight into individual and communal vulnerabilities to ‘radicalisation’ within Iraq and Syria and explores the successes and failures of female-led counter-initiatives. The paper underscores the experiences of these women from a local and non-western perspective and sheds light on what is being done on the ground to challenge violence post-Daesh.

Blackness as an ontological symbol: The way forward

This article focuses on Black liberation theology from a non-western perspective and suggests a deconstructive treatment of Black liberation theology, engaging Cone’s work critically. The critical question in reading texts on Black theology is whether poststructural theories on language, subjectivity, social processes, and institutions can identify areas and strategies for change with regard to Black liberation theology. James Cone was critical regarding a poststructural foundational approach. Even so, this article uses poststructuralism as a lens to attend to the subthemes of blackness as ontological symbol, dethroning the author in a poststructural discourse of Black theology, Black theology and Black power, Black liberation theology and anthropology, and Black theology and experience.

The North–South Divide on Public Perceptions of Stratospheric Aerosol Geoengineering?: A Survey in Six Asia-Pacific Countries

ABSTRACT Solar radiation management (SRM) is a controversial technological proposal to deliberately cool the Earth for addressing climate change. Because of great concerns over global consequences of SRM deployment, an inclusive and global conversation is considered necessary for the governance of SRM. However, public perception research on SRM to date has been mostly limited to the Global North or Western democracy. Because social acceptability is crucial for SRM governance, such research must also encompass the Global South or Eastern perspectives beyond the Western bias. The present study conducted an online survey of college students in six Asia-Pacific countries (Australia, China, India, Japan, the Philippines, and South Korea) about their attitudes toward stratospheric aerosol geoengineering, one of most discussed SRM proposals. Our results showed that students from the Global South (China, India, the Philippines) were more willing to accept geoengineering as a potential option than those from the Global North (Australia, Japan, and South Korea). We also found an overwhelming consensus in support of geoengineering governance principles such as information disclosure and pre-deployment regulation across all six countries. Our results suggest that more nuanced and granular understandings of non-Western perspectives are critical to enable inclusive democratic debate on geoengineering governance.

Epistemic hegemony: the Western straitjacket and post-colonial scars in academic publishing

Abstract The field of International Relations (IR) is barely ‘international’. Scholars have voiced their concerns and as a result, we have witnessed calls for diversity and inclusion in IR, be it in publication or in syllabi. Notwithstanding, the misrepresentation of non-Western scholars in the production of knowledge is significant. This article sheds light on the dynamics of publishing from a non-Western perspective and reinforces Post-Colonial epistemological critiques in IR. Based on the latest dataset from the International Studies Association (ISA)’s journals, this article argues that the current setting of IR journals is not suited for and receptive of non-Western scholars and epistemologies.

The Bare Experience of Communication: Slippage, Risk, and Un-knowing

ABSTRACTThis essay offers an alternative perspective on the dominant view of communication that focuses on message exchange and calculative thinking. It highlights communicators as embodied beings who experience communication and enquires into the contact that takes place at the level of sensation (i.e., in the coming together of the sense organ, the sensed object, and consciousness). I first present a non-western perspective on bare awareness that offers specific instructions on mindfulness of monitoring the interpretive construction of one’s experience and follow this with three themes based on Georges Bataille’s work that facilitate the inquiry on the “bare experience of communication,” which underlines a suspension of meaning in making sense of the world, each other, and of human communication. I focus this discussion on three particular concepts: slippage, risk, and un-knowing. I conclude by stating that the possibility for optimal communication necessitates slippage as a movement outside one’s self-centeredness that the practice of mindfulness facilitates.

Consuming takeaway food: Convenience, waste and Chinese young people’s urban lifestyle

Considering food consumption as an important daily practice, this article explores how and why Chinese young people consume takeaway food – a typical type of convenience food – and whether this food practice creates a wasteful urban lifestyle, drawing on a qualitative analysis. The key finding of this research suggests that Chinese young people have normalised takeaway food consumption and have their own strategies to reduce food/food-related waste after consumption. Such a dynamic process of takeaway food consumption reflects young people’s lifestyle in urban China: an individualised or self-centred, technology-dependent and fast-paced lifestyle. Moreover, this research suggests that social studies on household food practices should take household sizes and patterns into more considerations. This research can be read as a contribution to the existing body of literature on convenience food and its environmental consequences within and beyond the family space from a non-Western perspective.

The ocean in excess: Connecting with the cosmos in European geography and encountering Polynesian ontological perspectives

In welcoming this addition to Peters and Steinberg’s insights on water, seas and oceans and their ontological implications this paper asks about connections with cosmos thinking in geography, and with learning with those with non-Western perspectives, for instance from Polynesia. It asks whether the ‘frames’ of understanding Peters and Steinberg seek can come from Geography, and what new forms of representation are needed?