Nordic Nations Research Articles

Trust, transparency, and openness: How inclusion of cultural values shapes Nordic national public policy strategies for artificial intelligence (AI)

Using textual analysis methodology with Hofstede's cultural dimensions as basis for cross-national comparison, the manuscript explores the influence of cultural values of trust, transparency, and openness in Nordic national artificial intelligence (AI) policy documents. Where many AI processes are technologies hidden from view of the citizen, how can public institutions support and ensure these high levels of trust, transparency, and openness in Nordic culture and extend these concepts of “digital trust” to AI? One solution is by authoring national policy that upholds cultural values and personal rights, ultimately reinforcing these values in their societies. The paper highlights differences in how Nordic nations position themselves using cultural values as organizing principles, with the author showing these values (i.e., trust through clear information and information security, transparency through AI literacy education and clear algorithmic decision making, and openness by creating data lakes and data trusts) support the development of AI technology in society. The analysis shows that three cultural values are upheld and influence Nordic national AI strategies, while themes of privacy, ethics, and autonomy are present, and democracy, a societal building block in the Nordics, is especially prominent in the policies. For policy development, policy leaders must understand that without citizen involvement in AI implementation or lacking citizen AI education, we risk alienating those for who these services are meant to utilize and improve access for.

Representation of Intimate Partner Violence Against Women in Swedish News Media: A Discourse Analysis.

Despite being rated as some of the world’s most gender equal countries, Sweden and neighboring Nordic nations show high rates of intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW). As the news media contribute to the shaping of public attitudes, this article pursues a two-step discourse analysis of how IPVAW was represented in seven Swedish newspapers during 2018. Although an individualistic discourse on IPVAW was found to be most prevalent, articles where perpetrators were presented as non-Swedish more frequently contained a structural framing of IPVAW. This confirms previously noted tendencies toward individualization and othering of IPVAW in Sweden.

Vanessa Barker, Nordic Nationalism and Penal Order: Walling the Welfare State

Vanessa Barker, <i>Nordic Nationalism and Penal Order: Walling the Welfare State</i>

Quakers and the Disciplines. Vol. 5: Quakers, Politics, and Economics ed. by David R. Ross and Michael T. Snarr

Reviewed by: Quakers and the Disciplines. Vol. 5: Quakers, Politics, and Economics ed. by David R. Ross and Michael T. Snarr Issac Barnes May Quakers and the Disciplines. Vol. 5: Quakers, Politics, and Economics. Ed. by David R. Ross and Michael T. Snarr. Philadelphia: Friends Association for Higher Education, 2018. xvi + 380 pp. Notes and index. Paperback $19.95; Kindle $9.95. One of the chief virtues of this latest addition to the Friends Association of Higher Education's "Quakers and the Disciplines" series is that its scope is extremely broad; most topics in Quaker history are in some way connected to either economics or politics. The twenty-two contributors come from a variety of fields. The book's focus is largely restricted to British and American Friends, but the sixteen articles address time periods that range from the foundation of Quakerism until the present. The breadth of the collection's content makes it less focused, though most chapters address Friends' response to social concerns arising from capitalism. Taken on their own merits, many of the contributions are fascinating additions to scholarship on Quakerism. In a section of the book labeled "Historical Engagement and Friends," Thomas D. Hamm's contribution to the volume highlights how a small collection of Hicksites in New York began to critique market economics in the 1830s, linking liberal theology and radical economic ideas. This is followed by Robin Rogers Healey's nuanced history of debates over how to end apartheid that occurred between South African Friends and the American Friends Service Committee in the late 1970s. Healey works to center South African Quaker perspectives, highlighting how these Friends accused the AFSC of imperialism and abandoning nonviolence. The work and thought of several prominent Quakers are repeatedly referred to this volume. Sociologist Elise Boulding and economist Kenneth Boulding are the focus of a chapter by Robert Scott and Russell Boulding (the Bouldings' eldest son). John Bellers, the seventeenth-century and eighteenth-century English social reformer who designed a workers' community, is the subject of a chapter by Keith Hemuth. John Woolman's attitude towards economics is the focus of two chapters, one by Mike Heller the other by Geoffrey Plank. Plank makes a compelling case that understanding Woolman requires not just focusing on his opposition towards slavery and support for boycotting goods, but also examining his ownership of land. Woolman's land meant he was wealthy compared to many of his neighbors, and he was comfortable with such systems of privilege and hierarchy. [End Page 57] There are discussions of the role of Quaker organizations in politics. Ruth Flowers provides an insider's account of the Friends Committee on National Legislation's efforts to convince the U.S. Congress to pursue antipoverty programs. One of the most fascinating details in Flowers's account is that the FCNL was hostile to federal support for these efforts for the first twenty years of its history, until the early 1960s. Lori Heninger and David Atwood provide two case studies of the work of the Quaker United Nations Office, focusing on work for small-arms control and efforts to reduce global inequality. A few of the chapters are not written from a position of detached scholarship, but try to propose a new direction for contemporary Quakerism. Activist George Lakey, for example, calls on Friends to model society on Sweden, Norway, Demark and Iceland, which provide considerable government services to their residents. For Lakey, these Nordic nations "serve as a reminder to today's Religious Society of Friends that God's Peaceable Kingdom is achievable today on this earth" (p. 55). It is a testimony to the vibrancy of Quaker studies scholarship that this edited collection can contain theological reflections, alongside history, sociology, political science and a host of other methodological approaches to scholarship. Disciplinary divides are still firmly in evidence, and one does not get the sense that this is a shared conversation, but the individual contributions ably show the ongoing work about Quakerism in their respective fields. Anyone interested in the study of Quakerism is likely to find something useful in this volume. Issac Barnes May University of Virginia Copyright © 2020 Friends Historical Association

Social Citizenship, Inequality and Homeownership. Postwar Perspectives from the North of Europe

In this article, we analyse the social distribution of residential property in Norway post-1945 in light of the concept of social citizenship. Drawing on data from censuses and tax registers, we examine the social stratification of owner-occupation and housing wealth in a Nordic nation of homeowners. Our study shows that residential property and housing wealth is very unevenly distributed, and that the share of low-income homeowners decreased markedly after 1990. The implications of these findings are discussed with reference to three different conceptions of citizenship: the socio-liberal, the republican and the libertarian. Our main argument is that the falling rate of low-income owner-occupation constitutes an erosion of social citizenship viewed from the socio-liberal and republican conception of citizenship. This follows from theoretical arguments and empirical studies linking homeownership to positive welfare outcomes, such as civic engagement and social integration. The latter is arguably particularly true in some high-homeownership countries, such as Norway, where owner-occupation is the cultural norm and rental housing is associated with low quality and insecurity.

Book review: Nordic Nationalism and Right-Wing Populist Politics

Book review: Nordic Nationalism and Right-Wing Populist Politics

Nordic Nationalism and Penal Order: Walling the Welfare State. By Vanessa Barker. Abingdon, UK: Routledge, 2018, Abingdon, Oxon.

<i>Nordic Nationalism and Penal Order: Walling the Welfare State</i>. By Vanessa Barker. Abingdon, UK: Routledge, 2018, Abingdon, Oxon.

A. E. Nordenskiöld in Swedish memory: the origin and uses of Arctic heroism

ABSTRACTFor Nordic nations scientific activities in the Polar Regions proved significant in defining national identities and shaping scientific profiles. Starting in the nineteenth century and continuing throughout the next century, polar research proved instrumental in inculcating national honour and expressing small-state colonial aspirations. It provided a source of heroes for forging collective memory and the fostering of youth by presenting the polar explorer as a model character. This study explores the ideological lineage of the nineteenth century polar hero by first relating this idol to historical archetypes of Western culture. It identifies the special traits of the Nordic polar hero and discusses how it was used for patriotic purposes. As a case in point the article looks at the career of the Finnish-Swedish mineralogist and Arctic expedition leader Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld and the ways he, with the help of others, successfully navigated not only the drift ice of polar seas but also the international republic of science, and the three national scenes of Sweden, Finland and Russia. In the process he was turned into a national hero both in Finland and Sweden, and presented as a patriotic role model for adolescents in the arts of postponing gratification and enduring hardship.

The Duke of Abruzzi’s Noble Idea of Winning the North Pole for Italy: Popularization of the Arctic Expedition Led by Luigi Amedeo of Savoia

At the beginning of the twentieth century, Luigi Amedeo of Savoia, the Duke of Abruzzi, planned and led the first Italian Arctic expedition with the purpose of reaching the Pole. His endeavor marked an important step in this race, which until the mid-nineteenth century had mainly involved explorers from Britain, the United States, and the Nordic nations. The Italian attempt gained international attention both for the Duke and Italy, despite its failure. To understand the expedition’s significance in the media and popular culture, this article analyzes Luigi of Savoia’s figure in the narrative of polar feats that took place in the nineteenth century. It reconstructs the reasons for the Duke’s Arctic voyage and examines how the Italian and the international press represented the endeavor, contributing to its popularization. It also analyzes the cultural legacy of the Duke and his enterprise in modern Italy.

Lions of the North: Sounds of the New Nordic Nationalism

Reviewed Work: Lions of the North: Sounds of the New Nordic Nationalism by Benjamin R. Teitelbaum

Gender Equality and Beyond: At the Crossroads of Neoliberalism, Anti-Gender Movements, “European” Values, and Normative Reiterations in the Nordic Model

The social-democratic-inspired “Nordic model”, with its agenda for gender equality, has been an important example for the development of political interventions to transform society but at the same time, it has been functioning as an emerging gender normalising and stabilising structure. The last decade it has also become focused by antigender movements and ethno-nationalistic parties both as emblematic for the Nordic nations as well as a threat that must be destroyed to save the nation. This issue will elaborate further on gender equality as a node, a floating signifier in powerful and often contradictory discourses situating the discussions within the tradition of scholarships of hope through a dialogue about articles that search for realistic utopias that might be considered to be “beyond gender equality”. The included articles engage with the messiness and crossroads of gender equality in relation to the work-line, territories, neo-liberalism, religion, the crisis of solidarity and the success of anti-genderism agenda.

Campaigning between East and West: Finland and the Cold War in the presidential campaign films of Urho Kekkonen

ABSTRACT This article examines political campaign films from the point of view of propaganda to explore how this idea fits into the context of a democratic Nordic nation. During the Cold War, Finland was governed by Urho Kekkonen as President for 25 years (1956–81). The authors look at Kekkonen’s campaign films to see how his public image was meticulously planned and systematically shaped to create an almost mythical figure. The political and media context in which these films were presented is also analysed to understand how Eastern and Western influences affected the content and style of persuasion in the films. As a result, they find a bricolage of propagandistic influences from both sides of the Iron Curtain.

Study on the correlation between work-related musculoskeletal disorders and work ability among nurses at three level general hospital in Xinjiang

Objective: To investigate the correlation between work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) and work ability (WA) among nurses in Xinjiang. Methods: A total of 1 873 nursing staff in the Departments of Internal Medicine, Surgery, Emergency and ICU Department, Operating Room and Supply Room of 6 Grade 3 General Hospitals in Xinjiang Beijiang Region were randomly selected by means of random sampling, and revised Nordic National Musculoskeletal Disorders Standard Questionnaire and Work Ability Index Scale were used to evaluate the status of nursing WMSDs and WA. Results: (1) The symptom incidence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among nursing staff in the past year was 77.42%; The highest symptom incidence in all parts of the body was waist, neck, shoulder and back, and the symptom incidence was 63.59%, 59.80%, 47.78% and 37.32%, respectively; (2) The total score of nursing staff's work ability was (35.91±5.143) ; The proportion of "poor" , "middle" , "good" and "excellent" were 5.23%, 47.41%, 41.43% and 5.93% respectively; (3) The total working capacity of the sick group was (35.11±5.044) , The working ability of the non-diseased group was (38.64±4.507) , The difference between the two groups was statistically significant (t=13.773, P<0.01) ; There was a significant difference in the level of work ability between the two groups (z=-12.335, P<0.01) ; The working ability of "poor" and medium in the injury group was significantly higher than that of the non injury group, while the working ability was "better" and "excellent" than that of the non injury group; (4) The working ability of nursing staff of different age in WMSDs injury group was lower than that in non injury group, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01) ; There was a negative correlation between the working ability of the injury group and the length of service, that is, with the increase of the length of service, the working ability index decreased (P<0.01) ; There was a positive correlation between the working ability of the non injury group and the length of service, that is, with the increase of the length of service, the work ability index increased gradually, but the correlation was not statistically significant (r=0.063, P=0.195) ; (5) The working ability of nursing staff of different departments in WMSDs injury group was lower than that in non injury group, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01) . (6) Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the factors influencing the working ability of nursing staff were: past medical history, WMSDs disease, length of service and night shift frequency; Conclusion: The symptom incidence of WMSDs was high among nurses; Work Ability at a moderate level; work-related musculoskeletal disorders is associated with reduced ability of nursing staff; work-related musculoskeletal disorders are associated with reduced working capacity of nursing staff.

Reinventing the Yggdrasil: Hilma af Klint and Political Aesthetics

The Yggdrasil, the holy tree of Norse mythology, is central to Hilma af Klint’s series of paintings from 1913/15: Tree of Knowledge. As with the Biblical Tree of Knowledge from Eden that is echoed in Christ’s cross, the Yggdrasil allows for the salvation of humanity in Norse mythology. During the nineteenth century, the Nordic National Romantic movement turned the Norse myth towards a politics of nationalism and nationhood. Taking as her point of departure these aestheticised nationalisms, af Klint’s abstraction redirects Nordic romanticism towards an alternative political aesthetic. Locating an intertwining of genders at the heart of the Yggdrasil tradition, her androgynous abstraction subverts the nationalist and patriarchal romanticism of the nineteenth century Yggdrasil.&#x0D; Central to af Klint’s aesthetic subversion is the troubled history of theosophy’s engagement with Nordic myth. The Yggdrasil was revived in Helena Blavatsky's theosophy, and Rudolf Steiner constructed a theory of Aryanism in his readings of Nordic myth. Although af Klint was a keen student of theosophic eclecticism, using the discipline as a model for her stylistic hybrid combinations of esoteric, scientific, mythical, and modern motifs, her turn to the Yggdrasil should be read as constituting a distinct break from theosophic Nordism.

Book review: Vanessa Barker, Nordic Nationalism and Penal Order: Walling the Welfare State

Book review: Vanessa Barker, <i>Nordic Nationalism and Penal Order: Walling the Welfare State</i>

Book Review: Nordic Nationalism and Penal Order: Walling The Welfare State

Book Review: Nordic Nationalism and Penal Order: Walling The Welfare State

True Kvlt? The Cultural Capital of “Nordicness” in Extreme Metal

In this article, we respond to the question of, "What is the cultural capital of Nordicness in heavy metal?". Through examining the popularity of Nordic symbolism in metal music, scenes and practices, we argue that the Nordic has been ascribed significant value in metal, wherein it offers a vehicle for narratives of masculinity, nationalism and ideology. Here we contend that the cultural capital given to Nordicness underpins not only the prevalence and market success of metal in Northern Europe, but also the ongoing circulation of narratives about the North in metal scenes across multiple global regions. Through analysing the repeated motifs of Nordic mythology, ecology and imagery as they emerge throughout metal's historic and contemporary manifestations, our article demonstrates the cultural capital with which the North is continually imbued in heavy metal. We call into focus how metal's aesthetic fascination with Nordicness as a site of heathenism, resistance and frontier landscapes is intertwined with a longer thematic history of masculinity, rebellion and affective community. This article therefore interrogates the cultural capital of Nordicness in metal scenes, and how this continues to shape the trajectories for the genre both in Northern Europe and throughout the world.

IQ decline and Piaget: Does the rot start at the top?

The IQ gains of the 20th century have faltered. Losses in Nordic nations after 1995 average at 6.85 IQ points when projected over thirty years. On Piagetian tests, Britain shows decimation among high scorers on three tests and overall losses on one. The US sustained its historic gain (0.3 points per year) through 2014. The Netherlands shows no change in preschoolers, mild losses at high school, and possible gains by adults. Australia and France offer weak evidence of losses at school and by adults respectively. German speakers show verbal gains and spatial losses among adults. South Korea, a latecomer to industrialization, is gaining at twice the historic US rate.When a later cohort is compared to an earlier cohort, IQ trends vary dramatically by age. Piagetian trends indicate that a decimation of top scores may be accompanied by gains in cognitive ability below the median. They also reveal the existence of factors that have an atypical impact at high levels of cognitive competence. Scandinavian data from conventional tests confirm the decimation of top scorers but not factors of atypical impact. Piagetian tests may be more sensitive to detecting this phenomenon.

Crime prevention and prisoner rehabilitation in Australia: Lessons from Nordic nations

This article considers Australia’s past interest in Nordic nations’ achievements in preventing crime and in rehabilitating persons convicted of crimes. Current crises in Australian prisons, particularly as analysed recently by the Victorian Ombudsman, are then considered. Lessons from Sweden and Norway, in particular, are identified which might practically help now to tackle those problems.

Revenge of the Trolls

Recent studies by Naum and Nordin, Fur, and Keskinen et al. suggest that the Nordic nations participated in the pan-European colonial project of the nineteenth century and that they also pursued an ...