Public Sphere Research Articles

Representation of migrant accents in media discourse

Abstract This study looks at how migrants’ accents are portrayed, labelled, and constructed in media discourse, investigating media coverage of migrants’ accents in the Australian press from 2007 to 2017, a period highlighted by changes in Australian citizenship policies and public discourse. While language has been extensively discussed in policy discourse, there has been a notable dearth of research on the coexistence of dialects and accents within official languages as portrayed in media platforms. Using a corpus-assisted critical discourse analysis of 2,657,016 words from Australian newspaper articles, the study applies raciolinguistic ideologies to show how the press justifies and legitimizes migrant accent-related issues. The results suggest that speakers of Inner Circle English variants are positioned differently from non-white/Outer and Expanding Circle speakers. Speakers of the Inner Circle were far more likely than other speakers to have their accents described as ‘broad’ or ‘thick’, and they were more likely to have the national variation they spoke specifically named. Others, in contrast, regularly described racialized speakers as simply having a ‘foreign’ accent, and many of them frequently claimed trying to ‘change’ their accent or ‘fake’ an Australian accent in an effort to gain access to employment and broader social acceptance. These results emphasize the subtle and not-so-subtle ways that non-white migrant speakers are positioned as incompetent speakers and demonstrate how raciolinguistic ideologies, linguistic racism, and accent laboring concerns are widespread in Australian society. These findings highlight the significance of corpus approaches for studying language related issues and provide insight into accent biases produced by the media in Australian society.

Microfinance and Entrepreneurial Empowerment of Women: The Case of Women’s Microfinance Initiative in Uganda

Purpose: Women have always been underestimated and discriminated in social, economic and political spheres of life. Moreover, the traditional household chores create hindrances in their social and economic empowerment. Entrepreneurship development among women largely focuses on the empowerment of women through developing skills in Small to Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and business ventures by taking risk of making investment decisions. Over the years, various efforts have been made by Government and Non-Government Organisations to promote women empowerment in Uganda and one such effort is through the micro-finance intervention. This Paper attempts to explore the impact of micro finance on the women’s entrepreneurial empowerment with specific reference to Women’s Micro-finance Initiative (WMI) in Buyobo in North Eastern Uganda. Materials and Methods: The study adopted an exploratory cross sectional research design. The target population comprised women’s microfinance Initiative Laon beneficiaries. A study Sample of 1,380 Respondents were purposively selected. The main Instrument for data collection was a structured Questionnaire and was complemented by Interviews and Focus Group Discussions. The study findings were presented in form of Tables, Graphs, Pie charts and where appropriate and where necessary, quotes or excerpts were used to strengthen the interpretation. Findings: The study findings reveal that the Micro-finance has a positive impact in terms of improvement in Business Operations; Diversification of Businesses; Business Skills Improvement; Improvement in Household livelihoods and living standards. The study findings will act as a basis for policy formulation as it will provide empirical evidence for policy makers to formulate relevant policies geared towards enabling environment for enhancing women Entrepreneurial Empowerment in Uganda. The study will further contribute to the struggle to eliminate gender inequality in Entrepreneurial empowerment. The study will further add value to existing scholarship which the future scholars may use to generate further research in the area of Microfinance and Entrepreneurial Empowerment of Women. Implications to Theory, Practice and Policy: The study recommends strengthening and expansion of micro-finance support to resource poor and vulnerable women in other parts of the country through entrepreneurial education and training, provision of access to credit and financial services as well as markets. The study will contribute to critical debates and raise awareness on issues pertaining to Microfinance and Entrepreneurial Empowerment of Women at community level which will help to build initiatives for effective women Entrepreneurial empowerment in Uganda.

Young families’ space adaptation in subsidized housing case study: Mataram city, West Nusa Tenggara Indonesia

ABSTRACT Indonesia’s 2020 census shows that 25.87% of the population comprises productive working-age millennials in the family-forming phase and demand affordable housing. To aid the low-income class in accessing the housing market, the government provides the Rumah Inti Tumbuh (RIT) or “growing core house” programme. This study examines the young families’ adaptation to utilize the available rooms, using mixed methods of observations, interviews, and architectural records. Study analyses employ the six layers’ theory of [Brand, Stewart. 1994. How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They are Built. New York, NY: Viking] to trace back the incremental process from the early home-making, motivation development, and adaptation strategy of the spatial usages in the post-reconstruction. The study concludes that young families needed to incrementally outmode the forms of provision even in the early occupation. The adaptive solutions gradually blurred the initial design idea provided by the developer. The home-making practices also accommodate daily activities connected with Islamic cultural, social, and intimate spheres.

Voice Lessons

Abstract This paper reflects on the national referendum for an Indigenous Voice to Parliament that took place in Australia in mid-October 2023. At the time of writing, the aftershocks from the failure of the referendum to gain the necessary majorities were still being felt keenly by many of the Voice advocates and supporters. The hurt and grief of many First Nations people were shared by millions of non-Indigenous “Yes” voters, while much reckoning continued in the subsequent weeks and months. The author here explores what might have been gained if more attention had been given to what an Indigenous Voice to Parliament might “sound like,” instead of the excessive focus on, and public discourse around what it might “look like.” Resources from the philosophies and physiology of voice, communication ethics, cultural studies, critical anthropology, Australian Indigenous writing and scholarship, and psychoanalytic politics are utilised to explore the connections between the human voice, vocal expression, hearing and listening, silence and song.

Loneliness in daily life: A comparison between youths with autism spectrum disorders and 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11DS).

Loneliness is a negative emotional experience that can stem from a gap between desires and the reality of social relationships. It is also a predictor of mental health. Loneliness is therefore important to investigate in neurodevelopmental populations known for having difficulties in the social sphere. This co-registered study involved 48 youths with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), 54 youths with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11DS) and 65 typically developing youths (TD) aged 12-30. State loneliness was assessed with an ecological momentary assessment. Paper-pencil questionnaires assessing attitude toward aloneness, trait loneliness, and mental health, were completed by the youths and their caregivers. A comparable level of state loneliness between clinical groups and TD were found, with greater loneliness when alone than in a social context. Clinical groups showed a greater intra-individual variability. Both individuals with ASD and 22q11DS revealed a greater affinity toward being alone than TD, but only individuals with ASD reported greater trait loneliness. However, no significant association was found between attitude toward aloneness, trait and state loneliness. Emotional reactivity to loneliness was different between the clinical groups. Self-reported mental health only was associated with loneliness in the clinical groups. These results provide new insights into the understanding of loneliness in these clinical populations and have an impact on clinical care by highlighting the need to remain vigilant when encountering youths who report feeling lonely, and that these youths need to be supported in developing their social network, which appears to be a protective factor against loneliness.

Thematic Analysis and Poetic Inquiry of Educators' Meaning-Making and Sense-Making of Social Justice

This paper presents a qualitative study that explores how educators in higher education construct their meaning of social justice. The data consists of transcripts of personal stories shared by three subjects in a public panel discussion. The data analysis employs two complementary methods: thematic analysis and poetic inquiry and analysis. The thematic analysis identifies two main themes: reflection from life events and heightened self-awareness, which illustrate how the subjects' life experiences and perceptions have shaped their understanding of social justice. The poetic inquiry and analysis transform the subjects' voices into narrative and lyrical poems that evoke the emotional and experiential aspects of their stories. The paper explores the consequences of the findings for campus programming and social justice education. This paper also reflects on the benefits and challenges of using thematic analysis and poetic inquiry as qualitative research methods.

Have agricultural and applied economists lost sight of the land‐grant mission? A textual analysis of Presidential Addresses and Invited Papers from 1919–2022

AbstractAgricultural and applied economists have maintained a public discourse at the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA) meetings and subsequently published papers discussing the mission of land‐grant institutions and the role of AAEA members in that mission. With a content analysis of 4001 Invited Papers and Presidential Speeches, we find agricultural and applied economists questioned their profession's purpose and role within the land‐grant system. The reflective questions still apply to land‐grant institutions and the agricultural and applied economics profession. We argue that AAEA members are crucial in addressing the food and agricultural challenges connected to society's deepest needs today and into the future.

Civil society elites: managers of civic capital

AbstractThe article takes the first steps towards a general theory of civil society elites, a concept not fully developed in either elite or civil society research. This conceptual gap hampers academic and public understanding of the dynamics at the top of civil society. To address this, the authors rely on the theoretical framework of Pierre Bourdieu to build a theory of civil society elites as managers of civic capital. This role is illustrated through examples from the differently institutionalised UK and Nordic civil societies. The first part of the article introduces the notion of civic capital and its emergence during the 19th century. The second part focuses on elite positions in civil society fields, demonstrating how civil society elites, as managers of civic capital, navigate between their constituents and other elite groups. These elites wield the power to consecrate social relations while misrecognising their own symbolic and economic gains. Recent scandals in the climate movement and UK and Nordic civil societies shed light on the symbolic aspects of the positions of civil society elites. This comprehensive analysis contributes to elite and civil society research and enriches public discussions about the role of civil society leaders in society.

International Political Dynamics and Islamic Jurisprudence: Understanding the Roots of Terrorism

This paper critically examines the intricate challenges involved in defining terrorism, emphasizing the political instrumentalization of Islam as a perceived threat. It delves into the multifaceted nature of terrorism by exploring various definitions and the underlying political motivations. The study then transitions to an in-depth analysis of Islamic jurisprudence's unequivocal stance against violence and terrorism, highlighting the consistent and unanimous condemnation by Islamic scholars. By scrutinizing the ethical principles that govern warfare in Islam, including the protection of non-combatants and the conditions under which violence is permissible, the paper offers a nuanced and comprehensive perspective on how Islamic teachings fundamentally oppose terrorism. This analysis is supported by references to primary Islamic texts (Quran and Hadith) and classical jurisprudential sources, ensuring a thorough understanding of Islamic legal principles. Furthermore, the paper addresses the broader socio-political implications of framing Islam as synonymous with terrorism. It examines the impact of this narrative on public perceptions, policy-making, and the rise of Islamophobia. The study also considers the strategic motivations behind this framing, particularly in the context of post-9/11 geopolitical dynamics and the subsequent "War on Terror." This paper aims to explore Islamic teachings that prohibit violence and terrorism, the debates among Islamic scholars regarding the punishment for such acts, and the geopolitical motivations behind portraying Islam as a threat. By doing so, it seeks to provide a comprehensive understanding of the impact of this framing on international relations, public perceptions, and counter-terrorism strategies. The paper concludes with a set of strategic recommendations aimed at promoting accurate representations of Islam. These recommendations emphasize the importance of nuanced and informed public discourse, the role of educational initiatives in dispelling myths and stereotypes, and the need for collaborative international efforts to enhance global counter-terrorism strategies. Additionally, the paper calls for fostering international cooperation to address the root causes of terrorism, such as political repression, socio-economic inequalities, and foreign interventions, thereby promoting a more just and peaceful global order.

The Public Sphere Is “Too Darn Hot”: Social Identity Complexity as a Basis for Authentic Communication

A growing body of research suggests that the contemporary media environment enables motivated reasoning, which intensifies affective polarization. This is especially the case in the U.S., where elections are capital-intensive and media are largely commercially owned. From a normative perspective, these commercial forces may interfere with authentic communication by hijacking the “lifeworld” and thus undermining the sincerity of our speech. From a psychological and empirical perspective, this means we are an affective public steeping in “hot cognitions” that unconsciously motivate us toward processing (mis)information in biased and distorted ways. This kind of cognitive limitation intensifies as current affairs heat up, but starts well before, as a function of media market boundaries aligning with human psychology. Through a synthetic literature review of theory and empirical research, this essay argues that “social identity complexity” may help to overcome some of the worst outcomes of motivated reasoning, pointing toward a developmental basis for more authentic communication in the public sphere.

“No longer the haven of tolerance”? The press and discursive shifts on immigration in Sweden 2010–2022

ABSTRACT The article explores key trajectories of Swedish press discourse on immigration in the period 2010–2022 which covers a variety of socio-economic and political developments including parliamentary entry and growth of the immigration-critical Swedish far-right. Analysing the press across its key variants (liberal/conservative, nationwide/regional, broadsheet/tabloid), the article points to how dynamics of the press discourse on immigration locates within the key “discursive shifts” in the wider Swedish public sphere, including those related to regular political events such as national-parliamentary elections (of 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022) as well as those marked by other, pivotal contextual factors such as the 2015–2016 European “Refugee Crisis.” Deploying a systematic, multi-method approach from within critical discourse studies, the article leads to a number of findings, including on the gradual change and the apparent negativisation of the analysed press discourse over time. It highlights that the increasing hybridity and ambivalence of discursive constructions of immigration in the press are among the key factors underlying their alignment with the wider logic of the public sphere in Sweden, and especially with developments in Swedish political discourse in recent years.

Incursions, incisions, omissions: liberal imperialism, violence and British Southeast Asia in Francis Leggatt Chantrey, Major General Robert Rollo Gillespie , and Joseph Edgar Boehm, Richard Southwell Bourke, sixth earl of Mayo

This article considers the sculpted monuments in St Paul’s Cathedral to nineteenth-century protagonists in Britain’s invasion and rule of Southeast Asian territories (including Burma (Myanmar), Indonesia and the Andaman Islands). It focuses on two works in particular: Sir Francis Leggatt Chantrey’s monument to Major General Robert Rollo Gillespie, and the monument to Richard Southwell Bourke, sixth earl of Mayo and viceroy of India, attributed to Joseph Edgar Boehm. The first commemorates the man considered by his supporters to be the hero of the British East Indies after smashing a hole in the Indigenous power structures of the Indonesian archipelago so that it could be claimed for British India. The second remembers a man who was one of the British East Indies’ many victims, even as he ran the place. His story and his monument indicate the extent to which Southeast Asia became a region to which British India despatched its problems – and in which the liberal ideology used to justify nineteenth-century British imperialism met its limits. These two men’s imperial histories and sculpted memorials are read in turn as distinct and divergent instances of liberal imperialism’s simultaneous dependence upon, and denial of, its own capacity for brutal violence. The article argues that, viewed up close and in context, both monuments bear traces of that violence, its consequences, and the alibis, omissions and occlusions with which it was – and, in the neoliberal present, continues to be – cloaked in public discourse.

Selected for Solitude: A Case Report of Loneliness.

The U.S. Surgeon General, Vivek Murthy, recently declared loneliness a public health epidemic. For therapists, that is not likely to be a surprise: Loneliness is so common in people who seek therapy that it might be seen as the bread and butter of our work. Despite that, there has not been much serious examination of intrapsychic factors that may contribute to this painful condition. Public discourse has focused instead on cultural and societal causes of loneliness, and on practical steps that might be taken to decrease it. But practical advice is not always sufficient for people with longstanding loneliness. Longstanding loneliness may be fueled by intrapsychic dynamics and become embedded in character. In some cases, patients may relish companionship yet steadfastly avoid it in an attempt to master early childhood experiences of being emotionally neglected and deprived of love. They were starved of love as children and now choose to starve themselves in an unconscious attempt to master early deprivation by identifying with the aggressor. For patients like this, chronic loneliness may signal a certain kind of attachment disorder, for it is the visible sign of early attachment to a distant or rejecting parental figure. Loneliness of that kind can be a stubborn problem and one that poses a considerable therapeutic challenge.

The perception of Ukrainians about political life in the post-war period and the prospects for the spread of populism

The non-acceptance by the majority of the population of Ukraine of the idea of elections during a full-scale war is a forced prolongation of the legitimacy of existing state institutions. Ukrainians understand all the risks of such elections for the political system under martial law, agreeing to the norms of legislation and compliance with democratic procedures. At the same time, a sufficiently significant number of the population is forming, which does not share the monopolization of power during the war by one political force. Accumulation of political issues, which will be expressed in the post-war period, will become a significant challenge for the political class of Ukraine. The low level of trust in existing political parties and the growing demand for new political forces can become a favorable background for the spread of anti-elitist ideas of populism. In public opinion, there is a demand mostly for politicians from the military environment and to a lesser extent from expert and civil sectors, intelligentsia, and volunteers. Reconstruction of the post-war economy will require non-standard solutions, in particular, optimization of expenditures in the social sphere and maximum liberalization. Several innovations will not have support in the mass consciousness. In particular, Ukrainians are mostly in favor of free medicine and education, a ban on the sale of land to foreigners, and assigning responsibility for increasing people’s incomes to the state, not to the individual. The lack of financial resources after the end of the war can accelerate the growing social deprivation. The combination of these potentially conflicting attitudes with a high level of antagonism and intolerance to a different political point of view can be skilfully «warmed up» by populist forces.

Generative AI Generating Buzz: Volume, Engagement, and Content of Initial Reactions to ChatGPT in Discussions Across Education-Related Subreddits

The emergence of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has ignited intense debates regarding its potential benefits and detriments for education. Despite such widespread discussions, insights into GenAI's impact have often been limited to anecdotal evidence and a narrow scope of educational stakeholders. To understand the broader response to GenAI tools in education, we collected and analyzed public online discussions of ChatGPT, a leading GenAI tool, in the first four months following the tool’s release. We collected 345 posts and 6,463 comments about ChatGPT from 25 education-focused subreddits. We analyzed the volume, engagement, and content of ChatGPT discussions through descriptive statistics and natural language processing techniques. Findings show relatively low volume of ChatGPT discussions, unevenly spread across education-related subreddits—with the majority of the discussions occurring in two subreddits while six subreddits did not have any discussions. Despite this, the level of engagement within ChatGPT posts was substantial; for instance, a ChatGPT post hosted a median of 15 comments, and these comments were lengthy, indicating rich engagement rather than superficial. The content of ChatGPT discussions across the six largest education-related subreddits differed in the degree of analytical thinking and emotional tone even while sharing a predominant focus on students and AI. Diverse reactions to and perspectives on GenAI—observed from varied levels of volume, engagement, and content of ChatGPT across educational-related subreddits—highlights how diverse educational stakeholders reacted to GenAI differently, offering insights into how to explore, analyze, comprehend the spread and adoption of technological innovation in education.

Domestication theory in action: Indonesian Twitter corpus analysis during distance learning

This research aims at analyzing how COVID-19 discourse in the world of education unfolds in the Indonesian Twittersphere by separating public discourse in transition periods, large-scale social restrictions (PSBB), and imposition of emergency restrictions toward community activities (PPKM) and PPKM level 1 to 4. This research used qualitative approach and employed the Domestication Theory to provide a deeper understanding of how individuals integrate technology into their everyday lives. The dataset consisting of 3,196,627 tweets from two keywords and two hashtags was collected and analyzed using corpus linguistics techniques. This study found the emergence of the five main theme groups suggests that users have tried to make sense of and adapt to this new digital learning environment, while also expressing their frustrations and concerns. This highlights the importance of understanding how users domesticate technology and incorporate it into their social and cultural practices. The practical implications of this research include the need to address not only the technical aspects of online learning but also the psychological and social well-being of students, as they navigate this new learning environment.

Social protection strategies in relations between Ukraine and the European Union

In today’s world, social protection is becoming an increasingly important topic that combines economic, political, and social aspects. Regardless of the level of development of a country, people are constantly looking for ways to ensure their well-being and protect themselves from negative influences. Social protection strategies are of particular importance in relations between Ukraine and the European Union. Ukraine, as a sovereign state, monitors the needs of its population and tries to adapt its social system to European standards. Therefore, the purpose of the study is to analyze the current state and prospects for the development of social protection strategies in Ukraine in the context of cooperation with the European Union to identify possible areas for improving the social sphere and ensuring a high level of social protection for the Ukrainian population. The study uses a variety of methods, including analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, comparative legal, dialectical, and others. Considering cooperation with the European Union helps to solve socioeconomic problems and ensure a high level of social protection.

Abortion as an ethical-religious problem in Islam

The relevance of this article lies in the increasingly active public discussion among Muslims, the challenge posed by the induced termination of pregnancy by Muslims and the problems stemming from it. The increasing calls from Muslims to the spiritual authorities for clarification of this issue in various countries confirm this trend. However, a comprehensive understanding of Islamic attitudes towards induced abortion remains poorly understood. Islamic discourse permeates the entire socio- cultural facet of Muslim society. It is transforming and developing among the communities of modern Muslim countries, matching the dynamics of changes in attitudes on the issue of induced termination of pregnancy from the early Middle Ages to the beginning of the ХХI century inclusive. In this regard, the purpose of this work is to describe and reveal the question about the use of abortion in the Islamic world. In the study specific “introductory” examples from the Muslim world are presented for disclosure given by those. In the course of this study, the topic of abortion as a social and medical phenomenon was briefly studied and covered through the lens of terminology, social, medical, religious and legislative factors. The process of transforming Islamic religious ethics with regard to abortion is briefly outlined. In the sequence since the beginning of Islam and the development of this religious speech in the ХХI century, the prism of the views of the Sunni and Shiitic directions, as well as the 4 Sunni theological schools, in the context of solving the problem of abortion. Examples were provided of legislative solutions to the problem of induced termination of pregnancy in some Muslim countries, Asia Minor, the Middle East, North Africa and Australia. The materials of this article contribute to the study of ethical and religious problems in Islam.

Book review: Dhananjay Rai, Contested Representation: Dalits, Popular Hindi Cinema, and Public Sphere

Book review: Dhananjay Rai, Contested Representation: Dalits, Popular Hindi Cinema, and Public Sphere

Framing Identity and Gender in Public Discourse: A Corpus Analysis of Representation of North Korean Female Defectors

Framing Identity and Gender in Public Discourse: A Corpus Analysis of Representation of North Korean Female Defectors