Relational Perspective Research Articles

Commoning as Social Struggle

The article provides an empirical insight into urban initiatives that advocate for better urban mobility infrastructures and outlines a theoretical perspective of commoning infrastructures as a terrain for political struggles. Rather than constructing commons as the interplay of methodologically presumed elements (resources, a community of commoners, and their institutions of commoning) it takes a relational perspective on commoning that asks how activists mobilize and relate heterogeneous elements to make urban mobility infrastructures a common political concern. Based on ethnographic fieldwork on mobility activism in Berlin, the second part of the article illustrates such a relational perspective and presents three modes of commoning. To achieve what is called “mobility transition” (i. e. more sustainable and equitable urban mobility infrastructures), activists rely on mobilizations of knowledge, space, and affect.

Descriptive qualitative study of breathlessness and its management of Turkish individuals with self-reported heart failure

AimsTo explore the experiences of individuals with heart failure, with a specific focus on elucidating the full spectrum of symptoms experienced and their subjective descriptions of breathlessness and self-management strategies...

Neither gift nor loan: the strategic use of pseudo-formality at the nexus of intimacy and economy

Abstract In this paper, I introduce the concept of pseudo-formality as a novel form of relational work in economic sociology. Pseudo-formality refers to the performative use of formal aesthetics, such as contracts and repayment plans, in financial exchanges between close ties—as both parties tacitly understand that the agreement is flexible and not legally binding. I argue that pseudo-formality works by leveraging the signaling function of formal market elements in a way that contradicts their typical purpose, allowing for the compartmentalization of the economic and social aspects of the exchange. Through two complementary vignette experiments, I demonstrate that pseudo-formal framing enhances the perceived dignity of the recipient and the respect conveyed by the giver, compared to formal, informal, or gift-based arrangements. This effect partially mediates the relationship between the type of exchange and its overall acceptability. This research contributes to relational work perspectives in economic sociology by identifying a prevalent but understudied strategy for navigating the intersection of intimacy and economy, and highlights the adaptability of economic forms for relational purposes. The findings have practical implications for interpersonal exchanges as well as the design of financial assistance programs and policies, suggesting that pseudo-formal structures can provide a dignified and empowering means of support.

Co-evolutionary decoupling in EMNEs’ internationalisation: A Chinese bank's journey of drifting apart from the US-led global financial system

We develop a co-evolutionary decoupling model to explain the decoupling process and its contributors, based on a Chinese bank's dynamic interdependency with the US-led global financial system. This decoupling is the joint outcome of the firm's strategic adaptations in response to economic, institutional, and geopolitical environmental challenges. By incorporating co-evolution and international relations perspectives into international business research, we reveal how and when non-economic environmental factors can decisively hinder a firm's, especially an EMNE's, internationalisation. This study provides new firm-level evidence on the ongoing Sino-US decoupling process, extending our understanding of international business through co-evolution and international relations perspectives.

Exploring the Impact of Student-Elicited Video Feedback on Evaluative Judgement

Students are active players in feedback processes, often seeking and eliciting feedback information to understand expected quality standards regarding their assignments. While student-elicited feedback can benefit learning, little is known about its impact on students' evaluative judgement and how best to leverage it. Hence, this paper examines two technology-mediated feedback encounters elicited by a student through videos sent to her teachers in a blended unit of a postgraduate education course at an Australian university. The student sought feedback information to understand whether her project proposal met the task requirements. Results showed that those two feedback encounters were productive, suggesting that these interactions iteratively refined her focus and calibrated her understanding of the quality standards of the assignment. By exploring the conditions that enabled the student to elicit feedback encounters, we identified that strategies used in the context of the unit, like earlier opportunities for feedback, timeliness of feedback comments and use of video feedback to provide clear, detailed, and supportive information could potentially enable productive feedback encounters. Additionally, our findings suggest that a relational perspective of feedback is equally important to build a trusting and supportive environment that encourages students to elicit feedback encounters.

From “snowflake generation” to “agents of social change”: Recognizing the voice of Spanish young people in the post-pandemic era

This article uses 60 in-depth interviews with young Spanish people and contributes to studies on youth geographies of future in post-pandemic. The paper gives young people a voice by analysing two interlinked concepts: (l) the “snowflake generation” – “generación de cristal” – which was popularized in Spain as a fragile and insecure generation and consequently exhibiting a lack of tolerance and frustration in the face of unachieved goals; and (2) “agents of change”, included on broader perspectives of youth activism, meaning a generation motivated by the desire to construct a regenerated post-pandemic society. My hypothesis is that the fragility of the younger generation after the pandemic has transformed over time into an aspiration and motivation to become agents of social change. The findings highlight that young people are using their technological knowledge and resilience to overcome fragility, participating and demanding recognition of their criticisms and perceptions of injustice. The conclusions offer a better understanding of young people and their capacity to be responsible and innovative, converting weakness into strength. They show the need to advance theoretical and empirical understanding of younger perspectives in relation to how they want to change and make a greater contribution to future society.

When France Advised Syria: Cooperation as a Principle of Recognition, and its Limits

Abstract This article is a re-examination of cooperation in international relations through the example of Franco-Syrian relations between 2001 and 2004. I explore how cooperation fulfils – or not – a function of recognition, especially in the case of countries under unequal terms. Based on archival research and interviews, the article analyses three concrete moments of cooperation between Syria and France during this time. While traditional Franco-Syrian cooperation, prior to 2000, was based on a mutual recognition of partners, in the aftermath of presidential change in Syria in 2000 and within the shifting regional context, the Franco-Syrian relationship seemed to be marked by an inequality. Therefore, the article aims to capture the symbols of this recognition between France and Syria, and to study the role of cooperation not only in deepening a bilateral relationship, but – in a new perspective in international relations – in undermining it.

Violence Against Women and Girls in Zimbabwe: A Review of a Decade of the Empirical Literature.

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is a complex social problem affecting many women globally. In Zimbabwe, intimate partner violence (IPV) and child marriages remain persistent public health problems with detrimental effects on the health and well-being of women and girls. Statistics show that Zimbabwe has one of the highest rates of IPV and child marriage in sub-Saharan Africa. Given this background, this paper systematically reviewed published research on VAWG in Zimbabwe from 2012 to 2022 to identify research gaps. Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses, we systematically searched for literature across five electronic databases: Web of Science, Medline, Psych-Info via EBSCO-Host, and Google Scholar. Our initial search yielded 261 articles, of which only 45 met our inclusion criteria. We summarized these studies using thematic analysis and performed a quality assessment using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. The findings revealed several gaps, including a limited focus on relational and perpetrator perspectives, insufficient attention to other forms of VAWG such as non-partner sexual violence, rape, and trafficking, and a lack of studies on marginalized groups such as people with disabilities, sex workers, and same-sex couples. In addition, there were no longitudinal studies examining trends and dynamics of VAWG over extended periods or comparing different geographical regions. Few studies also focused on the evaluation of interventions. Although significant progress has been made in addressing VAWG, this review underscores the need for more research to fill these gaps for effective and evidence-based policymaking and response strategies.

From cognitive processes to discursive practices: Taking a critical discursive psychology approach to refugee and asylum seeker integration

AbstractMuch of the research in social and cultural psychology on refugee integration or acculturation has tended to adopt a socio‐cognitive approach which assumes this to be a ‘process’ with a defined outcome that can be measured as successful or not. Such approaches tend to overlook the rhetorical function of talk about integration and in this article I show how research from a critical discursive psychology perspective in relation to refugees and asylum seekers has typically focussed on media, political and lay discourses about refugees. However, more recent research has focussed on analysing the talk of refugees themselves which I will show points towards the importance of shifting how refugee integration is considered and that taking a critical discursive psychological approach suggests that, in the context of research focusing on integration, a shift from ‘processes’ to situated ‘practices’ is useful where meaning is at stake.

Applications Of Photodynamic Therapy In Periodontal Diseases

Background: According to A. Marcacci et al (1888), when many reports emerged on light absorbing properties and of fluorescence of various dyes, it became clear that dye excitation by light exerts destructive action in biological systems. This so-called photodynamic action was described as a process in which light, after being absorbed by dyes sensitizes organisms for visible light inducing cell damage. The supra- and subgingival plaque biofilm on tooth surfaces should easily be accessible for flushing with the dye and for activating them by light. Thus, periodontal diseases are promising applications of Photodynamic Therapy. Introduction: Chronic periodontitis is the most common periodontal disease which is related to the chronic accumulation of bacterial plaque. Since mechanical methods are not sufficient in the treatment of this disease, administration of local/systemic antibiotic is recommended following mechanical debridement. However, side effects of antibiotics such as microbial resistance and patient allergy led to development of alternative methods. One of these suggested methods is the antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT). PDT is a local noninvasive treatment modality without the side effects caused by antibiotics. Objectives: In this review, the mechanism of action of PDT and its application in the treatment of various periodontal conditions along with its future trends are discussed. Conclusion: Even though PDT is still in experimental stages of development and testing, the method may be an adjunct to conventional antibacterial measures in periodontology and Implant related perspectives.

Unveiling military strategic narratives on social media: a civil–military relations perspective

ABSTRACT Although the armed forces’ social media narratives on operations can significantly influence public support, the rationale behind their decision-making process remains unclear. Drawing on civil–military relations theory, we explain the logic behind military decision-making in crafting these narratives. We argue that the strategic narratives of the armed forces are deeply influenced by their relationship with society. The nature of this relationship determines how the military balances two essential imperatives: promoting the armed forces’ representation within the parent society and highlighting the distinct characteristics of the armed forces. This balance influences the extent to which operations are narrated (circulation or non-circulation) within the overall narration and how they are presented. We test our argument by analysing the Italian Army’s Twitter communication. Tweets are analysed using an unsupervised LDA topic model on the entire corpus, manual coding of a subset on international missions and a mixed-method analysis. Our article contributes to the scholarship on public opinion and war, using an original methodology to analyse the strategic narratives of an overlooked actor. It also contributes to civil–military relations, suggesting an innovative method for studying the relationship between the armed forces and society.

Sustainability in global industrial shipping chains: a positivist perspective of international relations

Supply chain sustainability has become a critical topic in management studies. It involves reevaluating performance and logistics practices by incorporating an increasing number of stakeholders to create a more socially and environmentally responsible supply chain. However, supply chain sustainability is not solely a business concern; it is also managed by public authorities at both national and supranational levels. While most research in supply chain management is traditionally guided by theories such as stakeholder theory and resource- and capability-based views, this paper offers a discussion on supply chain sustainability from the perspective of International Relations, specifically through realist and liberalist lenses. The paper concludes by highlighting the contributions of this approach and identifying potential areas for future research.

Neither Employment nor Self‐Employment: Avenues Towards Functional Platform‐Mediated Work Systems

ABSTRACTDigital labour platforms are contested because they create work relationships that neither fall into the category of traditional employment nor fulfil the criteria of freelance work due to platforms’ heavy interference in the work process. Although existing research has elucidated different pathways for improving the working conditions of platform workers, we develop an employment relations perspective on platform‐mediated work systems building on David Marsden's theory of employment systems. On the basis of an assessment of the psychological, economic and legal contracts underlying platform‐mediated work, we discuss the limited functionality of these contracts in their ability to control opportunism among platforms, workers and clients. Our analysis contributes to existing debates by providing a theoretically informed framework for analysing the design of platform‐mediated work systems and their consequences for the participating parties. Our insights add nuance to the platform regulation debate by going beyond the question of worker classification towards understanding the organizational and institutional elements of the work system that need to be redesigned and supported by appropriate institutional safeguards. An employment systems perspective also allows for reflection on the economic, societal, sectoral and strategic conditions that could drive such changes.

A preliminary examination of teachers’ and parents’ perspective on sexually inclusive primary education: The role of homophobic prejudice and moral disengagement

Sexually inclusive primary education, namely a school environment that uses inclusive practices toward sexual minorities contributes to students’ psychological and learning adaptation. Therefore, it is essential primary school stakeholders’ perspective on sexually inclusive education to be explored, since this could facilitate the effective implementation of related prevention/awareness programs targeted at students. Nevertheless, teachers’ and parents’ related perspective, as main school stakeholders, as well as the predictive value of their homophobic prejudice and moral disengagement remain an under-investigated research field. The present study examined comparatively teachers’ and parents’ perspective on sexually inclusive primary education. Furthermore, the predictive role of homophobic prejudice and moral disengagement was investigated for each subgroup. Overall, 249 primary school teachers (78% women) of the fifth and sixth grades from randomly selected Greek public schools and 268 parents (81% mothers) of children who attended the above grades of the participating schools completed an online self-reported questionnaire on the variables involved. In general, participants expressed a relatively conservative perspective on sexually inclusive primary education, with teachers’ perspective being less inclusive than that of the parents. Teachers’ related perspective was predicted negatively mainly by homophobic prejudice and secondarily by moral disengagement. Parents’ corresponding perspective was predicted negatively only by moral disengagement. Despite the differentiated perspective between the two subgroups, the findings imply that both teachers and parents need to attend prevention/awareness actions regarding students’ sexual diversity and their school inclusion. Within these actions, differentiated experiential activities could be implemented for teachers and parents to combat homophobic prejudice and/or moral disengagement.

Initial symptoms and late complication in Lyme neuroborreliosis from the perspective of patients and relatives: a qualitative study

BackgroundLyme borreliosis is by far the most common vector-borne infection in Western Europe. The most severe manifestation of Lyme borreliosis is Lyme neuroborreliosis (LNB). In LNB symptoms vary from mild to severe and may include late complications that involve both physical and/or neurocognitive constraints. An estimated 25–28% of the LNB population suffers from late complications. This study investigates patient and relative perspectives on everyday life with LNB symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment to identify areas for improvement of healthcare.MethodsA focus group was conducted at Odense University Hospital, Denmark. The focus group comprised 16 participants, nine patients diagnosed with LNB who had been treated at the Clinical Center for Emerging and Vector-borne Infections, and seven relatives of the patients’ choice. The focus group lasted 2 ½ hours and was audio recorded as well as documented in field notes.ResultsData analysis was grounded in the conceptual framework of critical psychology and resulted in three main themes: (1) Burden of LNB symptoms in everyday life, (2) A break in the conduct of everyday life caused by LNB and (3) Need for transparent pathways to specialist knowledge.ConclusionsBefore diagnosis and treatment, each patient reported varying degrees of non-treatable pain, and cognitive and/or musculoskeletal symptoms. Visible physical symptoms were rare. All patients had experienced that their bodily symptoms remained unaddressed throughout numerous encounters with the healthcare system. The course of LNB comes with a break in patients’ everyday lives and self-understandings affecting their ability to work and manage everyday activities. Patients and relatives strongly recommend a specialised LNB clinic.

Race, Interests, and Perceptions in International Migration: A Review Article

Abstract The field of international migration has largely ignored race. Does the Global North's apparent warm welcome of mostly white Ukrainian Orthodox Christians fleeing Russia's war and its hostility towards black and brown non-Christan Middle Easterners and Africans escaping war and deprivation tell us anything? Although latecomers to the study of international migration, since the 1990s, political scientists have innovated the field of the politics of international migration but few works locate race as a focal point of analysis in either migration politics or international relations. The study of race in international migration in international relations is still rather nascent and centers on the Western world with a focus on how racial differences influence perception of threat, common identities, and even standards of good governance. Andrew Rosenberg's book Undesirable Immigrants: Why Racism Persists in International Migration offers a corrective to much of this in his examination of race and international migration from the perspective of international relations. It builds on the work of many critical and traditional scholars with a novel quantitative approach that “seeks to unmask” the issue of racial bias against “non-white migrants” primarily from the Global South. (11)

How relationship shapes the market: an ethnographic study of French tire industry

Based on a two-year autoethnographic research in the car tire trade, this study of market exchanges examines how merchants’ relationships with customers enable and sustain exchange by shaping market arrangements. Referring to these relationships as an attachment process at work in the market, this study demonstrates the relational influence wielded by merchants through the ideational, practical, and emotional ties they cultivated with customers. These framed, patterned, and emotionally meaningful relationships show that market embeddedness is endogenously produced and exerts an impact upon customers, competition, demand, and supply. Complementing the conventional economic transactional view of market, our findings contribute to a relational perspective and understanding of market dynamics.

Systems Thinking Principles for Making Change

Traditionally, systems thinking support has relied on an ever-increasing plethora of systems tools, methods, and approaches. Arguably though, such support requires something different from, and more accessible than, detailed instruction on somewhat abstract laws and detailed principles and/or constitutive rules associated with conventional systems approaches or systems ‘tools of the trade’. For busy managers and decision makers working in often-stressful conditions, what is perhaps more valued are simple principles for enabling systems thinking in practice. Such principles should acknowledge and build on existing (multi)disciplinary skill sets and expertise, allowing for more meaningful interdisciplinary support amongst professions, as part of a nested transdisciplinary support for addressing wider social challenges. This monograph offers three principles of systems thinking in practice (STiP): relational STiP, perspective STiP, and adaptive STiP. They each have two sets of operational principles applicable to first-order and second-order practice, respectively. The three general principles are nested in an overriding principle of STiP as praxis (theory-informed action or thinking in practice) manifest in the need for being both systemic and systematic. The three principles represent a distilled expression of a systematic literacy of systems thinking, a literacy that speaks to the systemic sensibilities of Inter-relationships, Perspectives, and Boundaries (sometimes referred collectively as IPB), associated with any area of intervention. Drawing on metaphors of bricolage, conversation, and performance, and building on philosophical foundations of boundary critique, the three principles provide for a requisite systems literacy (as an emergent property of systemic sensibilities and systems thinking literacy) for enabling appropriate STiP capabilities to flourish when making a meaningful change.

Children’s Guerrilla Play and Dirt Jumps: Parkland as Contested Space During the Covid-19 Pandemic in Australia

AbstractIn 2020-21 the Victorian state government in Australia imposed 262 days of sustained lockdown on Melbourne’s population in a bid to contain the COVID pandemic. These lockdowns, among the longest in the world, affected young people especially. Children were subjected to months of curfews, home schooling using digital platforms and severe travel. Nonetheless some children engaged repeatedly in autonomous and well co-ordinated efforts to construct dirt jumps and ride their bikes in urban public parklands in eastern Melbourne. This article is mindful of a long tradition of scholarly work tracing the ways young people have used public space, and contested ‘adultist’ representations of them and regulations affecting the use of public space. We address three questions: Why and how did children design, construct and use dirt bike jumps during the COVID pandemic in public parklands? How did Victorian local councils and others like police, older residents and mainstream media respond to children’s construction of DIY dirt jumps? How were these spontaneous DIY dirt jumps understood by Victorian local councils? Adopting a composite case study method and employing a relational perspective, we draw on images, participant observation, field notes, documents and webpage analysis to answer the research questions. We document how children used urban parklands to hang out, to onstruct and use bike jumps during the lockdowns. We show how they challenged adult representations of themselves and public space which depicted their bike riding and the jump making as anti-social and illegal. Meanwhile local governments continued through the COVID-19 pandemic to proclaim the value of ‘youth participation.’ When that youth participation involved young people initiating and managing projects themselves, their conduct was deemed unlawful as councils continued denying them any meaningful opportunities to exercise autonomy, or have say in important policy decisions. In the final section of the article say why providing insider accounts of what happens is useful for good policy-making and professional practice.

Crisis management from a relational perspective: an analysis of interorganizational transboundary crisis networks

Abstract Although transboundary crises have gained relevance in an increasingly interdependent world, our understanding of the relational dynamics governing these phenomena remains limited. This paper addresses this knowledge gap by identifying common characteristics across interorganizational transboundary crisis networks and drivers of tie formation in successful structures. For this purpose, it applies descriptive Social Network Analysis and Exponential Random Graph Models to an original dataset of three networks. Results show that these structures combine elements of issue networks and policy communities. Common features include moderately high centralization, reciprocated ties, core-periphery structures, and the popularity of international organizations. Additionally, successful networks display smooth communication between NGOs and international organizations, whereas unsuccessful networks have fewer heterophilous interactions. Transitivity seems to play a role in network success too. These findings suggest that crisis networks are robust structures that reconcile bridging and bonding dynamics, thereby highlighting how evidence from relational studies could guide transboundary crisis management.