Human Sciences Research Research Articles

Planning for the future—the integration of genetics into cancer care

As health care professionals, we stand at the crossroads of a new age in our field. Discoveries emanating from the Human Genome Project and basic science research are announced almost daily and are transforming practice at an equally rapid rate. In the words of Dr Francis Collins, Director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, “Genetic discoveries will impact every nook and cranny of our practice.” 1 Collins FS. The Human Genome Project and the future of medicine. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1999; 882: 42-55 Crossref PubMed Scopus (41) Google Scholar

Hvad er social kapital?

What is social capital?
 
 What is social capital and how is it defined? “Social capital” has been introduced as a concept capable of linking together the human sciences. Social capital has been defined as the profits of network co-operation, that is, as a resource in line with financial and human capital. Cross-disciplinary human science research has shown that social capital can be accumulated both at micro- and macro-levels. This article analyses the various definitions and applications of the concept. Taking Bourdieu’s definition as a starting point, it shows how the concept has been elaborated by American sociologists and political scientists.

Trend of International Standardization on Human Science Research of Railway Systems

Trend of International Standardization on Human Science Research of Railway Systems

An Interview with Iris Marion Young

Iris Marion Young is Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago.She is affiliated with the Gender Studies Center and the Human Rights Program.Her research interests are in contemporary political theory, feminist social theory and normative analysis of public policy.Her books include Justice and the Politics of Difference (Princeton University Press, 1990), Throwing Like a Girl and Other Essays in Feminist Philosophy and Social Theory (Indiana University Press, 1990), Intersecting Voices: dilemmas of gender, political philosophy, and policy (Princeton University Press, 1997) and Inclusion and Democracy (Oxford University Press, 2000).Her writings have been translated into several languages, including German, Italian, Spanish and Swedish.She has lectured widely in North American, Europe, Australia and South Africa.Professor Young's teaching interests range broadly, including contemporary theories of justice, democracy and difference; feminist political theory; continental political theory including Foucault and Habermas; ethics and international affairs; gender, race and public policy.Professor Young holds a PhD in philosophy from the Pennsylvania State University, 1974.Before coming to the University of Chicago she taught political theory for nine years in the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh and before then taught philosophy at several institutions, including the Worchester Polytechnic Institute and Miami University.During the summer term of 1995, Professor Young was a Visiting Professor of Philosophy at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt Germany.Dr Young has held a visiting Fellowship at several universities around the world including Princeton University, the Institute for Human Science in Vienna, Australian National University and the Human Sciences Research Council of South Africa.Her work continues to receive world wide acknowledgement and recognition

PARTNERS IN PASSAGE: THE EXPERIENCE OF MARRIAGE IN MID-LIFE

AbstractThe purpose of this phenomenological study is to describe the experience of enduring marriage in mid-life. The literature reveals a lack of research about contemporary mid-life marriage, reflecting only theoretical pieces and research studies on marital happiness, factors that make a marriage successful, and variables contributing to divorce. Noticeably absent are studies conducted from a phenomenological philosophical perspective. Questioning what enduring marriage involves for individuals in mid-life served to orient the researchers to the meaning of the experience. Seventeen volunteers participated in twenty-six initial and follow-up interviews. Using van Manen's methodological structure of human science research, a composite description that reflects enduring marriage in mid-life emerged. Two essential themes that characterize the experience, The Threads that Bind Us and A Season of Change and seven sub-themes explicating these essential themes portray the partnership of enduring mid-life marriage. The themes that comprise the structure of the experience reflect its form as a relational, time-space, and corporeal phenomenon. The findings are described in detail using narrative description in order to offer a rich account of each theme, and the implications provide a direction for future research.

Human science research in public health: the contribution and assessment of a qualitative approach.

Human science research in public health: the contribution and assessment of a qualitative approach.

Human monochromosome hybrid cell panel characterized by FISH in the JCRB/HSRRB.

The human monochromosome hybrid cell panel in the Japanese Collection of Research Bioresources (JCRB) consists of 23 mouse cell clones, each containing a different human chromosome (the Y chromosome is not yet included). The panel is currently distributed by the Human Science Research Resources Bank (HSRRB) in Osaka. In order to determine the state of the human chromosomes and to supply the information to investigators, we characterized the cells by fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH) with corresponding human chromosome-specific painting probes, and, in part, by reverse FISH with the hybrid total DNA hybridized onto human metaphase spreads. Here, we report the frequency of intact human chromosomes maintained in each hybrid and the retained subregions of corresponding human chromosomes with relative frequencies estimated by fluorescent intensity. We used specific painted patterns to classify each hybrid into tentative types with their frequencies showing the nature of each hybrid and the state of rearrangements. This characterization will provide valuable information to investigators using the panel.

Free and fair: voters’ evaluation of the 1999 election

A representative sample survey of voters conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) on Election Day revealed that the vast majority of South African voters believe that the election was free and fair, with marginal differences in opinion between racial groups. Most voters lived in close proximity to a voting station and were able to reach it on foot. Although lengthy queues delayed voting at some voting stations, one in two voters waited for less than 30 minutes before voting. Less than 2 per cent indicated that they had been under pressure to vote for a particular party. These positive perceptions, together with the relatively high percentage poll, signal a high degree of national consensus across racial and party political divides about the legitimacy of the election process in South Africa.

Evaluering van argumente in navorsingsverslae

Some authors on research methodology are of opinion that research reports are based on the logic of reasoning and that such reports communicate with the reader by presenting logical, coherent arguments (Böhme, 1975:206; Mouton, 1996:69). This view implies that researchers draw specific conclusions and that such conclusions are justified by way of reasoning (Doppelt, 1998:105; Giere, 1984:26; Harre, 1965:11; Leherer & Wagner, 1983 & Pitt, 1988:7). The structure of a research report thus consists mainly of conclusions and reasons for such conclusions (Booth, Colomb & Williams, 1995:97). From this it appears that justification by means of reasoning is a standard procedure in research and research reports. Despite the fact that the logic of research is based on reasoning, that the justification of research findings by way of reasoning appears to be standard procedure and that the structure of a research report comprises arguments, the evaluation or assessment of research, as described in most textbooks on research methodology (Burns & Grove, 1993:647; Creswell, 1994:193; LoBiondo-Wood & Haber, 1994:441/481) does not focus on the arguments of research. The evaluation criteria for research reports which are set in these textbooks are related to the way in which the research process is carried out and focus on the measures for internal, external, theoretical, measurement and inferential validity. This means that criteria for the evaluation of research are comprehensive and they should be very specific in respect of each type of research (for example quantitative or qualitative). When the evaluation of research reports is focused on arguments and logic, there could probably be one set of universal standards against which all types of human science research reports can be assessed. Such a universal set of standards could possibly simplify the evaluation of research reports in the human sciences since they can be used to assess all the critical aspects of research reports. As arguments from the basic structure of research reports and are probably also important in the evaluation of research reports in the human sciences, the following questions which I want to answer, are relevant to this paper namely: What are the standards which the reasoning in research reports in the human sciences should meet? How can research reports in the human sciences be assessed or evaluated according to these standards? In answering the first question, the logical demands that are made on reasoning in research are investigated. From these demands the acceptability of the statements, relevance and support of the premises to the conclusion are set as standards for reasoning in research. In answering the second question, a research article is used to demonstrate how the macro- and micro-arguments of research reports can be assessed or evaluated according to these standards. With evaluation it is indicated that the aspects of internal, external, theoretical, measurement and inferential validity can be evaluated according to these standards.

Standardising the WAIS-III and the WMS-III for South Africa: Legislative, Psychometric, and Policy Issues

The South African Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) has entered into a licencing agreement with the Psychological Corporation to norm the third revision of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-Ill) for use with South African adults. The WAIS-III was co-normed in the United States with the Wechsler Memory Scale - 3rd Revision (WMS-III). Both scales were published in 1997, and both depart in important method, content, and factor analytic respects from their predecessors, the WAIS-R and the WMS-R. This paper reviews the innovations in these scales in the light of the special needs of the developing countries on the one hand, and the resistance of many psychologists in the developing countries to intelligence testing on the other; considers data that reflect on the construct validity of the Wechsler tests in a developing country context; puts forward a methodology that will contribute to the construct validation of the WAlS-III and the WMS-III; and argues that although the HSRC does not plan to standardise the WMS-III for South Africa, co-norming should be undertaken.

Metadata for South African Geographic Names Databases

AbstractThe relevance of adequate information on digital datasets of geographic names is being recognized world-wide. During the development of the geographic names databases of the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) it was found that descriptive background information or metadata on such databases is lacking in South Africa. The HSRC databases are discussed here in relation to the standards set to such databases, and to some of the problems of defining the information fields and technical issues of developing such large databases in digital format. Furthermore, the advantages of descriptive metadata relating to common data standards are explored in this context. Finally, reference is made to the formulation of a policy or framework for the South African context that would set the parameters to promote the optimal use of these datasets.

State, Society and Market

South African Journal of EconomicsVolume 65, Issue 3 p. 199-201 State, Society and Market (Review Note)1 First published: 22 August 2005 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1813-6982.1997.tb01373.x 1 Martinussen, J. Satiety, State and Market. A Guide to Competing Theories of Development. Human Sciences Research Council: Pretoria Zed Books: London, 1997. Pp. 386. AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Volume65, Issue3September 1997Pages 199-201 RelatedInformation

A lifeworld paradigm for nursing research.

This article is a companion to an earlier article entitled "Challenging a Reductionistic Paradigm as a Foundation for Nursing," which appeared in the December 1995 issue of the Journal of Holistic Nursing. The authors discuss how five concepts-encounter, openness, immediacy, uniqueness, and meaning-which constitute their philosophy for nursing practice, also comprise a foundation for human sciences research. In the first article, encounter was presented as the core concept for practice. In the present work, openness is the central idea in a lifeworld research paradigm, with encounter, immediacy, uniqueness, and meaning as supporting concepts. Openness is explicated with the notions of open-mindedness, open-heartedness, phenomenological questioning, and preunderstanding. A lifeworld paradigm for research is based on phenomenological philosophy and the understanding that the conduct of research is guided by the researcher's openness to the phenomena of the everyday world.

From Meaning to Method

This article explores aspects of the relation between language, meaning, and method in human science research. Phenomenology poses two distinct challenges: the thematic and the expressive dimensions of inquiry, which have implications for semantic and mantic, discursive and nondiscursive understanding. When we turn from thematic meaning to expressive meaning, then the question we ask turns from "What does the text speak about?" to "How does the text speak?" Bachelard, Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty, and Wittgenstein in different ways have employed the idea of mantic meaning to refer to that imagery of language that can bring about, in the reader, a phenomenological reverberation. The formative power of phenomenological texts lies precisely in this resonance that the word can effect. Research literature has focused primarily on the thematic aspects of human science method. Here, guiding principles of human science method will be explored that aim at strengthening the expressive-mantic dimension of phenomenology.

Perceptions of service delivery and happiness1

An important task for students of development is to monitor progress in bringing basic services to all South Africans, one of the major objectives of the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP). This article reports on a subjective indicator study which began in February 1995, nine months after the April 1994 elections. The study, commissioned by Information Update, a Human Sciences Research Council research publication, inquired into personal happiness and assessments of local public services including access to water, education, electricity, health care, roads and transport. Over 5 700 South Africans were polled during 1995 in three nationally representative sample surveys. Secondary data analysis showed that perceived improvements to local services were closely associated with increases in happiness among all sectors of the population, including rural dwellers and the poor. The article discusses the policy implications of this finding for future voting behaviour and efficient local government.

Restaging the Civil Ceremonies of Schooling1

1. Presented to the BEYOND FORM, the Human Science Research Conference, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, August 15, 1996.

Launching Democracy in South Africa: The First Open Election, April 1994, by R. W. Johnson and Lawrence Schlemmer

South Africa's first ever non-racial and multi-party election was one of the key global events of 1994. From the ashes of a repressive, segregated and racist state emerged - miraculously and relatively free of bloodshed - a multiracial and potentially compassionate new nation, led by one of the political icons of the late-20th-century, Nelson Mandela. In the year before the April 1994 election R.W. Johnson and Lawrence Schlemmer assembled a team of leading South African social scientists and political analysts to monitor the coming poll and its aftermath. The study was based at the non-partisan Institute for Multi-Party Democracy and the Human Sciences Research Council and a large network of observers of all political persuasions and many walks of life was put in place. The team monitored the campaign, party organization, the media and voter education efforts throughout the crucial and populous areas of the Western Cape, Natal and the Reef. The information generated was made available as a public information service to the media election monitors, voter educators and to all political parties equally and without charge. The team was invited to brief international observers from the UN, the OAU, the Commonwealth and the European Union. Using the resulting information base, this text looks at the course and context of the election, the results, the new constitution, party affiliation and loyalty, and the construction of policy consensus in the new South Africa. As a source of information and work of analysis, it represents a detailed account of the election and the polity that emerged from it.

Careerism vs. Ethics in Human Sciences ResearchResearch Ethics: Cases and Materials.Robin Levin Pensler

Previous articleNext article No AccessBooksCareerism vs. Ethics in Human Sciences Research Research Ethics: Cases and Materials. Robin Levin Pensler Amitabha BasuAmitabha Basu Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Current Anthropology Volume 37, Number 4Aug. - Oct., 1996 Sponsored by the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/204558 Views: 3Total views on this site Copyright 1996 The Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological ResearchPDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

Exploring peace education in South African settings

The Youth Project of the Centre for Resolution (CCR)-formerly known as the Centre for Intergroup Studies, an autonomous institute associated with the University of Cape Town-focuses on the field of constructive conflict resolution and peacemaking empowerment for young South Africans and is one of the pioneers in this field in South Africa. In 1992, the Human Sciences Research Council initiated a cooperative research program into South African youth and the problems and challenges they face. Among the program objectives were the initiation and support of research into South African youth, and the generation of academically sound research results with significant policy implications. CCR was commissioned to participate and submit a report titled Conflict Resolution and Peacemaking Among Youth. The report was

Principles for Partnership in Cross-Culrural Human Sciences Research with a Particular View to Archaeology

Principles for Partnership in Cross-Culrural Human Sciences Research with a Particular View to Archaeology