Social Explanations Research Articles

Kesurupan Massal di Sekolah Menengah: Kerasukan Roh Jahat atau Emotional Contagion?

This study aims to explore the phenomenon of mass trance in middle school. Previous studies in trance focused in individual psychological factors and view the trance as psychological disorder (hysteria). Mass trance shows behavior and emotion performed by students through interaction process. Thus, this phenomenon is not only viewed from clinical perspective, but also social psychology explanation. This study used grounded theory by performing interview on 17 informants (students and teachers) in a school with mass trance cases in Jakarta and Tangerang, and analysis on 31 video recordings about the online news on trance cases. The findings show that there are seven categories of factors on mass trance: emotional stimulus, mystical experiences, suggestability, supernatural interpretation, anomalous experience, unconditioned emotional response, and mimicry. Core category analysis shows that mass trance on middle school students indicates emotional contagion with supernatural beliefs nuance.

To be Seen, Not Just Read: Script Use on the Votive Prayer Tablets of Anime, Manga, and Game Fans

ABSTRACT This article proposes one social explanation for the occurrence of graphic variation in contemporary written Japanese by examining a heretofore unexamined context of writing. Embracing the material culture approach, I explore the ema (votive prayer tablets) dedicated at Shinto shrines by fans of popular culture media productions. Fans pen text on the ema that follows aesthetics of manga as well as online communication, incorporating features that are usually limited to print and online writing. Analyzing upwards of 2,000 ema from three shrines, this article proceeds to dissect a writing style composed of a mix of syllabaries and symbols using ‘thick description’ to evince the emotion behind fans’ calculated efforts to construct text that is not simply to be read, but to be seen. Seeking to answer the question of what fans attempt to achieve by writing on the ema in the way that they do, I will reference folklorist Elliott Oring’s ‘appropriate incongruity’ to put forth an argument that fans, harnessing a sense of play and endeavoring to animate the text on the ema, intimate by means of the visual presentation of writing-restricted variation a questioning of the perceived division between the two-dimensional and three-dimensional worlds.

The 'Mighty Girl' Effect: Does Parenting Daughters Alter Attitudes Towards Gender Roles?

Understanding the malleability of gender norms is crucial to address gender inequalities. We study the effect of parenting daughters on a gender role attitude relating to the traditional male breadwinner model: whether the husband should earn and the wife stay at home. We control for other covariates that capture alternative explanations for gender role perceptions. Our results suggest evidence of a positive effect of parenting daughters on acceptance of less traditional gender roles. The effect is only robust among fathers and driven by parenting school age rather than younger daughters, which is consistent with a social identity explanation. Results suggest that parenting daughters of school age (as opposed to parenting only sons) increases the probability to disagree with the statement that 'husband should earn and wife stay at home' by over 5 percentage points. We conclude that gender role attitudes can be shaped by events that occur later in life.

Csse - an Agnostic Method of Counterfactual, Selected, and Social Explanations for Classification Models

Csse - an Agnostic Method of Counterfactual, Selected, and Social Explanations for Classification Models

Eliminating Group Agency

AbstractAggregating individuals’ consistent attitudes might produce inconsistent collective attitudes. Some groups therefore need the capacity to form attitudes that are irreducible to those of their members. Such groups, group-agent realists argue, are agents in control of their own attitude formation. In this paper, however, I show how group-agent realism overlooks the important fact that groups consist of strategically interacting agents. Only by eliminating group agency from our social explanations can we see how individuals vote strategically to gain control of their groups and produce collective attitudes we cannot make sense of if we treat groups as agents.

Demarcation, instantiation, and individual traits: Realist social ontology for mental disorders

ABSTRACT Realists about mental disorder have been hasty about dismissing social explanations of how mental disorder is constituted. However, many social ontologies are realist ontologies. In order to create a meaningful distinction between realism and social metaphysics about mental disorder, I propose that realism about mental disorder is best understood as Individual Trait Realism (ITR) about them. For ITR, mental disorders exist in virtue of traits. I defend the view that ITR is compatible with social metaphysics, arguing that, in asking whether constituents in the social sphere figure the metaphysics of psychopathology, we are asking questions on three different strata of explanation: the strata of demarcation, instantiation, and individual traits. Distinguishing between these strata allows for nuanced realism that need not reject the social constitution of mental disorder.

Dynamic risk factors reassessed regularly after release from incarceration predict imminent violent recidivism.

In community-based corrections, reassessment of dynamic risk factors improves the prediction of recidivism relative to initial risk assessment at the time of release. However, there is less evidence for predictions of violent recidivism. We examined whether reassessment proximity or aggregation of reassessments improved the prediction of imminent violence in a sample of paroled individuals on community supervision. We hypothesized that reassessment of dynamic risk would better predict violent recidivism than initial risk assessment at the time of release. Examination of aggregation and individual risk-factor domains was exploratory. In a prospective study of violent recidivism in a sample of individuals on community supervision in New Zealand (75,917 assessments from 3,421 participants; 92.8% men), we used supervision officers' ratings of dynamic risk (assessed using Dynamic Risk Assessment for Offender Re-entry [DRAOR]) and static risk scores (using the Risk of ReConviction × Risk of Imprisonment) to predict imminent violence (within 2 weeks). Individuals who recidivated violently had higher initial risk ratings (DRAOR Stable d = 0.36, 95% CI [0.17, 0.55]; DRAOR Acute d = 0.45, 95% CI [0.26, 0.64]) and showed more week-to-week fluctuations in risk ratings (DRAOR Stable d = 0.21, 95% CI [0.04, 0.41]; DRAOR Acute d = 0.26, 95% CI [0.06,0.46]). Total averages of faster-changing acute risk factors best predicted violence (c-index = 0.68), with changes in these factors incrementally predicting violence over well-established predictors (criminal history) and initial scores (Δχ2 = 15.54, df = 3). The constructs that best discriminated violence were consistent with social cognition explanations of violence. Because client consistency as determined through score aggregation was more important than current presentation, supervision officers should consider overall patterns of interpersonal hostility and reactivity rather than assuming the emerging presence of these factors will signal imminent violence among previously violent individuals. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Foundations of Theory in PRC History: Mass Communications Research, Political Culture, and the Values Paradigm

AbstractThis article describes the US origins of the field of PRC history. It argues that research on PRC history is widely derived from an approach to knowledge that predates area studies: the theory that societies can be controlled and changed through the transformation of human cognition—referred to as “public opinion,” “values,” “culture,” “political culture,” “tradition,” or “belief”—by nonviolent means. The author calls this approach to knowledge the values paradigm. A separate, but related argument is that this paradigm has proven more important than the availability or content of new sources in determining how PRC history has been written. The aim behind these arguments is twofold: to highlight the intellectual debt (or burden) that links PRC history, via area studies, to policy science; and to elucidate other ways of guiding research in place of the increasingly exhausted values paradigm–based approach. The conclusions they lead to are that historical and social scientific explanations of political change in China have become intellectually dependent on the abstraction of mass consciousness, and that this abstraction has been used to obscure the endemic violence of Maoism.

A model of dynamic information production for initial public offerings

We develop a multi-period information-theoretic model of initial public offering (IPO) in the presence of an adverse selection problem that addresses both underpricing in an IPO and subsequent underperformance in the long run. In this model, information asymmetry exists among the owner of a firm going IPO, underwriter(s), informed analysts and uninformed investors. Information asymmetry between the owner and the investors is reduced through both the initial information production by some investors and the evaluations by informed analysts in the subsequent periods as new information arrives on the market. By incorporating future uncertainty, subsequent information revelation, certain firm-specific constraints and the actions of the agents, the optimal or sub-optimal actions of the agents are identified. The model explains why firms going public are underpriced at the IPO and, on average, underperform in the long run. The results are also compatible with social comparison explanations from a behavioral finance perspective.

Mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility Explanation

This article describes the development of the implementation of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) around the world from several CSR published works. The development of global CSR implementation starts voluntary to mandatory. Based on the discussion, CSR is an obligation (mandatory) for companies in carrying out company operations and is part of the company's investment. Thus its benefits can be enjoyed by the company in the long term.

Social structural explanation

AbstractSocial problems such as racism, sexism, and inequality are often cited as structural rather than individual in nature. What does it mean to invoke a social structural explanation, and how do such explanations relate to individualistic ones? This article explores recent philosophical debates concerning the nature and usages of social structural explanation. I distinguish between two central kinds of social structural explanation: those that are autonomous from psychology, and those that are not. This distinction will help clarify the explanatory power that each type of SSE has, points of convergence with methodological traditions such as critical theory and rational choice theory, and the difficulties that each type of SSE faces.

The Bamboo Ceiling: A Network Perspective on Why East Asians are Underrepresented in Leadership

In the United States, Asians appear disproportionately underrepresented in leadership roles, a puzzling phenomenon known as the “Bamboo Ceiling.” We advance a social network explanation for this phenomenon: ethnic homophily. We theorize that East Asians—but not South Asians—are less likely than Caucasians to attain leadership roles in multiethnic environments partly because of their tendency to socialize with their ethnic ingroup members (i.e., other East Asians). Across two studies, we examined the leadership attainment and the friendship networks of 11 ethnically diverse class sections of new MBA students in a US business school. East Asians were less likely than South Asians and Caucasians to be (a) nominated as leaders and (b) elected as leaders. Social network analysis revealed that while all ethnic groups exhibited ethnic homophily in friendship, East Asians exhibited the highest ethnic homophily, which consistently mediated their low leadership attainment. These results were robust after we controlled for variables such as assertiveness, availability of ethnic ingroup members, nationality, socioeconomic status, and personality. By applying social network analysis, this research identifies ethnic homophily as an important reason why East Asians but not South Asians face the Bamboo Ceiling. More broadly, by uncovering the negative link between ethnic homophily and leadership attainment in multiethnic environments, our research suggests that connecting with people from diverse ethnic backgrounds may facilitate individuals’ leadership attainment in multiethnic environments.

Beliefs on Sexual Violence in the Context of System Justification Theory: The Role of Hostile Sexism and Beliefs in Biological Origins of Gender Differences

Estimates suggest that around 20% of women may have experienced rape. Various misconceptions about rape (i.e., rape myths) are closely related to victim blaming. In our studies we tested the link between system justification, beliefs in biological origins of gender differences, ambivalent sexism and beliefs concerning sexual violence. Study 1 was conducted among 433 Polish students. The sequential mediation analysis suggests that system justification predicts the level of rape myth acceptance through beliefs in biological origins of gender differences and then hostile (but not benevolent) sexism. In Study 2, conducted among 197 Polish students, we tested the relationship between beliefs in biological origins of gender differences and beliefs concerning sexual violence using experimental design. Contrary to our expectations, students who read the text about social origins of gender differences perceived the survivor of a hypothetical acquaintance rape as less credible, and proposed a lower sentence for a stranger rape perpetrator, compared to participants who read about biological origins of gender differences. We suspect that this is due to experiencing reactance when confronted with social explanations of gender differences. We discuss implications for research and policy.

The Development of Student Worksheets in Writing Social Containing Explanation Texts in Class VI Studentsstate School 105345 Sidodadi

The problem in this study is how appropriate the teaching materials (Student Worksheet) in learning to write socially charged explanatory texts for class VI students are developed based on media experts, material experts, teachers and students?. The purpose of this study was to describe the feasibility of teaching materials (Student Worksheets) in learning to write socially charged explanatory texts for elementary/MI students. Class VI developed based on media experts, material experts, teachers and students. The research method used in this research is the research & development method. The research subject of this development product is the validator. The research subject of this development product is the validator. Assessment is done by filling out the validation sheet that has been provided, the validator in this study is the supervisor. In addition, the subjects of this research are sixth grade students of SD Negeri 105345 Sidodadi Ramunia, Beringin District. The object of this research is the Student Worksheet in learning to write socially charged explanatory texts in class VI SD Negeri 105345 Sidodadi Ramunia, Beringin District.

Body norms and normative bodies in Highland Guatemala.

The concept of bionormalcy highlights the potential tensions between bodies defined clinically as normal or healthy, bodies that are normative (frequent) within a population, and bodies defined within a given social context as abnormal or devalued. Theories of resource scarcity predict preferences for larger bodies should deviate from what is biologically normative (i.e., most frequent) or clinically defined as healthy. Using the case of adult women in a Guatemalan community with chronically low food security, we test how food scarcity shapes individual views of smaller, larger, and clinically categorized normal bodies. Participants were 102 women from a community in the Central Highlands of Guatemala. Using the Stunkard figure scale and a word elicitation task, participants attributed positive and negative characteristics to male and female silhouettes clinically defined as underweight, normal, overweight, mildly obese, and obese. Mixed-effects models were used to compare attribution scores for figures relative to the clinically normal silhouette. Silhouettes deviating from the clinically defined normal BMI category on both sides are stigmatized to varying degrees. Food insecurity exacerbates the degree of stigma, while also relatively preferencing overweight bodies. In this pilot study, women exhibit a preference for body sizes that fall within the clinical normal and overweight categories and stigmatize bodies outside this range, but in distinct ways. We suggest the attachment of stigma to small and large bodies are not mirror processes, and require more detailed testing to untangle the likely complex ecological and social explanations.

Resources, norms, and dropout intentions of migrant students in Germany: the role of social networks and social capital

ABSTRACT This study focuses exclusively on migrant students in German higher education and examines the relationship between their social networks, social capital, and dropout intention. We identify two different forms of social capital – resources and norms – that students derive from their networks, and are related to their educational outcomes. These two forms of social capital also correspond with the two well-established arguments for explaining immigrants’ educational outcomes: (1) immigration optimism and (2) social background disadvantages. Using data from the German National Education Panel Study, we use Lin (2001) concepts of ‘capital deficit’ and ‘return deficit’ to examine the differences in access and utilization of social capital between native and migrant students, further differentiated by whether one or both parents were born abroad. Using linear and logistic regressions we find that the networks of migrant students are characterized by high norms and aspirations, which have a shielding role for dropout. Further, students with both parents born abroad are at a higher risk of dropout than mixed background students. We specifically focus on factors that are unique to migrant students going beyond the well-established social background explanations for migration-related disadvantages.

Cross-Cutting Discussion on Social Media and Online Political Participation: A Cross-National Examination of Information Seeking and Social Accountability Explanations

The question of whether cross-cutting discussion engenders or depresses political participation has offered mixed findings in the literature. Following recommendations from a meta-analysis, this study tests two competing arguments: the information seeking explanation for engendering participation and the social accountability explanation for attenuating participation. Probability surveys were conducted among young adults in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China, and analyses examined the relationship between cross-cutting discussion on social media and online political participation. For the Taiwan and Hong Kong samples, political information seeking positively mediated the relationship, but desire to avoid social conflict also attenuated the relationship. Neither mechanism was significant for the China sample. The findings suggest that the competing explanations are not mutually exclusive, and they highlight the importance of examining the variety of contingent conditions that influence the relationship between cross-cutting discussion and political participation in different national contexts.

Are there gender differences in delay discounting of monetary losses?

We investigate gender differences in delay discounting of monetary losses. 203 participants solved a discounting task based on the titration algorithm. The individual rates of delay discounting of losses were calculated with the use of AUC (Area Under the Curve) method. The results show that there is no statistically significant impact of gender on delay discounting of monetary losses. We briefly discuss possible biological and social explanations of the above finding.

Between social and biomedical explanation: queer and gender diverse young people’s explanations of psychological distress

ABSTRACT The psychological wellbeing of Queer and Gender Diverse Young People (QGDYP) has received attention of late, and increasing research evidences much higher rates of psychological distress experienced by these groups, compared to their straight, cisgender counterparts. Far more limited is research exploring queer and gender diverse young people’s own perspectives on their psychological wellbeing, an absence we address with the current study. We interviewed 21 queer or gender diverse 16–18-year-olds in Aotearoa New Zealand about their understandings of mental health and wellbeing. We took a critical realist thematic approach to analysis. This paper focuses on how participants made sense of their own distress. We explore and unpack three intersecting key themes around: 1) cisheterosexism, but not personally affected; 2) dismissal of QGDYP; and 3) validation and comfort in the biomedical model. We discuss the tensions of articulating these positions and (also) challenging cisheterosexism, and the implications for recognising and reducing the distress experienced by queer and gender diverse youth. We aim to inform policy and practice to support and ultimately improve psychological wellbeing for queer and gender diverse young people.

Training disciplinary genre awareness through blended learning: An exploration into EAP students’ perceptions of online annotation of genres across disciplines

Despite a marked shift towards blended learning in EAP due to massification of higher education and the impact of COVID-19, relatively little is known about student engagement with EAP genre education as realised through blended learning. This paper explores international undergraduate/graduate students’ perceptions of using an online text, image and video annotation tool (CIRRUS) during a blended academic writing course, as they annotate genre exemplar texts for key functional and rhetorical language features both in-class and individually online. Genres covered include essays and critiques within the Arts and Humanities, case studies and problem questions within the Social Sciences, explanations and methodology recounts within the Life Sciences, and design specifications and exercises within the Physical Sciences following Gardner and Nesi's (2013) genre families taxonomy. We explore students' end-of-course reflections of the value of annotating genre features for understanding disciplinary academic writing practices under a blended approach, the affordances of annotating disciplinary exemplar texts using the CIRRUS annotation platform, and any remaining challenges for future iterations. Using both questionnaire (n = 62) and interview (n = 10) methods, the results suggest students appreciated the value of annotating exemplar texts for genre features, while annotating in CIRRUS was advantageous over previous practice in improving students' understanding of text structure, organisation, generation of ideas, and knowledge of genre/disciplinary rhetorical features.