Social Framework Research Articles

The Banality as a Mood of Contemporary Society in Contrast to the Artist's Mood

Contemporary times witness significant transformations in economic organisation, deeply influencing social dynamics and emotional frameworks. This study aimed to elucidate banality as the prevailing mood of contemporary society, delineating two perspectives through art: one defined by a banal emotional framework and the other advocating innocence. Inspired by Heidegger and Nietzsche, an inquiry unfolded to reveal the emotional and affective aspects of the examined phenomenon, enriched by perspectives from acclaimed artists. Consequently, the findings established banality affective disposition characteristics as a hallmark of contemporary comprehensiveness, encompassing instrumental engagement with the world, acceptance, and incapacity to perceive its banal condition. In contrast, the banality of the broader world was juxtaposed with that of the artist, who focused on innocence as a manifestation of their being in the world. The outlined approach derived, in methodological terms, from a phenomenological-hermeneutic procedure anchored in the Heideggerian framework, which analysed the "mood" (Stimmung) as a determinant in the interpretation and unfolding of the world. The findings proposed alternative understandings of contemporary life as the result of the conquest of the banality of average mood and contrast it with the character of the artist who resists falling into the overarching banality of our time. The results reflected the difficulty of the current era, from which hopeful aspects of transformation are not evident. Conversely, resistance is concentrated in isolated occurrences that reclaim life and its evolution. This work sought to establish new avenues of research that enable the exploration of multiple contemporary phenomena, in addition to indicating paths of inquiry that link the thoughts of artists and their expressions.

“I go back to it every f**king time”: the normalization of problematic Trenbolone use in online anabolic-androgenic steroid communities

Introduction This study addresses the dearth of research on specific anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS), focusing on the contentious substance Trenbolone. With increased potency and risks, Trenbolone’s effects, both in animal studies and among human users, raise concerns for neurodegeneration, genotoxicity, and significant social harms. Despite these risks, people persist using Trenbolone and other AAS, navigating the harm-to-benefit ratio. The study explores the representation of Trenbolone in online AAS forums, to gain nuanced insight into dynamics of identity and behavior specific to the Trenbolone context. Methods We employed a digital ethnographical approach to collect data from four Australian AAS forums. Grounded in a social constructivist framework and recognizing the influential role of identity and social categorization in shaping behaviors within these digital communities, we utilized inductive thematic analysis to identify patterns and themes from user discussions about Trenbolone. Results Three key themes were developed: shared cultural language and beliefs, experienced users’ perceptions of Trenbolone mastery and risk avoidance, and the normalization of problematic use of Trenbolone and signs of dependence within the community. The findings reveal a nuanced interplay of language, beliefs, and behaviors, providing insights into how the community navigates its cultural norms, showcases expertise, and collectively grapples with usage patterns. Conclusions We delineate the emergence of a 'Trenbolone prototype’ within online AAS-using communities. The findings point to a potential disconnect between community beliefs and empirical evidence on Trenbolone’s health effects. Addressing these disparities, public health campaigns should align with the community’s language and norms for effective harm reduction.

Facilitating social learning through learning design

In the field of technology-enhanced learning design, the rise of Web 2.0 has been the filip needed to accelerate the emergence of socially-connected global learners. These highly social learners now use the web to engage with knowledge and skill development and as such, online education has moved irrevocably beyond simply the finding and sharing of information among learners. The higher education sector is responding to this learning landscape. This is particularly relevant to the massive open online courses (MOOCs) environment where there is the potential for thousands of participants to learn through multiple open source tools with minimum intervention from educators. This social learning perspective can present a challenge for some educators. In this paper we present a work-in-progress collaborative project designed to respond to the professional development of teaching academics newly engaged in designing and teaching from a social learning perspective. We, in a central learning and teaching unit, designed and developed a professional development (PD) course that sought to build the capacity of academics going through this change: they were about to teach on a MOOC platform. Our purpose was to model the social learning framework as a method of capacity-building, but we also aimed to distil authentic social learning for the academics themselves. This resulted in creating a community of practice among educators. Further research is required to measure the impact of this capacity-building course in order to further enhance the learning experiences of academics preparing to teach on a MOOC platform.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE ISLAMISATION PROCESS IN MALAYSIA AND NIGERIA: A SOCIAL MOVEMENT THEORY APPROACH

This exploratory, diachronic study compares the politics of Islamisation, which have undergone different patterns of developmentin both Nigeria and Malaysia. Islamisation is defined as an ideological translation of Islamism into policies to “Islamise” the state andsociety by expanding the scope of the application of Islamic laws and principles. Islamisation in Malaysia has been implemented steadily and progressively since the 1980s. It involves the “inculcation of Islamic values” in a wide range of aspects of society, including the economy. The Islamic penal code or hudud enactments were legislated in two states, but held in abeyance due to their unconstitutionality. In contrast, Nigeria observed the sudden and erratic implementation of hudud in 12 northern states in 1999, along with other bureaucratic adjustments. Adopting an interpretative case study approach of the comparative method of Arend Lijphart, we explain the two contrastive case studies of the ideological translation of Islamism by analysing the manner in which various political opportunities and structural constraints in the respective cases have shaped the Islamisation process. Data gathering was based on an extensive review of the related body of literature. Analysis was conducted using a social movement theoretical framework based on a structured, focused comparison. The dynamic conceptualisation of the state as a set of institutions, which is continually and dialectically reshaped by contentious processes, captures how the bureaucratisation and judicialisation of Islam have modified the nature of state structures and the structure of political opportunities, which in turn allows for additional channels of influence for Islamic activists.

The sociopolitical turn in mathematics education and decolonial theory

This literature review examines how the theoretical perspectives aligned to the sociopolitical turn in mathematics inform social justice mathematics education. While existing literature has established the importance of social justice frameworks informed by critical theory, there has been limited exploration of critical race theory, poststructuralism and feminist theory, perspectives that offer a broader and more complex understanding of the social and political. After examining how these perspectives contribute to social justice mathematics, we explore the potential contributions of decolonial theory, particularly the way it unsettles accepted notions of social justice. By drawing and building on the sociopolitical turn in mathematics education, this article argues that decolonial thought can also assist in reimagining social justice mathematics education theoretically, methodologically and pedagogically. Ultimately, the article argues that there is no social justice without cognitive/epistemic and ontological justice, meaning that social justice loses ethical and political weight when modernity’s violent epistemic and ontological foundations are not questioned by social justice mathematics education research.

Living with diabetes in Northeast India: An exploration of psychosocial factors in management

PurposeIndia is the ‘Diabetes Capital of the World’ and accounts for one in seven adults living with diabetes worldwide. Psychosocial, economic, and cultural correlates of disease have important implications for disease management but are rarely explored in India. The purpose of this study is to address psychosocial and cultural factors in diabetes management in the northeastern region of India which has a high disease burden. MethodsThis study attempts to explore the psychosocial and lived experience of diabetes in the northeastern state of Meghalaya. The sample was selected from individuals attending an outpatient facility of a multi-speciality clinic. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 individuals (13 women and 12 men), above the age of 40 years, who had been diagnosed with diabetes for at least 6 months. The narratives were analysed using thematic analysis. ResultsUsing the social cognitive framework, themes were organized in terms of a thematic map linking knowledge of diabetes to the perception of diabetes as ‘a silent killer’, to coping, leading to self-efficacy. However high self-efficacy, over time, may lead to complacency, disrupting health behaviours and requiring re-establishment of those behaviours. Adequate knowledge along with cognitive adaptation and self-efficacy were important constructs that contributed to behaviour change and maintenance. Elements of the cultural context were observed in the spiritual aspects of adaptation, the socially isolating consequences of diabetes, as well as gender differences in social support and management. ConclusionUnderstanding the lived experiences of patients contributes to planning more effective interventions keeping the social and cultural context in mind for more effective management of diabetes. Additionally, acknowledging and supporting women's needs in diabetes management is called for.

A systematic framework for compilation of critical raw material lists and their importance for South Africa

Mineral resources are important contributors to the global economy and societal wellbeing. Directly, they provide employment, revenue and taxes through the extraction, processing and sale of minerals. Indirectly, they are essential to all modern industries, including: energy, manufacturing, construction, biotic and abiotic resource extraction and agriculture. The principle that ‘one cannot understand the value of what they have until they measure it’ is particularly relevant with critical raw materials (CRMs). CRM is a concept that categorises select resources (mainly minerals and metals) as critical in the sense that, at a national level, they are essential and difficult to replace, and their supply is prone to disruption. It is becoming increasingly recognised that the continuity of civilisation and living standards as some have envisioned them in the future is constrained by the quality and quantity of various minerals. National-level strategic planning, including energy policy, foreign relations policy, geopolitical operations, national defence, education and infrastructure planning, among others, all require knowledge of the requirement and supply of raw materials towards a practical strategic implementation. Hence, a national CRM framework is essential for a prosperous, productive and stable future. To effectively manage the supply and use of CRMs, it is important to comprehend both their formal (e.g., economic) and informal (e.g., social and environmental) values, and to measure and monitor these values effectively over time. This study examines international practices and methodologies as components of a comprehensive CRM framework. We then propose a prototype CRM framework for South Africa as such a framework is currently missing.All CRM frameworks feature one or more rating schemes to identify the degree of criticality of raw materials. The actual rating metrics are divided into dimensions (or factors), such as: socio-economic importance, technological importance, environmental, social and governance risks. Such dimensions are important due to the following reasons.•Delineating criticality from non-criticality: by rank-ordering CRMs based on various factors, a country can identify which ones are the most important for its economy, industry and national security. This information can help policymakers prioritise the development of domestic production and secure a stable supply of CRMs.•Assessing resource sustainability and supply stability: by rating CRMs based on environmental, social and ethical factors, a country can assess the sustainability of its resource use and identify areas for improvement. This information can help policymakers develop strategies to mitigate resource depletion, and supply chain disruption, minimise negative environmental and social impacts, and promote responsible resource management.•Supporting informed decision-making: an ordered ranking of CRMs provides quantitative and qualitative information to governmental bodies, industry and other stakeholders to support informed decision-making, including strategic planning. This information can help stakeholders make informed choices about the sources and types of CRMs they use and the sustainability of their resource use.•Promoting transparency and accountability: adopting suitable business ethical dimensions, such as through a corporate social responsibility framework, enables a country to promote transparency and accountability in its resource use and supply chains. This approach can help reduce illicit financial flows, corruption, and abuse of power, while increasing trust and confidence in the resource sector.•Innovation and investment opportunities: a CRM framework enables a nation to establish policy conditions that foster innovation and investment in key activities such as measuring, monitoring, sustainability, extracting, responsible processing, and efficient use of CRMs.Findings from this study underscores the necessity of a structured CRM framework in South Africa to effectively manage the complexities of resource management, economic ground, and sustainability. Integrating these frameworks into national policies can enable South Africa to secure a sustainable, economically viable, and environmentally responsible future. Such strategic initiatives are impor tant for national security, industrial policy, structural transformation, and economic stability, as well as aligning with global initiatives for responsible sourcing and climate change.

Social Marketing Perspective on Participant Recruitment in Informatics-Based Intervention Studies.

Effective recruitment strategies are pivotal for informatics-based intervention trials success, particularly for people living with HIV (PLWH), where engagement can be challenging. Although informatics interventions are recognized for improving health outcomes, the effectiveness of their recruitment strategies remains unclear. We investigated the application of a social marketing framework in navigating the nuances of recruitment for informatics-based intervention trials for PLWH by examining participant experiences and perceptions. We used qualitative descriptive methodology to conduct semi-structured interviews with 90 research participants from four informatics-based intervention trials. Directed inductive and deductive content analyses were guided by Howcutt et al.'s social marketing framework on applying the decision-making process to research recruitment. The majority were male (86.7%), living in the Northeast United States (56%), and identified as Black (32%) or White (32%). Most participants (60%) completed the interview remotely. Sixteen subthemes emerged from five themes: motivation, perception, attitude formation, integration, and learning. Findings from our interview data suggest that concepts from Howcutt et al.'s framework informed participants' decisions to participate in an informatics-based intervention trial. We found that the participants' perceptions of trust in the research process were integral to the participants across the four trials. However, the recruitment approach and communication medium preferences varied between older and younger age groups. Social marketing framework can provide insight into improving the research recruitment process. Future work should delve into the complex interplay between the type of informatics-based interventions, trust in the research process, and communication preferences, and how these factors collectively influence participants' willingness to engage.

Culture, Cooperation, and Communication: The Co-evolution of Hominin Cognition, Sociality, and Musicality

Abstract Music is a deeply entrenched human phenomenon. In this article, I argue that its evolutionary origins are intrinsically intertwined with the incremental anatomical, cognitive, social, and technological evolution of the hominin lineage. I propose an account of the evolution of Plio-Pleistocene hominins, focusing on traits that would be later implicated in music making. Such traits can be conceived as comprising the musicality mosaic or the multifaceted foundations of musicality. I then articulate and defend an account of protomusical behaviour, drawing theoretical licence from the social brain framework of Robin Dunbar and colleagues, as well as the evolutionary framework for human culture and cooperation developed by Kim Sterelny. The role of gene-culture co-evolution and niche construction is brought to the fore in articulating the evolutionary account. Finally, I defend the view that music subsequently developed via processes of social learning and cumulative culture.

Developing a Conceptual Framework for Characterizing and Measuring Social Resilience in Blue-Green Infrastructure (BGI)

Many cities are increasingly adopting blue-green infrastructure (BGI) to bolster their resilience against environmental challenges. Beyond its well-acknowledged environmental benefits, the role of BGI in enhancing social resilience is becoming an equally important area of focus. However, the integration of BGI in fostering social resilience presents complexities, stemming from the evolving and occasionally ambiguous definition of social resilience. Considering the broad application of BGI across various disciplines makes the evaluation of social resilience within a BGI framework complex. Consequently, a structured approach to develop a clear framework tailored to understanding and measuring social resilience in a BGI setting is needed. This study consolidates various existing frameworks of social resilience, especially utilizing the detailed 5S framework proposed by Saja et al. It integrates findings from an extensive review of literature on social resilience to develop a novel conceptual framework—the BGI Social Resilience Framework. This new framework specifically aims to capture the distinct social aspects and advantages associated with BGI. The BGI Social Resilience Framework is organized into a three-tier model, focusing on four critical aspects of social resilience—social values, social capital, social structure, and social equity—and explores how these aspects are interconnected. Characteristics and indicators are customized to accommodate the context of BGI in a way that integrates the physical and human dimensions within a comprehensive approach to measurement that uses a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. Specifically, this research formulates a theoretical framework for BGI with the aim of investigating BGI strategies and viewpoints that bolster social resilience. The BGI Social Resilience Framework takes into account the varied demographics and the physical characteristics of urban areas to explore ways to create BGI spaces that are more inclusive and that contribute to the enhancement of social resilience.

Linguistic hostility, social exclusion, and the agency of African migrants in Hong Kong

Abstract Long an immigrant society, whether Hong Kong welcomes ethnic minorities remains debatable. Combining Wesselmann and colleagues’ (2016) social exclusion framework, raciolinguistics, and interview data, this study investigates the social exclusion experience of Hong Kong's African economic and student migrants. The findings show that African immigrants who lack linguistic capacity are ostracised in different areas of life. Impolite language usage stigmatises them as poor and ghost-like and stereotypes them as refugees. Taking a raciolinguistic perspective, however, this study finds that race, rather than language, is the root cause of social exclusion. Lastly, the study shows that African migrants manifest agency in ameliorating marginalisation through various activities, revealing the bidirectional nature of social exclusion. Overall, this study empirically enriches the current understanding of Africans’ social exclusion experiences in Hong Kong through the lens of language. It theoretically contributes to the current discussion on raciolinguistics by extending it to the Asian context. (Social exclusion, Hong Kong, African immigrants, verbal rejection, non-verbal rejection, racism, raciolinguistics)*

The Influence of Perceived Economic Benefits on Single Parenting among Unmarried Mothers in Nigeria

This study, with a specific emphasis on the lived experiences of single mothers, explored the perceived economic advantages of single parenting among Nigerian single women. The study tackled the growing apprehensions over the financial difficulties encountered by families headed by single mothers, highlighting the growing number of low-income families in Africa, particularly in Nigeria. The study employed a combination of qualitative (Key Informant Interview) and quantitative (Survey) methods to investigate their viewpoints on the financial benefits of being a single parent. The theoretical framework explained the intricate relationship between socioeconomic issues and single parenting by integrating social exchange theory and rational adaptation theory. 450 respondents participated in the quantitative study, while 30 respondents were selected for the qualitative study. According to data collected, single mothers frequently enter into several partnerships to obtain a variety of financial support for both themselves and their children. The study emphasized asset accumulation and emotional benefits as ways that single mothers can reduce poverty in addition to financial rewards. The study further highlighted the significance of social protection frameworks and all-encompassing initiatives aimed at tackling the distinct obstacles encountered by single mothers, eventually promoting the welfare of mothers and their offspring in an emerging country such as Nigeria. Keywords: Single Mothers, Economic Benefits, Low-income Families, Social Protection

Madrid immigrants' perceptions of urban food environments and their dietary behaviours.

Large cities are home to several groups of immigrants who undergo important changes in their environmental conditions and lifestyles that significantly modify their risk of chronic diseases. Quantitative evidence indicates that both their health and diet worsen over time; much less is known about the qualitative mechanisms that cause these changes. The aim of this article is to understand how immigrants in the city of Madrid perceive the relation between the urban food environment and dietary behaviour. Based on a Social Ecological Framework, we conducted a secondary qualitative analysis derived from data from 41 immigrant residents, collected in eight focus groups (FGs), conducted in two neighbourhoods in the city of Madrid. We identified the following main categories: 1) Transnational identity and dietary behaviour in the neighbourhood; 2) Transitions in dietary behaviour; and 3) Societal/structural factors determining dietary behaviour in the neighbourhood. The participants in the FGs mentioned that they try to maintain traditional dietary customs and perceive that the taste of their typical dishes is better than those of Spanish dishes. Contradictorily, some participants considered their traditional dietary patterns to be less healthy than Mediterranean ones (consuming olive oil, vegetables, fish). Some participants acknowledged having adapted to the latter voluntarily or through dietary negotiations with their children. Immigrant families with two working parents have difficulties cooking homemade food and resort to less healthy options, such as eating fast food or ready-made meals. Due to their low purchasing power, they buy both ethnic products and other products, as well as considering the prices and offers in supermarkets. Our study highlights several structural mechanisms connecting the physical and social urban food environment with dietary behaviours among immigrant residents of a large city.

Promoting Social Justice and Women's Rights: Mitigating the Negative Impacts of Large Hydropower Projects on Tribal Women in the Hindu Kush Himalaya Region

This study highlights the significance of comprehending the region's caste system and cultural norms and their influence on implementing compensation and resettlement programs in hydropower projects to gain social sustainability. By leveraging Social Justice Theory, we examine how systemic inequalities affect tribal women, particularly in the context of large-scale hydropower projects. Tribal women's social and cultural identities expose them to vulnerabilities, leading to negative consequences concerning large-scale hydropower projects. The lack of access to justice and limited participation in decision-making poses social justice challenges, undermining their fundamental rights, such as basic needs, healthcare, and education. Consequently, their well-being and quality of life suffer, impeding support for such projects. The extent of these adverse effects may vary depending on whether women belong to local (Indigenous) or non-local tribes (non-Indigenous). Our analysis reveals the critical role of tribal affiliation in moderating the relationship between social justice dimensions—such as distributive, procedural, substantive, and recognition justice—and social sustainability, offering new insights into Social Justice Theory. This study explores the potential of careful planning that prioritises the needs of tribal women regardless of tribal affiliation to mitigate these negative social consequences. The study employs a social justice framework to address these challenges. Through the analysis of 511 questionnaires using PLS-SEM, the study revealed that tribal affiliation moderates the relationship between social justice and sustainability. This contribution enriches Social Justice Theory by providing empirical evidence of the intersectionality of social justice issues in the context of development projects. The study further identified that social sustainability and community satisfaction mediate the relationship between social justice and support for hydropower projects, while tribal affiliation moderates this relationship.

Tackling loneliness together: A three-tier social identity framework for social prescribing

In recent years, there has been growing recognition of the threats to health posed by loneliness. One of the main strategies that has been recommended to address this is social prescribing (SP). This typically involves general practitioners (GPs) and other health practitioners directing clients who are experiencing loneliness and related conditions to take part in social activities—typically in recreational and community contexts. However, evidence for the effectiveness of SP is mixed—leading some to suggest that enthusiasm for it might be misplaced. In this review, we argue that a core problem with most existing approaches to SP is that they lack a strong theoretical base. This has been a barrier to (a) understanding when SP will work and why, (b) designing optimally effective SP programmes, and (c) developing practitioner skills and appropriate infrastructure to support them. As a corrective to this state of affairs, this review outlines a three-tier social identity framework for SP and five associated hypotheses. These hypotheses predict that SP will be more effective when (a) clients join groups and (b) these groups are ones with which they identify, and when SP is supported by (c) social-identity-enhancing social infrastructure, (d) a social-identity-based therapeutic alliance, and (e) identity leadership that builds and shapes this alliance as well as clients’ identification with prescribed groups. This framework is supported by a range of evidence and provides an agenda for much-needed future research and practice.

Educational trajectories for residential care experienced young people are complex. A lived experience perspective from a PhD study in Scotland

Purpose Research highlights that residential care experienced children and young people in Scotland have poorer educational outcomes than their peers within the wider population. Despite this, poor educational attainment is not inevitable, and further research is needed to increase the understanding of long-term trajectories. This paper aims to address a gap in contemporary literature that is of benefit to practitioners, academics and policymakers. Despite experiencing adversity, attachment, separation and loss, school attainment data on leaving care only reflects part of the educational journey. Design/methodology/approach Using a mixed methodology and social constructionist theoretical framework, a practitioner-led PhD study gathered data from questionnaires and qualitative information from 13 semi-structured interviews with young people who had experienced residential care in Scotland. Recruitment was through a gatekeeper within a national third-sector organisation. The educational trajectories for young people with experience of residential care in Scotland are complex. A lived experience perspective from a PhD study illustrates that statistical data only captures part of the journey and the author needs to reconsider how success is measured. Findings Of the 13 participants in the study, 12 achieved success educationally, although for the majority of those interviewed, attainment continued after leaving compulsory education. Barriers to greater success included placement uncertainty and movement, stigma, low expectations, pressure to not become a statistic, procedural obstacles and inconsistency or poor relationships. Research limitations/implications Supportive relationships and stable placements can create circumstances conducive to effective learning, but evidence reflects that support is necessary throughout the life course if children, young people and adults with care experience are to reach their full academic potential. Originality/value Research into the educational outcomes for those with experience of residential care in Scotland is limited. This paper, from a PhD, provides lived experience accounts from a practitioner-led study.

Prevention of food fraud and fraud emulation among companies in the supply chain based on a social Co-governance framework

This study develops a three-party evolutionary game model among upstream raw material producers, midstream food producers, and downstream distributors in the food supply chain, and investigates food fraud and fraud emulation among companies in the same group based on a food safety social co-governance framework. Moreover, the equilibrium points are divided into four scenarios according to the number of groups of companies committing fraud in the supply chain and whether companies in the same group emulate each other's fraudulent behavior. The stability conditions of these scenarios are also discussed and verified by numerical simulation in MATLAB. The results show that the behavioral strategy choices of different groups of food companies in the supply chain are closely related to the level of social co-governance involving the government, market, and consumers. Government regulation, supervision between companies, and consumer reporting can all change companies' behavioral strategies. Although the level of fraud emulation among companies in the same group does not change their behavioral strategy choice, it affects the time it takes for their behavioral strategy to evolve to a stable state. Moreover, the level of social co-governance directly affects companies' behavioral strategy choices at different emulation levels.

A Review Paper on Recent Trends in HRM

In recent years, there have been notable and innovative improvements in the human resource sector. In many firms, the world of human resources has been shaped by the combination of technological innovation and work practices. Human resources and their management are impacted by ongoing changes in economic, social, psychological, and technological frameworks and understandings. Management of human resources is essential to any firm. This department is a must for any business or organization. The people that work for an organization are the focus of HRM. It consists of the systems, plans, activities, and policies of an organization that affect the performance and conduct of its employees. The purpose of this study is to determine the recent trends in human resource management and review the work of many researchers to find out the ongoing trends adopted in the human resource sector. The key trends include hybrid work model, upskilling of employees, AI enabled HRM, Employee Experience, Diversity and inclusion.

CSR from different perspectives: The global ESG indexes updated

AbstractThe prevailing environmental, social and governance (ESG) framework is currently based on micro‐ESG indicators. Research on national ESG is often limited to theory building and policy analysis. Based on previous scholars, this paper constructs a national ESG index framework consisting of 39 indices and updates the national ESG indices for 121 countries worldwide from 1990 to 2021 using the entropy weight method, aiming to provide a set of instrumental indices that capture the status and evolution of national ESG performance. The research findings are as follows: First, the Gini coefficient shows that the gap between national ESG performance has gradually widened over time. Second, the kernel density distribution suggests that global ESG performance is on the rise. High‐income countries are placing greater emphasis on ESG growth. Third, the results of the Markov transformation matrix suggest that there is a “club convergence” in ESG performance across countries.

CSR perceptions and practices in small hotels in urban cities

PurposeThis study aims to examine the perception and practices related to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) implemented in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), focussing on small hotels in London.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative research design comprising detailed semi-structured interviews was employed with 12 small hotel owner-managers in central London and its outskirts. The study adopts a social constructionist approach to explore CSR perspectives and practices, along with a social capital framework to investigate how CSR is perceived at the individual level and consequently manifested into CSR practices.FindingsThe findings indicate that a small hotel’s implementation of CSR is influenced by long-term versus short-term considerations, as well as socio-economic and socio-political conditions. Individual-level factors, like hoteliers’ CSR conceptualisation and personal and business values, affect CSR adoption in small hotels. Lastly, institutional-level factors, such as ineffective institutional participation and the hotelier’s cultural background against the cosmopolitan context of a big city, have contributed to a muted response to socially responsible issues.Research limitations/implicationsThis study was conducted with a limited sample of 12 participants from small hotels in London and its outskirts, which may limit the generalisability of the findings. Future research could enhance these findings by involving a larger and more diverse group of participants from various urban areas, potentially employing a quantitative research approach for broader applicability. This study’s insights can guide policymakers in educating small business owners on CSR benefits and implementation. It also proposes how governments could encourage sustainable practices among small hotels seeking to enhance their reputation. Moreover, these findings enable small businesses to develop their stakeholder strategies for greater CSR initiatives.Originality/valueThis study integrates social capital theory into investigating CSR in small hotels in London, broadening the literature on CSR perception and integration, particularly in SMEs and the hospitality sector.