ABSTRACT The Philippines is simultaneously identified as a source country for trafficking and a leader in anti-trafficking. It imposes stringent pre-departure restrictions on its citizens travelling overseas, ostensibly to protect them from exploitation. This paper treats the Philippines as a generative location for theorising how global south states are recruited into and reproduce global bordering regimes. First, it argues that the Philippines’ emigration restrictions reinforce longstanding social hierarchies and help maintain the global order of labour extraction. Second, it analyses how contradictions of postcolonial statehood, marked by the United States’ influence on Philippine policies such as anti-trafficking, the Philippines’ reliance on labour export and limited regulatory leverage over destination states, and domestic demands for the protection of Overseas Filipino Workers, shape how the Philippine state articulates and enacts migrant protection. It examines how exit controls function as a performance of state capacity and responsibility, staged for domestic and international audiences. Third, the paper attends to gendered, racialised and classed rationalisations of support for emigration restrictions among Filipinos seeking to disassociate from negative global perceptions of Filipino travellers. The article concludes by proposing a global south-led divestment from the prevailing anti-trafficking paradigm and a reorientation towards a global movement for migrant rights and anti-bordering.

Primates' decision-making in economic contexts follows distinctive patterns, as initially described by Prospect Theory. Social animals, such as monkeys, live in hierarchically structured groups where individual status may influence cognitive processes, including economic decisions. We leveraged a unique dataset from a semi-free ranging macaques' group, which had continuous access to gambling tasks over several years, yielding hundreds of thousands of trials and longitudinal assessments of social hierarchy. Our findings reveal a dynamic relationship between social hierarchy and decision parameters: middle-ranking individuals displayed reduced risk aversion for potential gains but not losses. Longitudinal analyses suggested that changes in social rank were followed by corresponding shifts in risk attitudes, implying that social position, rather than inherent traits, influences decision-making patterns. While sex had no significant impact, age was primarily associated with variations in loss aversion. These results underscore the flexibility and adaptive nature of primates' cognitive biases and provide key insights into how social structures influence risk behavior, with potential implications for understanding decision-making processes in other social species, including humans.

This article examines the psychosocial consequences of meritocratic education systems, with particular focus on students who are positioned as having failed within these competitive and ostensibly fair frameworks. While meritocracy promises equal opportunity, extensive research shows that educational achievement is strongly shaped by socioeconomic background and by socially and culturally recognized codes and resources that systematically advantage some students over others. As a result, meritocratic selection often reproduces inequality while framing unequal outcomes as deserved. The article synthesizes evidence on how meritocratic ideology supports system justification, leading even disadvantaged students to internalize beliefs that school outcomes are fair. This contributes to self-blame, stigma, and psychological distress when performance falls short. The analysis further shows how educational failure carries long-term economic and social penalties, reinforcing class divisions and eroding social cohesion. The article outlines alternative educational logics that may mitigate these harms, including redistributive support, plural pathways, second-chance opportunities, broader conceptions of ability, recognition of diverse contributions, and cooperative learning. Together, these approaches offer ways to reduce the psychosocial burden of failure and support more equitable educational futures.

ABSTRACT The caste system in India is based on occupational inheritance and a restricted social hierarchy in which the birth of a particular caste determines its position in society. In the modern era, individuals’ identity is defined by their caste. Among the lowest castes, severe illiteracy and a lack of information about support services leave many people suffering in an increasingly complicated technological environment. They frequently feel disoriented and struggle to understand the intricacies of the contemporary technological world. The determined efforts of Dalit activists stand as beacons of light in these difficult conditions. Dalit activists are pivotal in addressing these challenges, dedicated to confronting systemic inequities and championing marginalized voices for positive change. They provide support to the people who are marginalized, making sure that their issues are recognized and taken up in a larger public forum. This research examines how Dalit women activists use the social media platform X to advocate for Dalit rights, engage in anti-caste conversations, and build solidarity against long-standing caste prejudice. This study employs critical caste studies as a lens to study the phenomenon of Dalit activism on social media. Netnography is the technique used, with participants being observed and concentrating on online fieldwork.

ABSTRACT This study explored the dynamics of politeness and impoliteness strategies as expressions of power in Yoruba traditional religion, particularly through the perspective of Ijala poetry, a traditional Yoruba oral art form often associated with hunters and deities. The motivation for the study stemmed from the need to understand how politeness and impoliteness are strategically employed in Yoruba religious contexts to assert authority, negotiate status, and manage relationships with deities. The study aimed to analyze how these strategies serve as mechanisms of power within Ijala poetry. Using a qualitative content analysis approach, the study examined selected Ijala poems that depict interactions between humans and Yoruba deities, focusing on speech acts, verbal exchanges, and contextual interpretations. Three major findings emerged: first, impoliteness strategies were often used to prompt deities to demonstrate their power; second, politeness was employed to show reverence and establish rapport; third, both strategies were context-dependent, influenced by the deity’s nature and the speaker’s intent. The study concluded that politeness and impoliteness in Ijala poetry are critical tools for managing power dynamics and reinforcing social hierarchies in Yoruba traditional religion. The findings contribute to the broader understanding of Yoruba oral traditions and their role in religious and cultural discourse.

Adult neurogenesis is a regulated form of brain plasticity shaped by interactions between hormonal systems and environmental context. Social experience has been identified as an important modulator of neuronal proliferation, differentiation, and survival across the lifespan, although effects vary across species, developmental stages, and experimental paradigms. This review synthesizes evidence indicating that diverse social behaviors-including isolation, social hierarchy, parenting, sexual interaction, social buffering, and social learning-engage neuroendocrine, neurochemical, and stress-related pathways that are associated with modulation of hippocampal and olfactory neurogenesis. Affiliative and reproductive contexts have been linked in multiple models to enhanced neurogenic indices via gonadal hormones, oxytocinergic and vasopressinergic signaling, and neurotrophic mechanisms, whereas chronic isolation or social defeat has frequently been associated with reduced neurogenic markers, particularly within stress-sensitive regions of the ventral dentate gyrus. Sex differences further shape these patterns, reflecting both biological regulation and uneven sampling across paradigms. Comparative findings in prairie voles, eusocial mole-rats, nonhuman primates, songbirds, and teleost fish indicate that social organization can be accompanied by either increased or constrained neurogenic activity, depending on ecological pressures and life-history strategies. Collectively, the available evidence suggests that adult neurogenesis represents a context-dependent plastic process embedded within vertebrate social systems, while underscoring the need for integrative and evidence-graded interpretations.

ABSTRACT This article explores practices of gleaning in Indonesia to analyse how different values are generated from residual materials under conditions of economic marginalisation, environmental degradation, and uneven governance. Moving beyond gleaning’s agrarian conception as the ancient practice of gathering leftover crops after the main harvest, it compares the collection of loose seaweed in coastal aquaculture with the informal gathering of post-consumer plastic waste outside formal waste management systems. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, the article examines how marginalised communities generate value from materials deemed residual through labour shaped by subsistence needs, moral claims, social hierarchies, and unequal distributions of obligation and risk. Framing these practices within a ‘moral economy’ – in which shared values and notions of the common good are integral to economic life – the article shows how gleaning functions not only as a survival strategy, but also as a contested ethical project that both reproduces gendered divisions of labour and enables claims to dignity and belonging amid contested environmental governance and shifting regimes of value.

English in Bangladesh has evolved from colonial roots to come to signify opportunity, privilege, and socio-economic mobility. The role of English in the construction of linguistic capital in Bangladesh is examined in this work from the political economy perspective, theorizing language as commodity, power, and ideology based on a survey of 80 respondents. Findings illustrate almost complete agreement that English proficiency is shaped more by private forces and worldwide pressures than it is by national policy, replicating social stratification. Government efforts are considered by respondents as insufficient to democratize English access, whereas English dominance in elite employment markets still serves to enhance inequality. Yet, these findings also refer to increasing public awareness of English’s structural injustices. Future studies can take longitudinal ethnographic approaches in examining students’ lived experiences in this linguistic economy. Policymakers, in the meantime, need to envision English education as a public good, with a priority for equitable access, multilingual frameworks, and decolonized pedagogy to make English a bridge of inclusive development in Bangladesh.

Abstract This essay studies gender in medieval heresy by focusing on an inquisitorial trial in Milan in 1300. The inquisitors investigated a small group of devotees of a deceased penitent woman named Guglielma for venerating her as the Holy Spirit. A noble Humiliati nun, who would become Guglielma’s pope in a coming new age, and a wealthy layman cooperated as the devotees’ leaders. On the surface, the devotees seemed to have reversed gender roles, which late medieval male clergy-female mystic partnerships exemplified. Through an analysis of the surviving records, this article demonstrates that, instead of inverting gender expectations as the inquisitors assumed, the devotees’ vision of a new age – somewhat infused with Joachimism – and the co-leadership of the nun and the layman developed out of transcending the gender binary. As a result, the devotees saw Guglielma not as a co-redeemer with Christ but as the Holy Spirit who comforted them, would convert non-Christians, and had helped unite the devotees, even those of opposing political factions, into a family. Rejecting violent rupture as well as binary gender roles, their future age, which would begin with the nonviolent replacement of the Roman Church, would both preserve Milan’s social hierarchy and eschew binary gender roles.

Abstract.Relevance of the study is determined by the need for a comprehensive reassessment of the agrarian development of Karabakh in the 19th century as a significant region of the South Caucasus, where traditional land use systems underwent profound transformations following its incorporation into the Russian Empire. During this period, agrarian economy functioned not only as the basis of material production but also as a key factor shaping social organization, mechanisms of adaptation to natural conditions, and institutional practices of land use.The purpose of the research is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the agrarian economy of Karabakh in the 19th century, taking into account natural and geographical conditions, forms of land ownership and land use, as well as the impact of imperial agrarian policies on the transformation of traditional economic relations. The object of the study is the agrarian system of Karabakh, while the subject includes land use practices, the structure of agricultural production, and the social consequences of changes in land relations.The results of the study demonstrate that the agrarian economy of Karabakh in the 19th century was characterized by significant spatial differentiation shaped by relief, climate, water resources, and soil quality. Agriculture based on grain cultivation, horticulture, and viticulture coexisted with the dominance of livestock breeding, which played a stabilizing role in the regional economy. Traditional land use practices relied on a combination of communal and individual forms, ensuring relative sustainability of rural society. The incorporation of Karabakh into the Russian Empire led to reforms in taxation, cadastral regulation, and legal norms, gradually altering established land relations.Conclusions indicate that agrarian transformations in Karabakh during the 19th century were ambivalent in nature. While imperial policies contributed to institutional modernization, they simultaneously intensified social stratification and undermined traditional mechanisms of land regulation. The findings expand the understanding of agrarian history in the South Caucasus and provide a foundation for further comparative and interdisciplinary research.

Socioeconomic exposures related to anaemia in Peruvian children have been modelled assuming additive or log-additive relationships, yet such approaches overlook the fact that illness emerges from the complex interplay of multiple, intersecting determinants. Using data from the 2017-2023 Peruvian Demographic and Health Survey, we cross-classified age, wealth index, maternal education, ethnicity and region of residence to estimate the prevalence of anaemia across their intersections and decompose the total intersectional effects into additive and interaction components on the log-odds scale. We applied Multilevel Analysis of Individual Heterogeneity and Discriminatory Accuracy (MAIHDA) using two-level random-intercept logistic regression, with individuals (Level 1) nested within 162 intersectional strata (Level 2). The first model estimated crude between-stratum variance, while the second included individual-level covariates to assess how much of that variance they explained. A total of 255 381 children aged 6-59 months were analysed. The estimated prevalence of anaemia ranged between 10.2% and 68.1% across strata, being higher among the youngest and most disadvantaged (Indigenous, poor, low maternal education, non-Coastal). Most between-stratum differences were captured by the additive main effects of the strata-defining variables, consistent with a modest role for interactions. Anaemia in Peruvian children is unequally distributed across intersectional social strata, with the highest burden concentrated among the most disadvantaged groups. These estimates and interpretations rely on standard MAIHDA assumptions.

Social hierarchy constitutes a fundamental organizational characteristic among various social species, significantly influencing individual survival, health, and reproductive success within these societies. Neurons in the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr) exhibit extensive connectivity with the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN), a critical structure implicated in social interaction, reward processing, and the establishment of social rank. However, the specific neuronal types within the SNr, as well as the associated neural circuits that regulate social dominance, remain inadequately characterized. This study aims to elucidate the crucial role of SNr glutamatergic (SNrGlu) neurons in the establishment and maintenance of social hierarchy in male mice. Employing fiber photometry, we observed that the activation of SNrGlu neurons increased during the initiation of effortful behaviors in the tube test. Further investigations revealed that optogenetic activation or chemogenetic inhibition of the SNrGlu neurons induced upward or downward shifts in social ranks, respectively. Additionally, our findings indicate that the activation of SNr glutamatergic terminals in DRN elevates social status and reduces anxiety levels in mice. Collectively, these results broaden our understanding of the functions associated with SNrGlu neurons and underscore their critical role in regulating social hierarchy among male mice. This work enhances our understanding of the functions of SNrGlu neurons in both physiological contexts and neurological disorders.

Social hierarchy constitutes a fundamental organizational characteristic among various social species, significantly influencing individual survival, health, and reproductive success within these societies. Neurons in the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr) exhibit extensive connectivity with the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN), a critical structure implicated in social interaction, reward processing, and the establishment of social rank. However, the specific neuronal types within the SNr, as well as the associated neural circuits that regulate social dominance, remain inadequately characterized. This study aims to elucidate the crucial role of SNr glutamatergic (SNrGlu) neurons in the establishment and maintenance of social hierarchy in male mice. Employing fiber photometry, we observed that the activation of SNrGlu neurons increased during the initiation of effortful behaviors in the tube test. Further investigations revealed that optogenetic activation or chemogenetic inhibition of the SNrGlu neurons induced upward or downward shifts in social ranks, respectively. Additionally, our findings indicate that the activation of SNr glutamatergic terminals in DRN elevates social status and reduces anxiety levels in mice. Collectively, these results broaden our understanding of the functions associated with SNrGlu neurons and underscore their critical role in regulating social hierarchy among male mice. This work enhances our understanding of the functions of SNrGlu neurons in both physiological contexts and neurological disorders.

The warmi urquy ritual, still practiced in the province of Huanta, Ayacucho region, is a tradition of marriage proposal in the Peruvian Andes, in which gender hierarchies and sexist social norms are evident. The objective of this research is to understand the cultural and social significance of this practice by analyzing the manifestation of gender roles and power relations during the ceremony. The research is conducted using a qualitative approach with ethnographic methodology, combining participant observation, semi-structured interviews, and informal conversations. Direct participation in the ceremony allowed for the recording of the roles of the actors, symbolic expressions, and perceptions of godparents, family members, and guests. The results show that women are at the center of the ritual, while the groom and his family seek to demonstrate their performance and ability to “take her out” as a wife, evidencing social control and gender hierarchy. In conclusion, this study demonstrates the persistence of Andean traditions despite social and cultural changes.

Monopoly simulations have long been used in sociology classrooms to demonstrate sociological concepts, with early versions centering social stratification and class inequality. Since then, scholars have adapted the game to explore race, gender, deviance, globalization, and intersectionality. Yet, most still conceptualize gender as binary, focus on race/class/gender alone, and overlook other intersectional identities. Our Intersectional Monopoly extends these models by including more gender-diverse identities and additional axes, such as sexuality, religion, nationality, immigrant status, and age. We created playable characters and context cards to show how intersecting identities shape experiences in social contexts. We collected data on students’ experiences across four lower-level and four upper-level sociology classes. Results suggest students gained a clearer understanding of intersectionality and privilege and how identities shapes life chances. Students also noted that the simulation enhanced learning, connected course concepts to real-world examples, and deepened their understanding of inequality.

The spatial segregation of populations is a common theme in assessing the assimilation of an ethnic minority. The Russian minority in nineteenth-century Finland is an interesting case, in part because Russians were a minority in Finland but a majority in the whole empire, and in part because the minority contained a range of social strata. The 1880-1917 study period was chosen because of the political relevance of the issue at this time. The evolution of spatial segregation in Vyborg is studied using accurate tax documents geolocated using contemporaneous cadastral maps. Segregation decreased from 1880 to 1900 and increased from 1900 to 1917. The results suggest changes in the built environment played a role in the change of spatial segregation. The intermarriage rate between Russians and other groups also decreased during the period. It is likely that increasing segregation was related to the political tensions between Finland and Russia.

This paper examines Hao Jingfang’s speculative fiction—particularly “Folding Beijing” and “Xian Ge” as a critical lens through which to analyze contemporary ­Chinese science fiction’s negotiation with modernity. It explores how her narratives represent fragmented space-time structures to critique progress, social stratification, and the limits of human identity within technocapitalist societies. By foregrounding marginalized ­perspectives, Hao’s fiction challenges Enlightenment rationalism and offers a vision of humanity shaped by sociohistorical conditions rather than universalist ideals. The study further contextualizes her work within a broader global framework, positioning Chinese sf as both culturally specific and globally resonant. Drawing on theories of modernity, morality, and environmental ethics, this analysis argues that Hao’s fiction calls for a reconfiguration of human-nature relations and a renewed moral imagination. Ultimately, the paper situates Hao Jingfang’s work as a compelling response to the crisis of the Anthropocene and the failures of modernist ideology.

Proto-externalist analyses of Darwinism in Polish philosophy at turn of 19th century: How disputes of A. Chałupczyński and B. Dybowski anticipated later controversies among historians of biology.

The semiotics of emojis & emoticons: Social hierarchies, platform preferences, and functional implications in digital discourse

Recent clinical studies suggest that individual psychosocial traits play a significant role in the onset and progression of diabetes. To examine whether glucose homeostasis depends on the social rank of individual mice, we analyzed the effects of dietary fat content on the hierarchy formed among co-housed mice and evaluated how perturbing rank by inhibiting amygdala neuronal activity influences glucose regulation. Social rank among four co-housed mice was assessed using the tube test. Switching to a high-fat diet altered blood glucose homeostasis, particularly by affecting rapid responses, and disrupted the established hierarchy, with the degree of disruption varying according to each mouse's rank. In contrast, chemogenetic inhibition of neuronal activities in the basolateral amygdala and surrounding area in the lowest-ranking mice modified both glucose homeostasis and its association with social rank. These findings provide mechanistic insight into the interaction between glucose regulation and psychosocial status.