Societal Crisis Research Articles

Narratives of Russian Propaganda in the Ukrainian Media Space in the Context of Implementation of European Values

Russian propaganda significantly influences the Ukrainian media landscape, actively fueling ethnic and political tensions. Through various media channels, it propagates a negative narrative regarding European integration, aiming to instill a sense of threat to national security and cultural identity. Therefore, the promotion and implementation of European values are crucial for Ukraine, as they serve as a strategic defense against Russian propaganda. European principles such as democracy, rule of law, freedom of speech, human rights and tolerance are fundamental for ensuring stability and progress within Ukrainian society. So the purpose of the study is the identification of Russian propaganda narratives in the Ukrainian media space within the context of implementation of European values and providing their typology. This article explores the influence of Russian narratives on the views and perceptions of Ukrainian society regarding European values, as well as possible response strategies of the Ukrainian media to the spread of Russian propaganda narratives are being researched. Furthermore, the data gathered from research on Russian propaganda gives author the opportunity to develop own typology of narratives of Russian propaganda. Also the main tools, themes and motives of Russian propaganda are revealed in the article. In paper it is made an attempt to assess of the influence of Russian narratives on the views and perceptions of Ukrainian society regarding European values and to compare the influence of Russian propaganda at the Ukrainian and European levels. Thus, enhancing the public’s media literacy and implementing the European values within society are vital components of Ukraine’s national security and long-term development, particularly in the context of information warfare. Overlooking the impact of propaganda narratives on the public will result in significant setbacks in communication and information dissemination. Hence, it is imperative to devise strategies to combat such propaganda narratives and foster among the citizens a sense of critical thinking and the importance of verifying information, particularly during times of societal crisis.

Historical aspects of ethics in psychiatry : From the end of humanitarianism up to the Human Rights Convention

The establishment of academic psychiatry was completed around 1900. Simultaneously, in view of the societal crisis phenomenon the professional self-concept of the psychiatrist was shifted to aself-image, according to which psychiatry had to place its expertise at the service of the people and the country. This was particularly expressed in World WarI in the brutal dealing with the so-called war neurotics. In association with the so-called death by starvation of ca. 70,000 institution inmates, in the post-war period Karl Bonhoeffer debated a transformation of the term humanitarianism. The worst consequence of the rejection of humanitarian thoughts are the murders of invalids under National Socialism; however, legitimization of such crimes by alluding to collective ethics, as attempted by Karl Brandt, seems to be less than convincing. The reform of psychiatry initiated in the 1960s and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which came into force in 2008, have achieved prerequisites for asupportive psychiatry with reduced coercion, whereby many questions also in the legal and social systems must still be clarified.

Exploring the Value of Computational Methods for Metajournalistic Discourse: The Example of COVID-19 Reporting in Dutch Newspapers

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic raised questions about trust in journalism and the quality of news reporting during societal crises. While journalists and media professionals frequently offered critical reflections based on personal experiences and observations, computational methods are not widely used to support these evaluative processes. We aim to extend the conversation on metajournalistic discourse by considering the inclusion of empirical methods for monitoring journalistic practices. By disclosing our findings about Dutch news media’s corona reporting between 2019 and 2022, we demonstrate how computational methods for content analyses of news texts can yield empirically informed insights into different facets of journalistic performance. The corpus includes 106,616 corona-related articles from national and regional newspapers in the Netherlands. We deployed text analytical methods such as topic modelling and named entity recognition to explore Dutch corona reporting in respect to different normative criteria (informing, monitoring, offering platforms for discussion and opinion, interpretation, analysis, and setting public agendas). The study was requested by a large Dutch newspaper to receive a systematic-empirical analysis of journalistic practice for self-evaluation. We argue that computational methods combined with qualitative analyses can stimulate dialogue and critical reflection among news media professionals.

Conducting sustainability research in the anthropocene: toward a relational approach

Scholars and practitioners are urgently highlighting the need to apply a relational approach to effectively address societal crises. At the same time, little is known about the associated challenges, and there is little advice regarding how to operationalize this approach in sustainability science. Against this background, this article explores how we can break out of our current paradigms and approaches, and instead apply relational thinking, being, and acting in the way we conduct research. To achieve this, we systematically list all major research phases, and assess possible pathways for integrating a relational paradigm for each step. We show that moving toward a relational paradigm requires us to methodically question and redefine existing theories of change, concepts, and approaches, for instance by combining abductive reasoning, first-person inquiries, and decentering the human through critical complexity theory. Challenging mainstream thought, and daring to ask different questions in each step is crucial to ultimately shift scientific norms and systems. Hence, we offer a catalog of questions that may help to systematically integrate relational being, thinking, and acting into the process, as a tool for transforming current paradigms in research, and associated education and practice. Finally, we highlight the importance of further research to develop and refine our outcomes.

Using middle‐range theorizing to advance supply chain management research: A how‐to primer and demonstration

AbstractMiddle‐range theory (MRT) refers to conceptualizations that apply to some, but not all, contexts. While MRT sacrifices generalizability, it yields rich, actionable insights in the contexts where it applies. With MRT's history of industry grounding, the supply chain field offers a strong fit for the development of MRT, but arguably this potential has been underexploited by supply chain management (SCM) researchers. Several conceptual articles have encouraged greater use of MRT and offered important tips, but no step‐by‐step demonstrations appear in the literature. Such a demonstration could guide supply chain scholars seeking to better implement MRT as well as lead other scholars to start pursuing MRT. In this article, we develop a five‐step process and apply it using an MRT (i.e., warm glow theory) and a series of experiments. The experiments focus on how local businesses might shape demand in their favor during societal crises. We discuss how the results inform local businesses and the crisis context but may have limited generalizability to other organizations and normal conditions. Overall, we describe and explain a systematic and viable approach, albeit not the only viable approach, for using MRT to advance SCM research.

Submission or Rebellion? Disentangling the Relationships of Anxiety, Attitudes Toward Authorities, and Right-Wing Populist Party Support

The success of right-wing populist parties (RPPs) is often attributed to their deployment of the rhetoric of fear that capitalizes on societal crisis and corresponding anxieties. However, empirical evidence on the relationship between anxiety and support for RPP (RPP support) remains inconclusive. We argue that right-wing authoritarian (RWA) and populist attitudes imply contradicting views on authority. Anti-elitism, a subdimension of populist attitudes, implies rebellion against established authorities; however, RWA submission relates to the inclination to obey authorities. These contradictory attitudes may account for the mixed results. In relation to anxiety, both rebellion and submission are conceived as defensive responses, but their relation to RPP support is different because the reactions to authority they induce are antithetical. Moreover, we differentiate between two forms of anxiety as sources of RPP support, which are often conflated in empirical studies: situational anxiety arising in response to specific threats and diffuse anxiety or a general sense of anxiety. We draw on mass survey data, including a survey experiment, that examines how anxiety drives support for the German right-wing populist party Alternative für Deutschland (Alternative for Germany, AfD) via attitudes toward authority. The path analyses support our hypotheses and reveal that anti-elitism mediates the positive relationship between anxiety and voter support for the AfD. At the same time, authoritarian submission increases with anxiety, but—unlike anti-elitism—it is negatively associated with AfD support. Furthermore, the two paths are confirmed for situational and diffuse anxiety, with the relative importance of authoritarian submission and anti-elitism varying according to the form of anxiety.

Hospital corridors as lived spaces: The reconfiguration of social boundaries during the early stages of the Covid pandemic.

This article explores the meanings and uses of a hospital corridor through 98 diary entries produced by the staff of an English specialist hospital during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on Lefebvre's (1991, The production of space. Blackwell) threefold theorisation of space, corridors are seen as conceived, perceived and lived spaces, produced through and enabling the reconfiguration and reinterpretation of social interactions. The diaries depict two distinct versions of the central hospital corridor: its 'normal' operation prior to the pandemic when it was perceived as a social and symbolic space for collective sensemaking and the 'COVID-19 empty corridor' described as a haunting place that divided hospital staff along ostensibly new social and moral boundaries that impacted negatively on lived work experiences and staff relationships. The mobilisation of the central hospital corridor in the daily social construction of meaning and experience during a period of organisational and societal crisis suggests that corridors should not be only seen as a material backdrop for work relationships but as social entities that come into being and are maintained and reproduced through the (lack of) performance of social relations.

The Preventive Health Approach in the Thought of the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them.

It is known that the mental foundations of most individuals and societies tend to be closed off, reacting to current and future challenges without considering prevention before they occur. Reactive and immediate treatment can cost a person much more than what would be lost by preventing the challenge in the first place. Therefore, the response to challenges should not be limited to confronting them as they occur but should involve establishing a comprehensive approach to address and mitigate their strength by preventive resistance. Some may believe that there is a correlation between the concept of prevention and the medical aspect, as long as the preventive and therapeutic concepts are shared with the health field. This belief is justified by the lack of research trends, both old and contemporary, studying these concepts in other aspects. However, the truth is otherwise; the concept of prevention is a dynamic concept that cannot be reduced to one aspect over another. It may be more compatible and harmonious with intellectual aspects than with the health aspect because intellectual aspects encompass all facets of life. From here, we find that the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them, have taken a clear preventive approach in facing challenges and deviations of all kinds, including the health aspect. However, the intellectual framework is more indicative in the preventive approach of the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them, because societal crises are fundamentally intellectual crises that have given rise to other political, social, economic, military, and even health problems, which are incidental outcomes of intellectual crises. Thus, this study on the preventive approach in the thought of the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them, addresses the problem mentioned earlier, specifically the neglect of societies to the logic of prevention and their emphasis on reaction, which does not guarantee success when an incident occurs. We then assume that the preventive approach is the most effective and best method in confronting various challenges and deviations. Therefore, the health aspect is part of this approach, which can be studied extensively to clarify the picture clearly. This research is titled “The Preventive Health Approach in the Thought of the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them.”

Partisanship in a Pandemic: Biased Voter Assessments of Past and Present Government Performance

Accountability relies on voters accurately evaluating government performance in addressing the important issues of the day. This requirement arguably applies to an even greater extent when addressing fundamental societal crises. However, partisanship can bias evaluations, with government partisans perceiving outcomes more favorably, or attributing less responsibility for bad outcomes. We examine partisan motivated reasoning in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic crisis, using panel data and a survey experiment of over 6000 respondents in which vignettes prime respondents about the UK government’s successes and failures in tackling the pandemic. We also propose a novel extension of the partisan bias thesis: partisans arrive at biased judgements of government competence by recalling the past performance of the government differently, according to whether or not their favored party held power at that time. We find that even in the relatively consensual partisan context of the UK’s response to Covid-19, where both major parties endorsed both lockdown and vaccination programs, there is evidence of both current and recall partisan biases: Opposition partisans are more likely to blame the government for negative outcomes and less likely to recall positive aspects of the government’s recent and past performance unless prompted to do so. Our findings have implications for understanding the limits of democratic accountability under crisis conditions.

PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAINING AS A TOOL FOR PROFESSIONAL RESOURCEFULNESS DEVELOPMENT OF FUTURE PSYCHOLOGISTS IN WAR CONDITIONS

The article explores the development of professional resourcefulness among future psychologists in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian war. Drawing on theoretical frameworks and empirical research, the authors identify the main components of professional resourcefulness, including emotional intelligence and its elements, constructive coping strategies, and self-assessment of the professional development level. They highlight the importance of developing these resources through psychological training, utilizing techniques from cognitive-behavioural therapy, positive psychology, practices of emotional self-regulation and mindfulness. The authors present a training program designed to activate and enhance these professional internal resources. This study explores the effectiveness of a training program among psychology students. A quantitative and qualitative analysis was conducted to evaluate the program's impact on participants. Results indicate significant improvements in coping strategies, emotional intelligence elements, and self-assessment of the professional development level and its components among participants. Notably, the training program demonstrated efficacy in providing psychoemotional support during societal crises and psychologically traumatic events. These findings underscore the importance of psychological training in the resource provision of the psychology students' professional development.

Stress and coping strategies among youth during the COVID-19 pandemic: a population-based cohort study

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic caused a worldwide health- and societal crisis. Youth were exposed to enduring stressors. We examined types and load of stressors faced by youth, and their use of coping strategies. A population-based sample within Bergen municipality, Norway (N = 1031, 11–19 years) completed the Response to Stress Questionnaire 9 months into the pandemic. Social stressors were most frequent, with secondary control engagement being the most used coping strategy. Stress and coping strategies differed depending on sex, age, and socioeconomic status. Heightened stress were associated with primary and secondary control engagement, and disengagement. Thus, youth employed a range of coping strategies to an increasing degree with heightened levels of COVID-19 stress. The frequency of secondary control engagement aligns with the enduring uncontrollable nature of the outbreak. For future health crises, authorities should focus on social stressors experienced by youth, especially among girls, older youth, and youth with low socioeconomic status.

SIGNS OF CONSTRUCTIVE JOURNALISM IN THE UKRAINIAN MEDIA

The article explores the question of implementing constructive journalism as a new media practice in the Ukrainian media space. Today, the use of the constructive approach by traditional media indicates an attempt to change the way information is presented, emphasize positive aspects, and contribute to the creation of solution-oriented materials that do not solely focus on problems and conflicts. For Ukrainian media outlets, constructive journalism is a new media practice to which they are adapting, but there are already observable efforts to create content that promotes positive dynamics and problem resolution, rather than just identification. The spread of the constructive approach in the Ukrainian media space, which is filled with demands for solutions to issues arising from societal crises and ongoing conflicts, will contribute to the formation of a worldview based on mutual aid, support, and understanding. Therefore, the analysis of the features of constructive journalism embodied in materials from Ukrainian media is essential for studying the potential of this new direction.

15-Year Suicide Trends Using Media Reporting Methodology from the Tricity Region of Chandigarh: A Brief Analysis

Introduction: Suicide has become a societal crisis owing to the recent increasing trends globally. Of the total suicide deaths globally, two-thirds occur in the developing countries including India. The available data on suicide in India reflect a rate of 11% (according to the National Crime Records Bureau 2013) with the highest rates in older adult males and an increasing trend of suicide deaths in younger age groups. Much of the literature is from the southern part of India with a relatively sparse data from North India. Aim and Methodology: The aim was to examine the 15-year (2004-2019) trend of suicide (age and gender distribution, methods used, and reasons) in an urban city in North India. Information was collected from the leading newspapers (English, Hindi, and Punjabi) of the area. Duplication of information was avoided, and statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 20. Results: Fluctuations in the total number of suicide cases over the 15-year period were observed with nearly 63% of people committing suicide being younger than 30 years of age, of whom 53% were male. More females in the younger age group and more males in the older age group were suicide victims. Of all the methods used, hanging was the most common (70%), followed by consuming poisonous substance, jumping from height, shooting self, and stabbing in the descending order. A ceiling fan was used for hanging by 32% of victims who hanged themselves, of whom 65% were male. Among the cited reasons, stress/depression was experienced by 19% of victims. Discussion and Conclusion: The trends with respect to age distribution, gender, and method used that is reported in the current study are in line with the trends reported globally. The preventive measures, especially using technological advances in designing fans not suitable for tying noose around it, can be explored.

System's Crisis Resilience as a Societal Crisis: Knowledge Structure and Gaze of the Finnish Health Care System.

The crisis resilience of vital social systems is currently the target of constant development efforts in Finland, as their drifting into crisis would weaken societies' functional abilities, safety, and security. This is also the case regarding the Finnish health care system. In an attempt to move beyond existing frameworks of crisis imagination, this article takes an unconventional stance by elucidating endogenous crisis dynamics present in the Finnish health care system. Delphi process was conducted for top experts in Finnish health care and crisis management. With a dissensus-seeking orientation, our aim was to fertilize disagreements among panelists to reveal key vulnerabilities in the health system. Despite our efforts to evoke dissensus, the panelists ended up generating a consensus that aims to protect the underlying assumptions of the health system's knowledge structure. Through inductive analysis of expert discourses, the data was analyzed through our research question "what constitutes a crisis-proof health system and a crisis-prone health system". What is framed as a strength of the system by our panelists, namely the ability to maintain legitimacy, improve efficiency, and guarantee continuity, can still have questionable implications that are left ungrasped. A system's theory approach illustrates how such effects can develop and escalate beyond the reach of social interventions, and thus be predisposed to cause objectionable yet concealed social crises. The discussion illustrates how these endogenous crisis dynamics could be seen to materialize in real-life cases.

Building trust in times of crisis: A panel study of the influence of satisfaction with COVID‐19 communication and management

AbstractThis study examines the relationship between citizens' satisfaction with government COVID‐19 communication and management (SWCCM) and institutional trust. By employing a longitudinal approach, using three‐wave panel data from Sweden from 2020 to 2022, the study addresses the current lack of research on the interplay between SWCCM and institutional trust across different stages of a societal crisis like the COVID‐19 pandemic. The results show that SWCCM increased slightly over the pandemic period, while trust in institutions slightly decreased. The study also finds that changes in SWCCM predict changes in trust in institutions, suggesting that increased satisfaction with communication and management is associated with increased trust in institutions. Additionally, we find that higher initial levels of SWCCM contribute to a faster decline in trust over time. However, no evidence supports the idea that initial trust in institutions predicts changes in SWCCM. This suggests a unidirectional relationship where SWCCM is a key driver of institutional trust during a crisis. Overall, the study uncovers intriguing dynamics in the relationship between SWCCM and trust over time, and it emphasizes the significance of effective and consistent communication and management in maintaining and boosting public trust during crisis.

The COVID-19 pandemic: societal crisis and state policy

The article examines the issues related to modern state and its policy in the context of the societal crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the consequences of which can hardly be overestimated, especially in connection with the economic recovery. The methodological basis of the work is the analysis of current scientific publications and expert assessments on the issues of the current societal crisis caused by the fall in material security of citizens, rising unemployment and the formation of post-COVID reality. The article interprets the concept of a «societal crisis» and considers the conditions generating economic and social crises worldwide. The analysis of epinomic policy of the state to ensure interaction between society, state and individuals is carried out. The authors argue that the pandemic has revealed the actual inability of most of world's states to effectively withstand emergencies that threaten the lives of millions of citizens and at the same time made obvious miscalculations in both the economic and social policies of the state. On this basis, the authors identify the fundamental problem of modern socio-economic systems, which consists in ignoring the need for the state to ensure a dialectical interaction between society and economy. It is substantiated that the problems considered in the work have not only a theoretical basis, but are also of an applied nature, since assessing the behavior of the state was previously impossible due to the absence of situations similar to the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings aim at determining the possibility of changing the functions of the state in socio-economic system as a result of reducing the level of uncertainty in future reality by creating a more inclusive social environment, and contribute to the development of economic theory, the theory of state and public administration.

САМОВРЯДУВАННЯ В УКРАЇНІ ЯК ІНСТИТУТ ВЗАЄМОДІЇ ДЕРЖАВИ І ГРОМАДЯНСЬКОГО СУСПІЛЬСТВА

Self-governance is considered as a politico-legal institution within which the management of local affairs is carried out in basic administrative-territorial units through the self-organization of the local population, with the consent, recognition, and support of the state. It has been established as a type of social governance where the subjects and objects of governance coincide, meaning that people manage their own affairs, collectively make decisions, and act to implement them. The legal framework for self-governance in Ukraine, as well as the structure and functions of local self-government bodies, is outlined. The mechanism and legal regulation of interaction between the state and local self-governance are clarified. An assessment of the level of development and effectiveness of self-governance in Ukraine is provided. It has been revealed that the establishment process of local self-governance in Ukraine, alongside other democratic transformations, remains incomplete to this day. The most effective manifestation of self-governance has been in volunteer support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Future paths for the institutionalization of self-governance in Ukraine are summarized and forecasted, focusing on increasing the efficiency of local self-governance and overcoming societal crises.

Separatist and Terrorist Movements in Papua: The Challenges of Social Disaster Management and the Important Role of Human-Made Disaster Intelligence

The Papua secessionist movement hinders Indonesia's stability efforts. The government has implemented measures, deploying intelligence for managing social crises as defined by Law 24 of 2007 on Disaster Management. The present study examines the separatist movement in Papua, its resultant societal upheaval, and the crucial role of intelligence in mitigating this societal crisis. The study explores applying Human-Made Disaster Intelligence, using AI and data tech, to mitigate risks in the Papua case. This study employs a literature review with 26 sources to explore challenges posed by separatist and terrorist movements in Papua. Data is gathered from official sources, excluding personal websites and social media. The study was conducted from January to March 2023. Data analysis utilizes descriptive narratives to qualitatively explore separatist and terrorist movements, social disasters, intelligence, and the Papua region. The research findings demonstrate that the separatist movement in Papua has resulted in a significant societal calamity, causing conflicts, casualties, and economic challenges. Man-made disaster intelligence is proposed to manage social disasters by collecting and analyzing data related to separatist activities. Intelligence plays a crucial role in detecting and mitigating risks associated with separatism, offering preventive and remedial measures. Challenges include limited resources and the need for collaboration among intelligence agencies. Strategic measures to enhance intelligence involve increased resources, collaboration, transparency, and the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for data analysis. The complexity of using AI in countering separatist movements requires careful consideration of data sources, collection methods, and reliability measures.

Yritysten joukkorahoituskutsut genrehybrideinä koronapandemian ja Ukrainan sodan aikana

Crowdfunding campaigns are a form of digital fundraising in which anyone can participate as a supporter (backer). The central genre of crowdfunding is campaign call, that is, a fundraising-oriented pitch published on a crowdfunding platform. This study focuses on crowdfunding campaign calls in times of two world-wide crises: Ukrainian war and Covid pandemic. The aim of the study is to find out what kinds of hybrid genres crisis-contextualized crowdfunding campaign calls are. The material of the study consists of 67 successful business-oriented campaign calls, 27 of which are from Ukrainian companies fundraising on Kickstarter during the Ukrainian war, while 20 Mesenaatti campaign calls belong to Finnish and 20 Indiegogo calls mainly to U.S. companies suffering from the Covid pandemic. The study utilizes Rhetorical Genre Studies (RGS) and approaches crowdfunding campaign calls as mixtures or combinations of characteristics from several genres. The study discusses the five most typical genres found in the data: 1) entrepreneurial narrative, 2) advertisement, 3) conditions of contract and delivery, 4) project plan, and 5) political statement. The results indicate that in times of societal crises, crowdfunding campaign calls mix emotion-evoking storytelling and political stance-taking with more rational types, such as product information (a type of advertising) and project plan.

Revolutionising sustainability leadership and education: addressing the human dimension to support flourishing, culture and system transformation

Research shows that today’s societal crises are rooted in a lack of connection to ourselves, others and nature. At the same time, there is an increasing body of knowledge showing that humans possess innate capacities for connection that can be strengthened through certain methods, and throughout our lifetimes. Such methods have, so far, however, been rarely applied, or adapted to the context of sustainability leadership and education. Critical qualitative analyses and empirical evidence that would help to understand if, and how, related interventions can support sustainability outcomes across scales are vastly lacking. The present study addresses this gap. It examines global leadership programs that aim to nourish inner development and accelerate work towards the Sustainable Development Goals. More specifically, it systematises the qualitative impacts and learnings from a Climate Leadership Program for policy and decision-makers (e.g. the European Commission) that provided the basis for co-developing similar programs for the United Nations Development Program, the Inner Development Goals Initiative, and the Inner Green Deal. The findings demonstrate how sustainability leadership and education can become a vehicle for transformation, if certain principles are in place. They highlight the importance of addressing the ontological, epistemological and praxis dimensions of inner-outer transformation to empower participants to challenge unsustainable social paradigms and enable them to systematically mainstream the consideration of inner potential and capacities into existing cultures, mechanisms and structures. Our findings advance knowledge on the complex intersection between sustainability, inner development and transformation, and set a precedent that other training institutions could follow or learn from.