Societal Role Research Articles

A Study on Relationship between Sustainable Fashion Brands and Consumer Value through Application of Importance-Performance Analysis, Impact Range-Performance Analysis, and Impact Assessment Act

Based upon the Consumer Value Theory, we delved into consumers’ perceptions of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as represented by fashion brands. By employing the Importance-Performance Analysis (IPA) approach, functionality, emotional value, and social value serve as the primary dimensions through which consumers evaluate the SDG. From a functionality perspective, consumers anticipate that fashion brands extend beyond meeting basic apparel needs, emphasizing the significance of brands delivering augmented value through pioneering designs and superior material quality. This insinuates the imperative for brands to meticulously consider the sustainability of materials and the environmental impact inherent in their manufacturing processes. The emotional dimension underscores the avenues through which brands foster emotional affiliations with consumers. A genuine commitment to, and enactment of, sustainability by brands enhances the depth of emotional bonds they share with consumers. This is manifested solely in the brand’s imagery and designs and the alignment of the brand’s mission and ethos with consumers’ convictions and principles. From a social value standpoint, there is a consumer expectation for brands to undertake broader societal roles, such as buttressing local communities, ensuring the integrity and transparency of their supply chains, and amplifying charitable endeavors. The findings of this research posit that in their pursuit of sustainability, fashion brands need to holistically address product functionality and emotional resonance, while concurrently comprehending consumers’ social value aspirations and acknowledging the nuances introduced by cultural and contextual variables, thereby crafting more bespoke and efficacious marketing strategies.

Mourning Women, the Voice of God, and the Limits of Lament: Women’s Songs of Lament in Jeremiah

Abstract The book of Jeremiah contains metaphors depicting Israel and Zion as a woman. These include the city as a mourning woman (4:19–21; 10:20). Real mourning women are addressed in Jer 9:17–22, following laments variously attributed to Jeremiah and/or Yahweh (8:18–9:2, 10). Working with the (MT) canonical form and engaging the insights of trauma studies, this article traces linguistic and thematic connections between the two passages before tracing similar connections to Rachel’s lament (Jer 31). The mourning women in Jer 9 serve a societal role by giving voice to lament; this effective power is affirmed by trauma studies. When read alongside the lament by Jeremiah and/or Yahweh, this article notes the women also take up a prophetic role as with Jeremiah they embody and express Yahweh’s own pathos. In ch. 31, the mourning women are metaphorically instantiated in the eponymous mother who also voices Yahweh’s pathos yet remains uncomforted. This study points to the hope that arises from Yahweh’s identification with his people in the pathos expressed by prophet, mourning women, and Rachel. Ultimately, Yahweh’s identification with his people, and his words of hope offer comfort to unrequited lament.

CoBUSters: organization and deployment of a mobile Covid-19 test team for large-scale testing in collectivities as a societal outreach from a university hospital.

During the summer of 2020, government agencies in Belgium were hasty to create additional test capacity for the diagnosis of acute infections with SARS-CoV-2. Large-scale initiatives were necessary to absorb the waves of covid-19 infections throughout all levels of society.
 Within the Antwerp University Hospital (UZA) we realized that it would be impossible to perform large-scale testing of schools, universities, companies, or other collectivities if sampling capacity would not be made available within the collectivities themselves. A large number of scholars or students would not be able to move toward test centers. So, we created a mobile testing team that on-call would be sent to the collectivities to perform testing within the schools, universities, and companies. The test team started in October 2020 with a single bus which was transformed to accommodate the administrative handling of the test e-form, the scanning of the eID of the person to be tested, as well as the sampling through a nasopharyngeal itself. The structure of the bus allowed to perform the testing of 12 students every 15 minutes. Within a couple of weeks, the demand for large-scale testing increased to more than 1000 a day. Towards the end of 2020, a second bus was put into operation. During the year 2021, additional vans were put into operation as the daily number of tests further increased.
 The mobile test team remained in operation until the end of May 2022. During this lifespan, more than 200,000 nasopharyngeal samples were collected by the test team. The highest number of tests on a single day was 4,200. The mobile test team operated within three Belgian provinces, serving more than 2,500,000 people. Besides the testing teams, we created a dispatching team which was evaluable 7/7 for calls and registration of demands for new testings. Besides schools, we performed collective testing in colleges, universities, nursing homes, large companies, prisons, and hospices for homeless people. We even performed large-scale tests within municipalities at the hights of the covid waves. TAT for reporting results was less than 24 hours after sampling.
 The mobile test team, CoBUSters, became known throughout the entire country as a truly innovative social project. Many wondered why a hospital developed a service that was well outside of the regular hospital-related activities. We however did this because this aligns with our mission as a community-based hospital with a strong societal-oriented focus. Hospitals should not remain within their walls, but when society needs them they should quickly develop activities to support society as a whole. This project allowed us also to interact on an almost daily basis with healthcare providers on the first line of healthcare (GPs, home care nurses). From the hospital, we provided the services that the first line could have never mobilized like administrative and nursing staff or manipulation of huge numbers of PCR tests. Together we were able to protect our collectivities against massive outbreaks of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Even tertiary hospitals have a fundamental societal role when called upon. We should never forget this.

Intersections of Marginalization and Possibility: A Phenomenological Analysis of Disabled Students’ Experiences with Online Learning

Abstract During the covid-19 pandemic, online learning allowed for accommodations that were previously unavailable. However, this reconfiguration of supports did not always occur. Research centering student experience alongside the complexity of social contexts in online learning is lacking. Using Intersectional Critical Disability Studies and Queer Phenomenology, we investigate disabled students’ experiences with online learning. Interviews with secondary and postsecondary students reveal that online schooling reinforced barriers and hindered full inclusion and support. The pandemic emphasized the feelings of insignificance of their education, restricting their societal roles. Disabled students in this study relied on individual relationships and support to navigate their schooling. Using the concepts of inheritance/disinheritance to explore how the shift to online learning further affected secondary students with disabilities, this paper argues that the changes functioned primarily to protect the non-disabled and perpetuate ablebodiedness, thereby placing access further out of reach and thus entrenching limitations to dreaming past barriers.

A HISTORICAL UNDERSTANDING OF HOW SCIENCE WORKS

From Socrates onwards, the Greek cultural life began to take shape, and the whole nature of philosophical and scientific thought also began to change. From the natural sciences, interest shifted towards man and his societal role. Starting with the Sophists, a critical look at the surviving myths became pivotal at the time. Even if humans are still unable to get answers to all the riddles of nature, for which, among other things, mythology offers supernatural explanations, we (as human beings) do realize that we are only human. And humans need to learn to live together in different forms of social life. The Sophists were interested in man and his place in society. Socrates used conversations and tried to help his interlocutors generate valid reasoning and knowledge. According to him, proper knowledge must arise inside the individual, which is today's constructivist approach; no one can instill knowledge in the individual from the outside. Only knowledge that comes from within is true understanding. Socrates also wanted to find a solid basis for human knowledge. He believed he had found it in human reason.

Artificial journalism: the reverse of human-machine communication paradigm. Mapping the field of AI critical media studies

The study for the first time endeavours to elucidate the distinct conceptual nuances of AI-driven journalism, exploring how it reshapes the core technological and communicative attributes of the field while influencing societal dynamics. The crisis within AI-driven human-machine interaction in journalism rooted in the essence and processing of information is defined. Despite the paradigm of journalism is rooted in a human-centered approach, its AI-driven paradigm is the same - but in a reversible mode. Journalism involves the translation of personal perspectives and experiences through the filter of memory. Algorithms function without the nuances of personal and social memory, thereby undermining the core principles of the journalistic profession. The loss of genuine, “analog” memory among journalists and their audiences, alongside the digital “memory” of algorithms, jeopardizes the fundamental societal role of journalism-upholding social order. Re-thinking the AI phenomenon as artificial communication, the authors propose the term “artificial journalism”. At the basic technological level it is based on various forms of automation and embedded within digital infrastructures; at the societal level it is designed for the central purpose of journalism and entangled with human practices. Both the levels are reversible. The term could serve as an umbrella term for all the AI-driven journalism activities. Also it removes contradictions not only in human-machine communication but clarify the essence of AI performance in journalism and media studies, and for the users. The emergence of AI-driven media practices opens the basic crisis conceptual contradictions which provokes new realms of research and necessitates the establishment of critical AI media studies.

The role of history in accounting education: an evaluation from the perspective of academics

ABSTRACT This study explores the perspectives of 252 accounting scholars from 128 universities in the Republic of Türkiye on integrating accounting history into accounting education. According to the survey, academics with personal experience in accounting history, such as publishing or teaching the subject, tend to favor its inclusion in the curriculum. The study has revealed a significant agreement on the educational worth of accounting history. Many respondents agree that exposure to accounting history broadens students’ understanding of its societal role and contemporary issues. Another significant finding is accounting history's ability to encourage students to pursue a specialization in the field. The study highlights that academic engagement, rather than demographic factors, is key in shaping students’ views of accounting history. It suggests the need for focused research and innovative educational methods to better incorporate accounting history in the curriculum. Although this study is based in Türkiye, its implications for accounting education may be globally relevant.

An exploration of national and local policies supporting health promoting sports clubs in the Republic of Ireland

ABSTRACT The societal role which sports clubs can play in promoting health has been underexploited, and sports clubs have called for support from policymakers. Based on the Health Promoting Sports Clubs National Audit Tool, the present study has as objective to investigate how national public policies support health promotion in sports clubs, by questioning indicators of quality (references to other document, policy framing and evaluation), the content (target groups, health topics, type of policy instruments) and the mechanisms used by Irish decision-makers for coordination, evaluation, dissemination and implementation of these policies. The tool was completed in two steps comprising a systematic search of policy plans, programmes or regulations and 12 interviews with key informants. A content analysis of 17 policy documents, identified 49 policy actions targeting HP in sport clubs, coming from different sectors, but only policies from the health sector considered a settings-based approach, supporting a unique sports federation programme. Policies focus on a single health behaviour, where the most targeted were physical activity participation, gender inequity and the disability gap in access to sport clubs. The policy structure lacks coordination, monitoring, media campaigns and events, and therefore not adopting the HPSC concept, but only a health education approach. Future studies should support the acknowledgement of HP as an umbrella concept, in order to support the understanding and development of organisation and system change since policies are drivers for sport federations, local sport actors and sports clubs.

Wrangling in the Marketplace or Bartering in the Bazaar? Adapting Metaphors for Public Relations’ Societal Role

ABSTRACT The marketplace of ideas metaphor has long influenced how scholars and practitioners understand public relations’ role in U.S. discourse and democratic society, yet it is rarely questioned. We argue that the unacknowledged aspirations and Western, capitalist values embedded in the marketplace of ideas could cloud understandings of public relations in society and absolve practitioners of certain consequences of the discourses they put forth due to the function of the invisible hand symbolism operating within it. This work draws mostly from rhetorical and marketplace theory in public relations, including fully functioning society, to present five central limitations of the marketplace metaphor. A case example of U.S. discourse about trans women in sports showcases the shortcomings of the marketplace metaphor in practice. We introduce the bazaar and other compatible metaphors to inspire alternative, figurative thinking about societal communication and address some of the limitations we present, though we also ask questions about the marketplace of ideas to improve its fit with contemporary public relations. This essay offers theoretical and practical contributions by extending metaphors to explain practitioner responsibility in societal discourse and outline the importance of suiting metaphors to particular public relations contexts.

Progressive Islamic Religious Education in the Family as a Means of Empowering Women

This study explores and analyzes the critical role of progressive Islamic religious education in the family to empower women. This study adopts a literature study method with a systematic and integrated approach to literature analysis to obtain comprehensive results on the role of progressive Islamic religious education in the family as a means of empowering women. The study's results stated that advanced Islamic religious education in the family has great potential to empower women. In this context, progressive Islamic religious education provides a solid moral foundation for women, promotes gender equality, and provides a more inclusive view of women's societal role. In the process, progressive Islamic religious education enables women to develop a deeper understanding of spiritual teachings that is more inclusive and tolerant. Women educated in a family environment that implements advanced Islamic religious education can be active agents of societal change, promoting equality, justice, and empathy. However, challenges also exist, such as resistance to changes in religious views and pressure from perhaps more conservative environments. To overcome this challenge, there needs to be a strong commitment and deep awareness within the family and support from the community that supports a progressive approach to Islam.

Corruption is making people sick

According to Transparency International, of the US$7.5 trillion spent globally on health each year, US$500 billion is lost to corruption.1 This article deals with the topic of corruption in the health sector in sub-Saharan Africa with a focus on how it affects persons living with HIV and their families. It begins with a definition of corruption and outlines the types of activities, people and institutions that fall within that definition in the context of HIV/AIDS. Examples are provided of what happens in practice and the types of persons (in terms of their societal roles) who yield to corruption, and how and why they commit it. The effects of corruption in health and in the fight against HIV/AIDS are then considered, drawing on published research on the costs to institutions and society. For example, HIV prevalence among women is higher than men, yet their reliance on health services plagued by corruption makes them vulnerable to abuse, blocking access to vital contraceptive, HIV testing, and reproductive and child health services. Attention is then focused on the factors that encourage the adoption of corrupt practices and what approaches have been taken to try to counter them. This includes a review and analysis of the steps that have been taken to strengthen compliance, governance and accountability and why attempts to deal with corruption have met with little success. This article suggests a new approach — harnessing digitalisation — to combat corruption more quickly and effectively, pointing out that corruption is both a major factor contributing to inefficiency and is harming peoples’ health. This article aims to raise interest and renew efforts in fighting corruption in health.

How Marriage Policy Affects Womens LFP

With technological advancement coupled with the recent pandemic, perceptions of womens societal roles have undoubtedly evolved over the recent decades. Often, their social role is measured through their employment status, with rising labor force participation indicating an elevated social standing. While most of the previous research tends to link womens labor force participation with factors including wage rates, childbirth, and education, the correlation between their labor force participation and marriage has remained underexplored. Given the profound impact marriage can have on womens employment, it is crucial to adopt innovative research approaches that reflect modern shifts in womens social roles. This paper seeks to unravel the link between marriage and womens labor force participation in the U.S., focusing specifically on the influence of legal marriage age via a difference-in-difference design. The goal is to inform the government of better policy decisions, such as pushing for enhanced economic and marriage policies that could further facilitate womens role in the professional realm.

The quality of radio journalism in Tanzania: Empowering citizens or at a crossroads?

There is a dearth of scholarly work that measures the quality of journalism, both in Western contexts and in the Global South. This might be partly explained by the difficulty in defining, operationalising and measuring news media quality. However, those data would be helpful to identify the societal role of radio journalism in enabling citizens to participate and take decisions. As radio plays an overarching role in Tanzania for information, especially for those living in rural areas, this article assessed research data from the “Yearbook on Media Quality in Tanzania” that has identified quality as a list of criteria describing various characteristics of journalistic texts and set thresholds to distinguish good from poor quality. Thus, it measured the quality performance of 30 print, radio and TV media houses. This article now assesses radio journalism in the country, with a focus on comparison amongst radio stations. The assessment shows that some quality criteria were almost not fulfilled at all, although they are acknowledged as important, for example, the right of reply, or covering viewpoints that are critical to the government. Nevertheless, with regard to professionalism and comprehensive reporting, the data show that some radio stations perform largely better than others and that programmes are much better compared to newscasts. The external environment plays an important role in performance. Many shortcomings in quality are due to the harsh political environment and economic challenges. However, the internal newsroom environment plays an additional role and explains as well some of the quality differences identified.

Using actor–network theory to revisit the digitalized tool in social design

The actor–network theory assumes that human and non-human actors co-act in dynamic networks. As the boundaries between them change according to their connections, the design plays a constructive societal role and can help rebuild and reform societies. Through a case study of China’s health code, this study explains how a heterogeneous network in the social design structure assists institutions in actively or passively transforming a digitalized tool to rebuild and rewrite a part of social orders. It can aid human users operating in communities; however, it can also be used by powerful policymakers as an auxiliary tool. The primary purpose of this study is to investigate the conflict between a hierarchical network and a co-acting network. As social issues become more complicated and unpredictable, the design can either help resolve the problem and guide us towards a more open, equal, and coordinated future, or it can do the opposite.

6.Q. Workshop: Anti-Sexual and Gender Minority (SGM) Stigma: How Prejudice Affects the Health of SGM Globally

Abstract Sexual and gender minorities (SGM) suffer from stigma globally, which has severe health-harming effects, including an inability to live authentically, reduced access & quality of services, & poor physical & mental health. Societal othering creates structural barriers for SGM to meet their needs. This workshop is essential because of the rising global stigmatization of SGM persons & the adverse health impacts. Understanding SGM's lived experiences & perceptions of healthcare professionals & identifying needs is critical to developing public health programs & policies that support SGM health. This workshop will give examples of studies on SGM discrimination & health, drawing from research in Brazil, Chile, France, Italy, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, & the United States. The workshop will first outline the situation & public health problems experienced by SGM living in various countries, such as stigma, mental health, & underdiagnosis of gender incongruence. Then the workshop will discuss public health-oriented solutions & policy directions, including improving medical providers’ attitudes & knowledge & other implications for public health practice & policy. The workshop will open with a study by Kristefer Stojanovski from Tulane University, USA examining societal stigma's role in “othering” SGM in Rwanda with implications for studying SGM issues. Then Alain Giami from Inserm, France will discuss trans persons’ self-identification of identity & the implications for diagnoses of gender incongruence from a cross-country study in Brazil, Chile, Italy, & France. Afterward, Jaime Eduardo Barrientos from Complutense University of Madrid, Spain will discuss the implications of transgender prejudice & the health ramifications among trans-identifying persons in Chile. Next, Nadeeka Chandraratne from the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka will interrogate medical providers’ attitudes & knowledge about SGM issues in Sri Lanka & the implications for clinical care. Lastly, Sasha Zhou from Wayne State University, USA will describe the mental health situation of Asian American & Pacific Islander university students across the United States, examining stigma & discrimination roles in perpetrating poor mental health. After the individual presentations, which will each last 7-8 minutes, the audience will be invited to a moderated 20-25-minute open discussion on the papers & how the findings can help inform public health practice & policy to address SGM social exclusion & health globally. The situation for SGM persons’ lives & health across the globe is worrisome from a public health standpoint, particularly as discrimination & prejudices increase, which have severe health-harming effects across numerous physical and mental health states & domains. Our workshop aims to facilitate a conversation on understanding the structural situations that shape SGM health & exploring ways to reduce the disproportionate health burden & risk factors SGM persons face. Key messages • SGM across the globe have an elevated risk of structurally induced stigma, which negatively influences physical and mental health, and access to care. • Disproportionate societal burdens experienced by SGM require urgent attention from public health professionals, given the health-harming effects of discrimination and exclusion.

Pursuing work-life balance: A study of Sri Lankan mumpreneurs

This article attempts to identify the strategies women entrepreneurs use to balance their work and family life through an analysis of the daily lives of a subgroup of women entrepreneurs called ‘mumpreneurs’ – defined as women who tailor a business that is suitable for (i.e., does not interfere with) their primary role as caregiver to their children, with the objective of achieving worklife balance (Ekinsmyth, 2011). Research participants were selected from a middle-class demographic because the class background of the entrepreneur is a central analytical category in this study; what differentiates the mumpreneur is her practice of ‘intensive mothering’ as a middle-class mother, which compels her to live a lifestyle that is spatially and temporally restricted as it revolves around her maternal and household responsibilities (Ekinsmyth, 2014). This article interrogates how mumpreneurs attempt to balance their dual (and competing) demands as mother and entrepreneur by exploring their household and business practices. In-depth semi-structured interviews with fifteen respondents indicate that mumpreneurs balance their dual societal roles by (1) prioritizing motherhood over entrepreneurship, (2) designing businesses that are small, flexible and resistant to growth, and (3) managing their double burden by outsourcing their care and domestic responsibilities to working class women and men employed in their homes.

Societal gender role beliefs moderate the pattern of gender differences in public- and private-sphere pro-environmental behaviors

Although societies have widely recognized the gender differences of women participating more than men do in private-sphere pro-environmental behavior, how the relationship between gender and public-sphere pro-environmental behavior varies across societies is less clear. To fill this gap, we examined the moderating effect of societal gender role beliefs in how gender predicts public-sphere pro-environmental behavior across societies using large-scale surveys. In Study 1, using the data from the World Values Survey (N = 85,484 from 57 countries), we found that gender differences (i.e., men do more than women) in the number of participations in different types of public-sphere pro-environmental behavior were greater among societies with stronger gender role beliefs. In Study 2, using the data from the International Social Survey Programme (N = 46,705 from 34 countries), we replicated the findings in Study 1 for public-sphere pro-environmental behavior. Additionally, we found that gender differences (i.e., women do more than men) in the number of participations in different types of private-sphere pro-environmental behavior were greater among societies with weaker gender role beliefs. However, these results diminished with the moderating effect of other societal-level factors controlled. These findings provide a better understanding of the relationship between gender and pro-environmental behaviors and reveal the importance of social contexts in moderating the magnitude of gender identity maintenance across domains.

Moderating Role Of Gender In The Effect Of Perceived Parental Acceptance-Rejection On Social Appearance Anxiety

Social appearance anxiety is a condition that negatively affects a person's relationships in social life. It is assumed that particularly negative early socialization experiences within the family increase the risk of experiencing social appearance anxiety. It is known that there are societal pressures towards male and female appearances due to societal roles and gender expectations. Therefore, it is important to understand and compare the female and male perspectives to comprehend the development of social appearance anxiet. For these reasons, The main problem of this research is the moderator role of gender in the effect of perceived parental acceptance-rejection on social appearance anxiety.
 
 The study group of the research consists of 310 participants, 112 (36%) men and 198 (64%) women. The relevant literature was searched, and two theoretical models were formed, which included the variables that were the subject of the research, and the research was built on these variables. Within the scope of this construct, the predictive relationships between the related variables were tested. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test the theoretical models created. It was determined that the theoretical models tested with Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) had acceptable fit indices. During the analysis, the findings were evaluated by using SPSS and AMOS package programs. In the findings; It was seen that perceived mother and father acceptance-rejection level had a positive effect on social appearance anxiety. In addition, it was determined that as men's perceived maternal and paternal rejection increased, they felt more social appearance anxiety compared to women. However, it was determined that while gender had a moderator role in the effect of perceived maternal acceptance-rejection on social appearance anxiety, gender did not have a moderator role in the effect of perceived father acceptance-rejection on social appearance anxiety. No studies have been found in the literature that examine perceived parental acceptance-rejection and social appearance anxiety together. This makes the current study valuable. Furthermore, considering that most studies on social appearance anxiety focus on individuals in adolescence, it is thought that this study will contribute to the literature as it is conducted with adult.

How the energy depletion rate and financial structure can promote environmental sustainability: Empirical evidence from Pakistan using ecological footprints

Financial structure is the primary director of economic activity in a capitalist society, it also has an important societal role in encouraging investments that are beneficial to the natural and human ecosystems. To accomplish this objective, this study addresses the unattended symmetric linkages between financial structure, energy depletion, and environmental degradation using multiple ecological footprints ‘’ (built-up land, carbon land, cropland, fishing grounds, forest products, and grazing land)’’ as an indicator over the period 1985 to 2018 for Pakistan. By using these six indicators as separate regressands, this research quantifies the impact of financial structure and energy depletion by applying the newly developed Augmented Autoregressive Distributed Lag (AARDL) approach. The outcome reveals that financial structure decreases ecological footprints, similarly, energy depletion also decreases ecological footprints. Opposite to it, trade openness increases ecological footprints, while urban population decreases ecological footprints. Given these results, comprehensive environmental and financial structure development policies are directed to achieve environmental sustainable goals.

Fathers' and mothers' sensitivity during free play with gendered toys.

This study examined whether fathers' and mothers' sensitivity toward sons and daughters varies depending on whether they play with stereotypical girls' toys or boys' toys. In a sample of 144 predominantly White Dutch families with a child aged 4-6 years, fathers' and mothers' sensitivity was observed during two free play episodes while they played with their son or daughter. One play episode was with stereotypical boys' toys, and the other was with stereotypical girls' toys. Results showed that mothers' but not fathers' sensitivity scores, depended on whether they played with a son or daughter and whether they played with stereotypically boys' toys or girls' toys. Mothers were more sensitive to their daughters when they played with girls' toys than with boys' toys. In addition, mothers playing with daughters were more sensitive than mothers playing with sons when they played with girls' toys. Mothers' differential sensitivity during gender-typed play could be a gender socialization practice that subtly contributes to gender inequality in societal roles and careers, especially for daughters. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).