Attitude Of Society Research Articles

Treatment of Signed Languages in Deaf History Texts

Treatment of Signed Languages in Deaf History Texts SCHOLARS FROM DIVERSE ACADEMIC FIELDS have included signed languages in their studies, yet many of them do not pay enough attention to the representation of signed languages in academic domains other than their own. Researchers may even be unaware of the language attitudes that are promoted through their own academic domain, including the way in which audiences attach meaning to their text. Writers may use terminology from a particular academic domain without unpacking the implications of their perspectives in relation to other disciplines. For example, the term may cause a statistician to think of a mathematical range and a biologist to picture a tiling that lacks any obvious deficiencies or a process that follows scientific laws. At the same time, a psychologist considers something normal if it is approximately average, and an anthropologist uses to mean adhering to an established societal type. When using a single term, people may draw drastically different conclusions based solely on their interpretation. Just as the use of language impacts one's understanding of a text, perceptions of language often lead to value judgments about its users. Language attitudes can be difficult to research as they are often hidden, yet these hidden attitudes can have either beneficial or devastating effects on a group of people and their language when thoughts are put into action. How scholars depict and discuss signed languages is pivotal to the understanding and respect of the people who use them. While these dangers exist for all academic disciplines related to the deaf community, this essay looks specifically at the way that historians have perceived and promoted certain understandings of signed languages. People who study deaf communities need to understand the role that influential historians play in shaping society's attitudes toward deaf people and signed languages. This essay addresses this issue by studying deaf historical works that include signed languages and identifies ways that historians have perceived and promoted certain understandings of signed languages. It analyzes the following authors and their works: Baynton's Forbidden Signs: American Culture and the Campaign against Sign Language, Buchanans Illusions of Equality: Deaf Americans in School and Factory, 1850-1950, Burch's Signs of Resistance: American Deaf Cultural History, 1900 to World War II, Joyner s From Pity to Pride: Growing Up Deaf in the Old South, Van Cleve and Crouch's A Place of Their Oum: Creating the Deaf Community in America, and Winefield's Never the Twain Shall Meet: Tlte Communications Debate. This essay examines perspectives of signed language through the framework of five perspectives: 1. as an educational tool 2. as natural human communication 3. as a linguistically legitimate language 4. as a unifying force 5. as a dividing force Five Perspectives of Sign Language A Tool in Education Most, if not all, historians first frame the role of signed languages in the deaf educational realm. Because deaf schools are widely considered the birthplace of the deaf community, they are given an honored place in deaf history as the foundation of the cultural community. Historians can support their description of this deaf cultural community by providing evidence that sign language was (and still is) an important educational tool. Signed languages are typically framed in relation to the methods debate, which is built on the question, Does sign language as an educational tool in schools contribute to student success? Because schools are often considered to be a cornerstone of deaf life in the United States, they are pivotal to understanding various perspectives of signed languages. Much of the argument for or against signed languages in education is based on administrators' goals and their belief in the relative importance of social assimilation and individual expression. …

Everybody's Business — Whole people or whole systems? Key issues for delivering mental health services to older people

AbstractThis paper sets out to analyse the key elements of Everybody's Business so as to provide a useful checklist of issues and actions to take into consideration when developing and delivering services for older people with mental health needs. Other key publications are identified. The guidance is felt to be comprehensive except for one key area: the aspirations of the service user and placing them in the context of family, friends and the community. The need to take into account the whole person, not just whole systems, is identified and a way of building this into the Department of Health's model is suggested. Although concerns remain about the availability of sufficient resources to make the proposal happen, greater concern persists about the capacity to change staff and society's attitudes towards older people with mental health needs.

Review: The World System and the Earth System by A. Horberger and C. Crumley (Eds.)

Review: The World System and the Earth System A. Horberger and C. Crumley (Eds.) Reviewed by A.M. Mannion University of Reading, UK Horberger, A. and Crumley, C. (Eds.). The World System and the Earth System. Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press, 2007. 395pp. ISBN: 1-59874-100-4. $34.95 Papercover. Alkaline paper. People-environment relationships have varied temporally and spatially as has society's attitude to environment. In the first half of the twentieth century the philosophies of determinism and possibilism emerged to describe these relationships. Is nature prescriptive, or is it a set of resources to be exploited or domesticated in various ways for the advancement of humans without much regard for its sustainability? The environmental movements of the post1960s raised environmental awareness and began to change attitudes against a backdrop of increasing globalization; conservation became a watchword and threw together the social and natural sciences which entered an often uneasy alliance. The situation has altered substantially since then, especially in the context of acknowledged climatic change which is caused by socio-economic development but which is affecting natural systems globally. Science contributed to development via technology and now it must contribute again to establish sustainable development. There is no escape from the intimately linked natural and social sciences. So how do they communicate and how effectively? This was the theme of a conference entitled World- System History and Global Environmental Change at the University of Lund, Sweden, in 2003; its content is the subject matter of The World System and the Earth System, a title which encapsulates the dichotomy but which, interestingly and perhaps ironically, places the social before the natural! Following a 12-page introduction, the book is divided into three sections. The six chapters of part one deal with the modelling of socioecological perspectives on various time scales and the use of varied lines of evidence which include documentary and sedimentary records for specific areas. There is also reference to model validation, cyclic change, world systems as complex human ecosystems, parallels

Effect of a Disability Course on Prospective Educators' Attitudes Toward Individuals with Mental Retardation

Effect of a Disability Course on Prospective Educators' Attitudes Toward Individuals with Mental Retardation

Наука глазами россиян

Развитие мировой науки играет решающую роль в изменении производительных сил, общественных и межгосударственных отношений. Научные достижения, реализованные в новых технологиях и инновационных продуктах, за считанные годы радикально меняют облик целых отраслей, приносят успех компаниям-инноваторам, способствуют быстрому экономическому росту отдельных стран и регионов. Мировое научное сообщество пытается оценить вероятные направления и последствия прогресса науки, а каждая страна - позиционировать себя в этом процессе и мобилизовать все возможные ресурсы, позволяющие достойно реагировать на вызовы будущего. Одним из таких ресурсов является интерес общества к науке, способность граждан осознать ее ключевую роль в развитии экономики, государства и общества, адекватно воспринимать возникающие в связи с этим запросы и потребности. Как же меняются сегодня отношения «общество - наука» в России и в мире? Хотя интерес к науке заметно снизился еще в СССР в начале 198 0-х годов, в начале реформ он упал практически до точки «замерзания». Тем не менее государство на данном этапе пытается поднять престиж науки, хотя сделать это непросто. Очевидно, что в обществе, зараженном синдромом разваливающейся науки, формируются достаточно жесткие ограничения, препятствующие притоку в науку молодежи, развитию у населения научно-инновационного мировоззрения.

Classroom Contextual Effects of Race on Children's Peer Nominations

Black children generally receive poorer sociometric nominations compared with Whites. This effect is not fully understood because Black children rarely hold a classroom majority and teachers' race is rarely investigated. Research from a person-environment perspective suggests that the effects of children's race depend on the racial composition of the classroom and society's racial attitudes. Sociometric nominations were obtained from 1,268 5th graders, between 9 and 11 years old (53% Black), across 57 classrooms (3-95% Black students). Half of the teachers were Black. The results indicated that ratings of Black children were more influenced by the racial context of classrooms than were ratings of White children. The implications of this study are discussed in relation to group dynamics and racial discrimination.

Birth, employment and child care: Searching for the invisible tax break

Despite the fact that birth and parenthood are wonderful things, what follows is often a minefield of expense and complex organization. Gina de Ferrer examines society's contrary attitudes towards children.

Women's preference on mode of delivery in Southern Italy

Rates of cesarean section are rising worldwide and maternal requests for this kind of delivery contribute to the increase in this trend. The purpose of this study was to analyze the factors influencing maternal demand in our region and the profile of women preferring this mode of delivery. Six obstetricians (3 male and 3 female) were asked to give out a questionnaire to their patients with an uncomplicated pregnancy. Demographic data, obstetrical history, lifestyle, and physician-patient relationship were analyzed. Patients who would have preferred abdominal delivery were asked to report the motivations for their choice. A psychiatric evaluation, using the Hamilton Anxiety Scale and the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale, was conducted. 16.9% of 390 patients enrolled preferred cesarean section. This wish was correlated with patients' age > or = 35 years (OR 2.43; p=0.0065), high level of education (OR 4.28, p=0.019), previous infertility (OR 3.91, p=0.0045), smoking (OR 4.25, p=0.0008), quality of information (OR 29.08, p=0.0013), and desire for more comprehension (OR 8.25, p=0.00001). The most frequent motivation for this choice was a safer childbirth (90.9%). No difference was found for the Hamilton scale's score, while the Montgomery-Asberg Scale showed a lower mean score for the cesarean section group (7.2+/-3.3 versus 9.4+/-7.3, p=0.0002). A high rate of women wish to give birth by cesarean section. This is probably an expression of the changes in society's attitudes. However, more careful attention to the psychological aspects and more personalized information about pregnancy and delivery could reduce this maternal demand.

Exploring women's views of breastfeeding: a focus group study within an area with high levels of socio-economic deprivation.

There is ample evidence of the short- and long-term health benefits of breastfeeding for mothers and infants, yet breastfeeding rates remain low in the UK, particularly in areas of high social deprivation. It is imperative that appropriate strategies are utilized to support more women to initiate and continue breastfeeding. This study used focus group methodology to explore women's views in relation to breastfeeding. The study was conducted within an area with high levels of socio-economic deprivation in the north-east of England and aimed to identify local barriers to breastfeeding, influences on choice of infant-feeding method and strategies which might improve breastfeeding rates. Focus group discussions were conducted with low-income women, adolescent women and women from a minority ethnic group. The five key themes that emerged from the data were: society's negative attitudes towards breastfeeding; the influence of family and friends and the experience on choice of method of infant feeding; lack of knowledge of some aspects of infant feeding; perceptions of professional support; and women's positive and negative experiences of breastfeeding. Recommendations for promoting and supporting breastfeeding include improving facilities to breastfeed in public, enhancing the provision of information, addressing conflicting advice and poor professional practice and implementing support mechanisms. The findings and recommendations have been used to develop a breastfeeding strategy to meet local needs. This project was funded by the English Department of Health Infant Feeding Initiative.

It takes a candidate: why women don't run for office

It Takes a Candidate serves as the first systematic, nationwide empirical account of the manner in which gender affects political ambition. Based on data from the Citizen Political Ambition Study, a national survey conducted on almost 3,800 'potential candidates', we find that women, even in the highest tiers of professional accomplishment, are substantially less likely than men to demonstrate ambition to seek elected office. Women are less likely than men to be recruited to run for office. They are less likely than men to think they are 'qualified' to run for office. And they are less likely than men to express a willingness to run for office in the future. This gender gap in political ambition persists across generations. Despite cultural evolution and society's changing attitudes toward women in politics, running for public office remains a much less attractive and feasible endeavor for women than men.

Marginalising the Marginalised in Wartime: African Americans and Mexican Americans in Austin, Texas, during the World War I Era

This article examines the impact of war upon a dominant society's attitudes towards and treatment of ethnic minorities. Although recent scholarship suggests that war generally has a negative effect on minorities, this position has been arrived at by focusing almost entirely upon the experiences of enemy-alien groups, while established or newly-arrived outgroups not linked to the external foe have largely been ignored. This poses the question: does war also have a negative effect upon the latter two types of ethny? If so, are their experiences more or less severe than that of enemy-alien groups? These issues are addressed here by examining white perceptions and treatment of non-white minorities during the World War I era in Austin, Texas, which contained sizeable numbers of the three population groups relevant to this discussion: an enemy-alien minority, German Americans; a long-standing ethnic outgroup, African Americans; and a recently established immigrant ethny, Mexicans. This study shows that war not only has a generally negative effect on minorities—with the previously most marginalised ethnies tending to suffer the most, even more so than enemy-alien groups—but that this deterioration in ethnic relations can generate patterns of interaction that survive long after the war has ended.

Teaching Cross-Cultural Aging

Literary texts are cultural artifacts revealing a society's values and attitudes; reading literature about elders and old age can change readers' ageist attitudes. Beginning with these assumptions, I discuss ways of teaching cross-cultural aging in undergraduate literature courses, using Chilean texts paired with American texts. Students learn how old age is socially constructed and how writers can either reinforce or challenge negative societal stereotypes of elders. Chilean texts reveal Chileans' respect and affection by associating elders with nature and ascribing to them otherworldly wisdom. American texts respectfully depict elders connected to nature, but not as transcending the earthly.

Attitudes towards women managers in theUnited Arab Emirates

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the United Arab Emirates (UAE) society's attitudes towards women managers held by a sample of 186 participants.Design/methodology/approachThe subjects completed the newly developed multidimensional aversion to women who work scale (MAWWWS). The study validates the scale in an Arab non‐Western context.FindingsThe results reveal that UAE students have significantly different attitudes towards women managers from those of the older generations. There are significant differences between males' and females' perceptions of women's roles and participation in society. The study predicts that modernity may diminish patriarchal attitudes towards women managers in the Arab world.Originality/valueThis study has provided some insights into the factors associated with attitudes towards women managers in the UAE. This research contributes to the literature on cross‐cultural studies by systematically assessing the attitudes towards women managers in the UAE.

Network 1000: Surveying the changing needs and lifestyles of 1000 visually impaired people — Indicative results from generative interviews

Network 1000 is a panel survey aimed at surveying the changing needs and circumstances of people with a visual impairment. The project is committed to participant involvement that is developing collaborative and inclusive strategies within the project; the purpose of this paper is to focus on one of those strategies namely, generative interviews. These interviews are used as part of the survey design stage to inform and drive the content of the questionnaire. The themes that were generated from these interview discussions raised a number of important themes ranging from independent living skills to issues around education and employment. Three other emergent issues were: transport particularly access to it and its geographically patchy nature; use of computers with their attendant costs and ease of use; and attitudes related either to visually impaired people's attitudes towards their own visual impairment, or society's attitudes towards people with a visual impairment. The use of generative interviews has been an integral part of the project and reinforces its underlying philosophy of participant involvement; the themes generated have already been incorporated into the first year of the study.

History, Discussion and Review of a Best Practices Model for Service Delivery for the Homeles

The well-being, developmental capacity, and contributions of individuals within our society are largely based upon the adequate provision of the most basic of human needsfood, clothing and shelter. While homelessness remains a social malady that has stubbornly persisted, society's attitude toward this condition has vastly changed. The belief that the homeless are just lacking permanent shelter is a horrible simplification of the issues surrounding homelessness. The research demonstrates that the lack of momentum to sustain stable housing is a final visible result of the culmination of catastrophic insults rendering the individual incapable of any sufficient level of self-determination. Social and political consciousness has firmly placed the issues of homelessness as a priority within local communities, state agencies, and federal government. Combined efforts of faith-based, public non-profit and secular groups, community and private organizations, and state and federal governments, have proven to craft a flexible, multi-agency collaborative solution that shows evidence of providing a permanent, positive impact on the problem of homelessness. The ‘Best Practices’ Model of service delivery presented in this article has established itself as an efficacious and humanitarian mode of providing care to the homeless while assisting in the re-establishment and stability of this disenfranchised population back into the community.

Undoing MacBeth's legacy

Just prior to writing this editorial, SARRAH received requests from the Department of Health in Scotland about remote service models. The reminder of Scotland's more desolate regions stirred images of bloody intrigues such as enacted by MacBeth who united Scotland in a 17 years reign that ended in 1057.1 Now that we have a parliamentary form of government we are inclined to think that we are well and truly past the thinking that forged such kings. Yet when we look at the signal inequities in health and opportunity, that this form of government is unable to resolve, we might wonder whether our society's attitude about power and government is a carry over from those middle ages. In act IV scene I of Shakespeare's ‘MacBeth’,2 MacBeth seeks out three witches to foretell the future of his power struggle to be king. Their answer was not at all to MacBeth's liking and when they saw this the three witches did a dance and disappeared. These witches can be seen as the inner conscience of MacBeth himself and therefore could only reflect the outcomes of MacBeth's own mindset. The community and the health industry shares something of the dilemma of MacBeth and the three witches. The community, who would be master over their own destiny, expects that the philosophy (values) and vision of the health industry will foretell a successful health outcome for them. The community often fails to realise that its own values and vision, or lack thereof, is reflected in the provision of health services and to a large extent health itself, and that the considerable power they hold over the future lies not in the wrestle for power itself, but in determining the philosophy and vision that underwrites their future. Professor James Little of the Centre for Values, Ethics and Law, supporting the notion of values-based medicine as fundamental to refreshing the paradigms of medicine,3 and Mooney and Blackwell supporting processes for the community to identify their values as part of health planning systems,4 both provide thoughtful appeals to include reflection on values as part of health planning. Implicit in their discussion is that, apart from a broad and deeply felt value for quality and quantity of human life which sustains the large expenditure on health, there is not a congruent community philosophy and vision about health. The incongruence of values in the community ensures that the resources available for the provision of health services are vulnerable to MacBethian struggles within the parliamentary system with some major losers. It is possible that this same incongruence of values allows the high level of health-risk behaviour in the Australian community. It is becoming increasingly unlikely that there will be a large enough health professional rural workforce to provide the current intervention levels for many of the afflicted, at a diminishing rate over the next 30 years. Minimising the rates of all afflictions must be our most urgent work. Yet those features that are closely linked to a better health outcome such as area and characteristics of upbringing,5 education and wealth,6, 7 locus of control,8 are found in the broad philosophy and values of an equitable society.9 Without a congruent vision of society that is caring and robust in its various relationships, healthier rural communities seem improbable. I would like to suggest that there are several notions that cover the spectrum of life, which would strongly influence our emotional and social attitude toward an equitable society, and also have positive, pragmatic value to health, economics and community: the human life has the right to every opportunity to realise its potential the worth of a human life is measured by its efforts in caring for other humans, animals and the environment the purpose of a human life is to better the world for everyone the betterment of the world can only be achieved through a life of service trials are essential to the improvement of human understanding and our relationships happiness is the result of the effort applied to the search for insights that assist us to improve our relationships with others death is a deeply respected part of the order of things. Society should be engaged in an enthusiastic discussion about these notions. What are their implications? What personal actions would derive? What policy? If we want to achieve an equitable, healthy society, these questions should be addressed in dialogue and action by the collaboration of all players – non-government organisations, industry, business, the health industry, education and training sector, the scientific sector, the justice sector, the health industry, politicians and political parties, local governments and individuals in the community.

Awareness, attitudes, and beliefs of the general public towards HIV/Aids in Hyderabad, a capital city from South India

Information is the first step in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention. Ignorance about the disease and how the virus is transmitted can generate fear and prejudice towards those who are infected. To assess the awareness, attitudes, and beliefs of the general public toward HIV/AIDS in Hyderabad, the capital city of Andhra Pradesh. A cross-sectional study conducted for a period of 2 months in 2004 on 800 individuals living in Hyderabad. A survey was conducted with a questionnaire titled 'General Population Behavioral Surveillance Survey.' The survey used a 5-part, 65-item questionnaire eliciting information about the knowledge of HIV (10 items), modes of transmission (20 items), ways of prevention (10 items), society's attitude toward HIV (15 items), and finally evaluation of Government's measures (10 items). Approximately 80.63% (645/800) of the study population were sketchily aware of HIV/AIDS, but had incorrect perceptions about the mode of transmission or prevention. Despite the vigorous outreach programmes, which the government and other organizations had carried out in the city, many people had several misconceptions about HIV or about people living with HIV/AIDS. As it was observed that awareness was more among the literates, the Government and Health educators should provide tailor-made education programmes for those at the lower education levels.

:A History of Reading

Steven Roger Fischer's fascinating book traces the complete story of reading from the time when symbol first became sign through to the electronic texts of the present day. Describing ancient forms of reading and the various modes that were necessary to read different writing systems and scripts, Fischer turns to Asia and the Americas and discusses the forms and developments of completely divergent dimensions of reading. With the Middle Ages in Europe and the Middle East, innovative re-inventions of reading emerged - silent and liturgical reading; the custom of lectors; reading's focus in general education - whereupon printing transformed society's entire attitude to reading. Fischer charts the explosion of the book trade in this era, its increased audience and radically changed subject-matter; describes the emergence of broadsheets, newspapers and public readings; and traces the effect of new font designs on general legibility. Fischer discusses society's dedication to public literacy in the sweeping educational reforms of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and notes the appearance of free libraries, gender differences in reading matter, public advertising and the 'forbidden' lists of Church, State and the unemancipated. Finally, he assesses the future, in which it is likely that read communication will soon exceed oral communication through the use of the personal computer and the internet, and looks at 'visual language' and modern theories of how reading is processed in the human brain. Asking how the New Reader can reshape reading's future, he suggests a radical new definition of what reading could be.

Arguments for Testing Ethnic Identity and Acculturation as Factors in Risk Judgments

Understanding of risk views in multiethnic societies and in a globalizing world may be enhanced by use of measures of ethnic identity and acculturation. Ethnic identity includes such attributes as positive attitudes about one's ethnic group and a sense of belonging to it, voluntary and frequent association with other ethnic group members, and ethnic practices (preferred music, food, language; attendance at ethnic festivities). Acculturation is absorption of the "host" society's cultural norms, beliefs, attitudes and behavior patterns by immigrants, or by other groups historically excluded from the larger society. Both generic and ethnicity-specific measures of these concepts are available in the literature. This Perspective reviews the literature on risk implications of these concepts, how the nature of these measures presents both opportunities and challenges to risk researchers, and the degree to which ethnic identity and acculturation may be correlated with sociodemographic factors. Conceptual and methodological suggestions are made for risk research using these concepts, and hypotheses are offered about what such research might find.

Designing a Survey on Adoption in France

I. Origins of project1. An increasing number of potential adopters are waiting for a childWith diffusion of medical contraception, legalisation of abortion, and change in society's attitude towards single mothers, number of unwanted births, and consequently number of children offered for adoption, has dropped significantly. Falling from 24,000 in 1977 to 7,600 in 1987, number of wards of state has stabilised at approximately 3,300 since 1997. As not all wards are eligible for adoption, only 1,195 had been placed in a family with a view to adoption at end of 2001. During same year, 461 wards of state were adopted. Started in Vietnam as a humanitarian gesture, international adoption developed from late 1970s onwards to compensate for lack of children offered for adoption in France. During last fifteen years, number of children adopted in foreign countries, though on rise, has remained lower than demand. Indeed, although number of intercountry adoptions rose from 2,000 to 4,000, number of approvals granted each year grew from 4,858 in 1987 to 7,918 in 2001. This approval is a real passport for adoption and has been compulsory since 1996 for all those wishing to adopt a ward of state or a foreign child. It aims to ensure that the conditions offered at family, educational and psychological levels correspond to needs and best interests of child(1). The approval is valid for five years and can be used only once to adopt one child or several children at same time. Parents wishing to adopt another child later must apply for a approval.2. Previous studiesa) Research projectsResearch into adoption gained momentum after creation of plenary adoption by law of 11 July 1966(2) to replace adoptive legitimisation, and later with expansion of international adoption which put adoption in limelight. A review of scientific literature brings out two main points.In France, dominant issue is filiation: its history, concept's diversity in traditional and contemporary societies, new family forms, and legislation (Heritier-Auge, 1989; Lallemand, 1993 ; Thery, 1998). Studies of potential adopters and of expectations about adoptive parenting are much less common (Rault, 1997). Apart from research on construction of identity and right to know one's origins (Fine et al., 1999), studies on adopted children remain preserve of psychologists and physicians or concern specific groups, and they do not claim that their findings can be generalized (Halifax, 2001). Research on families and children is more advanced in other European countries and in North America, in particular with work of Hjern, Lindblad and Vinnerljung in Sweden (Hjern et al., 2002) and of Ouellette in Quebec (Ouellette, 1996; Ouellette and Methot, 2000).The second point relates to abundance of collective works bringing together contributions of legal experts, anthropologists and ethnologists, sociologists and psychologists (Fine, 1998a and 1998b; Fine and Neirinck, 2000; Le Gall and Bettahar, 2001). They highlight importance of a multidisciplinary approach to adoption. Among social sciences, demography alone has shown little interest in adoption up to now, despite its particular predilection for family.b) Statistical dataFew statistics are available and they are often approximations. Most data from administrative sources are not produced annually, but every other year. They provide information on number of children adopted, number of adoptive parents and number of candidates who have been approved and are waiting for a child. On other hand, only a few surveys have dealt with adoption, and did not focus specifically on that topic.* Administrative sourcesData on potential adopters are very poor. The only available information comes from General Department of Social Services (DGAS -Direction generale de l'action sociale) at ministry responsible for family, which every two years generates departmental statistics on number of persons who were officially approved during year and on number with a currently valid approval. …