Socioeconomic Interactions Research Articles

La extracción selectiva de vara para uso hortícola en México: Implicaciones para la conservación del bosque tropical caducifolio y sus recursos

Con base en una revisión bibliográfica, documentos ofi ciales e investigación propia, se analiza la extracción selectiva de vara (tutores de hortalizas) y los potenciales efectos de la remoción de este recurso forestal no maderable en la diversidad, estructura y regeneración del bosque tropical caducifolio de México. Las varas de mayor demanda pertenecen a un grupo de especies silvestres del género Croton (Euphorbiaceae), conocidas como “vara blanca”, que son usadas como tutores en el cultivo de hortalizas. Tres sectores están involucrados en la extracción del recurso: cortadores, contratistas e intermediarios. Los intermediarios, encargados de la comercialización de la vara son los que obtienen los mayores ingresos. La regulación técnica que gobierna la extracción de vara en México es defi ciente y carece de lineamientos básicos orientados hacia un aprovechamiento sostenible. Nuestros estudios en la región de Chamela, Jalisco, indican que la cosecha repetida de vara reduce la riqueza de especies, modifi ca la estructura de la comunidad y favorece la dominancia de Croton septemnervius a expensas de otras especies. Después del corte, la regeneración vegetativa de Croton es limitada, ya que el crecimiento de los rebrotes es lento, y los rebrotes y tocones sufren una alta mortalidad (> 70%). Para lograr un manejo sostenible de este recurso forestal en el largo plazo, la calidad y el cumplimiento de la regulación técnica deben mejorar de forma inmediata. Asimismo, estudios interdisciplinarios del manejo de los bosques tropicales caducifolios que incorporen la interacción de aspectos ecológicos y socioeconómicos son urgentes.

Graphical Evolutionary Game for Information Diffusion Over Social Networks

Current social networks are of extremely large-scale generating tremendous information flows at every moment. How information diffuse over social networks has attracted much attention from both industry and academics. Most of the existing works on information diffusion analysis are based on machine learning methods focusing on social network structure analysis and empirical data mining. However, the dynamics of information diffusion, which are heavily influenced by network users' decisions, actions and their socio-economic interactions, is generally ignored by most of existing works. In this paper, we propose an evolutionary game theoretic framework to model the dynamic information diffusion process in social networks. Specifically, we derive the information diffusion dynamics in complete networks, uniform degree and non-uniform degree networks, with the highlight of two special networks, Erd\H{o}s-R\'enyi random network and the Barab\'asi-Albert scale-free network. We find that the dynamics of information diffusion over these three kinds of networks are scale-free and the same with each other when the network scale is sufficiently large. To verify our theoretical analysis, we perform simulations for the information diffusion over synthetic networks and real-world Facebook networks. Moreover, we also conduct experiment on Twitter hashtags dataset, which shows that the proposed game theoretic model can well fit and predict the information diffusion over real social networks.

Interactions Between Spatially Explicit Conservation and Management Measures: Implications for the Governance of Marine Protected Areas

Marine protected areas are not established in an institutional and governance vacuum and managers should pay attention to the wider social-ecological system in which they are immersed. This article examines Islas Choros-Damas Marine Reserve, a small marine protected area located in a highly productive and biologically diverse coastal marine ecosystem in northern Chile, and the interactions between human, institutional, and ecological dimensions beyond those existing within its boundaries. Through documents analysis, surveys, and interviews, we described marine reserve implementation (governing system) and the social and natural ecosystem-to-be-governed. We analyzed the interactions and the connections between the marine reserve and other spatially explicit conservation and/or management measures existing in the area and influencing management outcomes and governance. A top-down approach with poor stakeholder involvement characterized the implementation process. The marine reserve is highly connected with other spatially explicit measures and with a wider social-ecological system through various ecological processes and socio-economic interactions. Current institutional interactions with positive effects on the management and governance are scarce, although several potential interactions may be developed. For the study area, any management action must recognize interferences from outside conditions and consider some of them (e.g., ecotourism management) as cross-cutting actions for the entire social-ecological system. We consider that institutional interactions and the development of social networks are opportunities to any collective effort aiming to improve governance of Islas Choros-Damas marine reserve. Communication of connections and interactions between marine protected areas and the wider social-ecological system (as described in this study) is proposed as a strategy to improve stakeholder participation in Chilean marine protected areas.

Shellfish Resources and Maritime Economy at Caylán, Coastal Ancash, Peru

ABSTRACT This article explores the relationships between mollusk exploitation and maritime economies in ancient coastal Peru. Data are drawn from the analysis of shell remains from the Early Horizon center of Caylán (800–1 cal BC), a large urban settlement interpreted as the primary center of a multi-tiered polity located in the Nepeña Valley, coastal Ancash. Excavations in 2009 and 2010 yielded a large amount of faunal remains including 220 kg of shell remains for more than 100,000 MNI. Taxonomic and quantitative analyses of the shell remains bring insights into patterns of exploitation, consumption, discard, and ritual use. Results indicate an emphasis on locally available mollusk species linked to the exploitation of different near-shore and coastal settings. The sample is dominated by small clams and mussels pertaining to the Donax spp., Perumytilus purpuratus, and Semimytilus algosus taxa. Intrasite distributions argue for social differences associated with the access to certain species used in maritime industries. Broader comparative perspectives from the Andean coast indicate variations in maritime subsistence strategies linked to the development of different forms of socioeconomic interactions and redistributive systems through time.

Obsidian consumption in Chalcolithic Sardinia: a view from Bingia 'e Monti

This study represents a contribution towards an understanding of the nature of obsidian exploitation in Sardinia during the Chalcolithic (ca. 3200–2200 cal B.C.). A total of 154 obsidian artifacts from Bingia 'e Monti in south-central Sardinia was techno-typologically characterized. Of these, 146 were elementally analyzed employing energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) as a means of sourcing the raw materials. It is argued that the community's residents obtained obsidian directly from Sardinian source areas, then reduced the material on-site for the production of lunates and expedient flake tools. By contextualizing the study within a broader consideration of obsidian distribution and use within Sardinia, it is shown that obsidian exploitation at this time differs from earlier periods, arguably related to a reconfiguration of socio-economic interaction spheres and exchange networks.

Si proche et cependant si étranger : les relations transfrontalières dans Along the Border Lies (2001) de Paul S. Flores

Partially based on autobiographical experience, Paul S. Flores’ Along the Border Lies looks at the northern and southern sides of the San Diego-Tijuana border region from a Chicano, postcolonial, postmodern perspective that considers class, status, and national origin as factors determining the way one relates to this place, the extent to which the border can be crossed in one direction or another, and the chances one has on the U.S and Mexican sides respectively. The discussion contextualizes Flores’ critique of trans-border socio-economic interactions in the region in the context of the 1990s anti-immigrant legislation in the United States, the militarization of the border, the freer circulation of goods across from the South, and the impact of the increase of drug consumption in the United States on both sides of the border. In Flores’ novel, the San Diego-Tijuana area is rendered as a war and illegal trade zone that has a psychological impact upon its inhabitants and determines the power imbalances between people of Mexican and Mexican American origin who interact across borders. Overall, Along the Border Lies offers a critique of the spaces Mexicans and Mexican Americans call home and of the values of the communities inhabiting them.

Indigenous marine resource management on the Northwest Coast of North America

There is increasing recognition among anthropologists that indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast actively managed their terrestrial and marine resources and ecosystems. Such management practices ensured the ongoing productivity of valued resources and were embedded in a complex web of socio-economic interactions. Using ethnographic and archaeological data, this paper synthesizes the ecological and cultural aspects of marine management systems of coastal First Nations. We divide our discussion into four aspects of traditional management systems: harvesting methods, enhancement strategies, tenure systems, and worldview and social relations. The ethnographic data, including memories of living knowledge holders, tend to provide windows into daily actions and the more intangible aspects of management; the archaeological record provides insights into the more tangible aspects and how management systems developed through time and space. This review demonstrates not only the breadth of Northwest Coast marine management but also the value of integrating different kinds of knowledge and data to more fully document the whole of these ancient management systems.

Evolutionary-economic policies for sustainable consumption

Policy prescriptions for sustainable consumption have been dominated by neoclassical economics, which is built around the notions of market equilibrium, utility maximization, and exogenous preferences. There are concerns that neoclassical economics is inadequate to guide policy prescriptions in the presence of evolving preferences and complex dynamics. Evolutionary economics provides a more realistic account of individual behavior underlying economic processes. It offers a framework for studying complex socio-economic interactions and exploring their properties. As a consequence, it may offer a better approach for the analysis of policies aimed at inducing fundamental changes in behaviors, technologies and institutions in the direction of increased sustainability. However, a coherent evolutionary-economic approach to economic policies has been missing so far. In particular, policy criteria for evaluating evolutionary outcomes and processes are ambiguous. The paper discusses the implications of employing the evolutionary-economic approaches to study sustainable consumption and policy from different ethical standpoints.

Hohokam to Akimel O’Odham: Obsidian Acquisition at the Historic Period Sacate Site (GR-909), Gila River Indian Community, Arizona

AbstractObsidian provenance studies within the Phoenix Basin of south-central Arizona have become increasingly comprehensive during the last four decades. As a result, broad regional and temporal trends have been defined regarding Preclassic (ca. A.D. 650–1150) and Classic period (ca.A.D. 1150–1450) socioeconomic interactions in the Hohokam core area. However, Historic period patterns are still poorly understood, and these data are essential for understanding the relationship between the prehistoric Hohokam and historical Akimel O’Odham. The association between the Akimel O’Odham and Hohokam has been debated since Euro-Americans first visited the area in the late 1600s, yet this issue is still not fully resolved. This article presents analyses of historical obsidian from the Sacate site that suggest that long-term trends in cultural patterns within the Phoenix Basin continued unbroken into the Historic period. These continuities provide another line of evidence that the Akimel O’Odham are the direct cultural descendants of the Hohokam.

Effects of commercial harvesting of intertidal macroalgae on ecosystem biodiversity and functioning

In 2009, the European Union has defined an organic label for macroalgae, which implies that the commercial harvest of algae shall not cause a significant impact on ecosystems. The aim of this work was to study the effects of hand harvesting of three algae: Fucus serratus, Palmaria palmata, and Porphyra linearis on the associated biodiversity and metabolism of the ecosystem. We used the BACI (Before-After Control-Impact) design to assess the impact of the disturbance (i) on the recovery of the harvested species, (ii) on the specific and functional diversity of the associated algal and animal communities, and (iii) for F. serratus and P. linearis, on the metabolism of the area, using benthic chambers. Our work is based on a mix of fundamental and applied research to identify the effects of commercial harvesting regarding long-term changes, biological and functional interactions, and system responses (including socio-economic interactions). Results of the 12-month monitoring on F. serratus showed that canopy loss seemed to have a negative impact mainly on the diversity of the animal community and the metabolism of the studied area. No significant effects were observed on the algal community. The harvesting impact on the animal community was amplified by the settlement of an ephemeral canopy of Ulva spp., a seasonal opportunistic green alga. Results of the 12-month monitoring of P. palmata after harvesting did not show any significant impact. This alga was epiphytic on the dominant canopy of F. serratus, which was thus maintained, minimizing the impact of the harvest. Finally, results of the 12-month monitoring of P. linearis were difficult to interpret because of an unexpected but continuous sand burial of the study site, one month after the beginning of the study and still covering the population after eight months. Hence, effects of P. linearis harvesting were overshadowed by the natural variability. So far, our results have shown that commercial harvesting has different effects according to the target species, which emphasizes the necessity to continue long-term monitoring. Finally, this study also points out the valuable use of a “fundamental research” approach to deal with a practical management issue.

Working as playing? Consumer labor, guild and the secondary industry of online gaming in China

China has become one of the biggest consumers and producers of online games in the world; however, little is known about a burgeoning secondary industry emerging out of the socioeconomic interaction between gamers and the online gaming industry. Through the lens of online gaming guilds—the intermediary institutions between the industry and gamers—this article discusses how the Chinese information economy’s dependence on consumer labor and the gamers’ entrepreneurial resourcefulness have produced a secondary industry. As the secondary industry has evolved, the gaming industry has come to depend on the productive play of consumers. This changing regime of value has given rise to bio-political control of consumer labor and, along with state control, is drawing gamers into the tug-of-war between entrepreneurial invention and labor exploitation. By depicting the complex negotiations between capital and labor, and community and commerce, on both subjective and institutional levels, this article re-examines and explicates the Western debate over consumer digital cultural production and its social, economic, and political implications.

Sourcing obsidian from Tell Aswad and Qdeir 1 (Syria) by SEM-EDS and EDXRF: Methodological implications

While obsidian sourcing has long represented a powerful means of reconstructing past socio-economic interaction, the use of destructive techniques restricted most studies to analysing only a few artefacts per site. Non-destructive methods allow the characterization of much more material, thus providing more robust data upon which to base our archaeological interpretations. Here we report on one such study using EDXRF and SEM-EDS to analyse assemblages from Tell Aswad and Qdeir 1, two Syrian Neolithic sites. The study demonstrates for the first time that SEM-EDS can play an important role in discriminating Bingöl A and Nemrut Dağ sources, while the rapidity of EDXRF permits the analysis of a more statistically valid number of artefacts, providing a better impression of the assemblage. It enabled us to chart diachronic patterns in raw material procurement at Tell Aswad and detailed raw materials not recorded in a previous smaller-scale analysis of obsidian from Qdeir 1.

Engendering an Endogenous Framework for Socio-economic Development in the ECOWASSub-region

This study explores how a home-grown framework could be advanced for the process of socio-economic transformation of the ECOWAS sub-region. Subsisting cleavages toward former colonial powers (and other global powers), existence of multiple monetary zones and border posts have been hindering productive socio-economic interactions among over 300 million inhabitants of West Africa. The study analyzes how uncensored cross-border mobility and institutionalization of a single monetary zone could facilitate regional socio-economic integration and development of West Africa. It identifies extant culture of ‘transnational simultaneity’ among Nigerian migrants in Cote d’Ivoire as a formidable means in this regard. Imperative data for the study were derived from primary (interviews) and secondary (evaluative) sources.

Convergence dynamics of output: Do stochastic shocks and social polarization matter?

This paper seeks to address two neglected aspects of convergence dynamics of cross-country per capita income. First, we allow evolutionary path of per capita income to contain stochastic shocks which may not converge fast enough to the long-run mean. Under this condition, we show that the conventional inference on σ convergence can be enlarged with more predictive power if one assumes, along with the necessary condition of β convergence, that the stochastic shocks are covariance stationary. Second, we argue that for economies to (conditionally) converge, they need to be sufficiently cohesive so that the growth of stochastic shocks is not sustained through complex socio-economic interactions. Empirical examination is carried out by analyzing time series properties of state per capita income in India and performing convergence analysis by conditioning a constructed social cohesion index based on indicators collected from the National Sample Survey. It is demonstrated that when the economy faces monotonic social segmentation, persistence of stochastic shocks considerably affects speed of per capita output convergence.

Socio-Economic Effects of Foreign Workers on the Host Labour Market: The Malaysian Perspective

Managing the inflows of foreign workers, and the ability of the domestic labour market to integrate them, is now at the heart of the policy debate in Malaysia. It is therefore relevant to assess the socio-economic interactive effects of foreign workers with the domestic job market to provide a better understanding of their assumed influence specifically on the Malaysian manufacturing sector. This paper has a two-pronged objective. First, it estimates the impact of foreign workers on wage inequality. Second, it complements the economic discussion with social ills related to foreign workers. The results suggest that a higher presence of unskilled foreign workers raises wage inequality through plausible wage suppression of the unskilled segments. From the social perspective, the problems related to foreign workers stem from the unfair treatment in terms of poor terms and working conditions accorded to unskilled foreign workers. The paper contends that appropriate socio-economic integration and positive interactions of unskilled foreign workers with the domestic labour market could be acquired through the recognition and deployment of basic human rights.

Socio-economic interaction and ceramic aesthetic: understanding West African ceramic production and use in context

This paper explores the multi-faceted nature of ceramic production and use in the context of contact and interaction through a detailed examination of pottery manufacture immediately before, during and after the decline of the Atlantic trade at the trading site of Juffure on the Gambia River. It is argued that potters’ decisions during the production process affected the aesthetic qualities of pots, including paste colour, temper, form and decoration and that some of these qualities are the by-products of acts of social displays related to diet. Analysis of ceramics during each phase of the Atlantic trade demonstrates that the potters’ choices were not exclusively expressions of communal ethnic identity of the producers or users. Additionally, the heightened production and eventual abandonment of this industry at Juffure fails to display a relationship between ceramics and personal identity. Rather, it is the broader socio-economic processes such as population fluctuations, consumer demand and socio-economic interactions as opposed to ethnic identity formation and maintenance, that affected shifts in local ceramic production.

Integrated Land-Sea Conservation Planning: The Missing Links

Spatial management, including setting aside conservation areas, is central to curbing the global decline of biodiversity, but many threats originate from beyond the boundaries of conservation areas. This is a particular problem in marine systems, which are influenced by many activities on land. In addition, connections between land and sea support many species and ecological processes valued for conservation. Integrated land and sea conservation planning is therefore of utmost importance. We review the literature describing connections between land and sea and how they have been incorporated into conservation planning. Land-sea connections include land-sea processes, the natural flows occurring between realms; cross-system threats, which originate in one realm and affect another; and socioeconomic interactions associated with management decisions to maintain or restore land-sea processes and to prevent or mitigate cross-system threats. We highlight the need to explicitly incorporate land-sea connections in conservation planning and suggest ways of doing this through the use of a novel operational framework for integrated land-sea planning. On the basis of expert surveys and a literature review, we also identify those aspects of conservation planning for which improved integration between land and sea is most needed.

P03-308 - Decision-making strategies are inconsistent in schizophrenia: Results from the Ultimatum game

IntroductionImpaired social cognition is a characteristic feature of schizophrenia, which is associated with the level of community functioning. Socioeconomic games are well-established in behavioral economy and widely used to examine decision-making strategies. They can also provide a useful method in the investigation of social decision-making in psychiatric diseases such as schizophrenia. The strength of these games compared to classic paradigms is that they allow observing subjects directly engaged in interpersonal situations, thus real-time interactions with implicit processes become available to investigation.AimsInvestigating decision-making strategies in schizophrenia patients and healthy controls.Methods29 healthy controls and 58 patients with schizophrenia were compared by a series of Ultimatum Game interactions in a computerized setting. In this game two players have to split a sum of money. The proposer offers a portion to the responder, who decides to either accept or reject the offer. Rejection results in no income to either of the parties. Cognitive testing included emotion recognition, memory and executive function. Symptoms were assessed by MINI 5.0 and Positive and Negative Symptom Scale.ResultsAssociation between offer and probability of acceptance was different in schizophrenia patients and controls (Chi2 = 18.8, n = 87, df = 4, p = 0.0009): schizophrenia was associated with an increased likelihood of acceptance at lower offers and a decreased likelihood of acceptance at higher offers. Ratio of inconsistent decisions was significantly higher in the schizophrenia group (Chi2 = 4.7, df = 1, p = 0.03).ConclusionOur results suggest that schizophrenia patients are impaired in socioeconomic interactions requiring decision-making, which may result in unstable behavioral strategies.

Exchange, interaction, and change in local ceramic production in the Niumi commercial center on the Gambia River

This article addresses changes in local ceramic production resulting from contact and interaction through a detailed examination of pottery manufacture immediately before, during, and through the decline of the Atlantic trade. Increased socio-economic interactions are directly correlated with changes in local ceramic production, including increased variation in the former Niumi commercial center on the Gambia River. The Atlantic trade period in Niumi is characterized by increased settlement, interaction, and wealth. In this light, I characterize the changes in local ceramic production as a locally circumscribed reaction to regional and global events. Specifically, through an examination of the visible shifts in temporally sensitive attributes such as temper, paste color, firing practices, and to a lesser extent decorative grammars, it is possible to discern connections between changes in local ceramic production and broader social processes. These include population fluctuations and increased variety in diet reminiscent of public display. These shifts are inextricably tied to the Atlantic trade and are best understood by examining the growth and decline of the Niumi commercial center at four sites, each of which represents different levels of involvement in commerce — Lamin Conco, San Domingo, Juffure Factory, and Juffure Village.

Systems medicine and integrated care to combat chronic noncommunicable diseases

We propose an innovative, integrated, cost-effective health system to combat major non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including cardiovascular, chronic respiratory, metabolic, rheumatologic and neurologic disorders and cancers, which together are the predominant health problem of the 21st century. This proposed holistic strategy involves comprehensive patient-centered integrated care and multi-scale, multi-modal and multi-level systems approaches to tackle NCDs as a common group of diseases. Rather than studying each disease individually, it will take into account their intertwined gene-environment, socio-economic interactions and co-morbidities that lead to individual-specific complex phenotypes. It will implement a road map for predictive, preventive, personalized and participatory (P4) medicine based on a robust and extensive knowledge management infrastructure that contains individual patient information. It will be supported by strategic partnerships involving all stakeholders, including general practitioners associated with patient-centered care. This systems medicine strategy, which will take a holistic approach to disease, is designed to allow the results to be used globally, taking into account the needs and specificities of local economies and health systems.