Socio-political Backgrounds Research Articles

Capacity Building in Maritime Archaeology: The Case of the Eastern Mediterranean (Cyprus, Lebanon and Egypt)

This paper discusses maritime archaeological resources in three eastern Mediterranean countries, where the discipline is relatively young: Cyprus, Lebanon, and Egypt. Emphasis is given to capacity building, through discussion of good practice and constraints that can be documented during the last two decades on diverse levels: education and training, governance, legislation, and public awareness. Although the three countries share cultural and socio-political backgrounds, the vast majority of the activities described in this paper are country-specific and too recent for their impact to be evaluated. Therefore, the authors place the focus on the processes rather than the results. Through a comparative analysis of local maritime archaeological histories and contemporary realities, they distinguish some key factors for the sustainability of maritime archaeological capacity building: locally based administrative and scholarly institutions, external funding, and public archaeology programmes to enhance appreciation of the maritime cultural heritage by local communities. It is also demonstrated that wars during 1970s and 1990s, in Cyprus and Lebanon respectively, have created unfavourable conditions for the development of maritime archaeology, whereas in Egypt emblematic underwater projects, international synergies and funding, as well as locally-based research and educational institutions, seem to have created a more responsive socio-political landscape for building capacity in maritime archaeology.

Mistrust and social hierarchies as blind spots of ICT4D projects

Information and communication technologies for development (ICT4D) are seen to have great potential for boosting democratization processes all over the world by giving people access to information and thereby empowering them to demand more accountability and transparency of authorities. Based on ethnographic research in Togo and Rwanda on an SMS-based citizen monitoring and evaluation system, this article argues that focusing on access to information is too narrow a view. We show that it is crucial to take into account the respective socio-political backgrounds, such as levels of mistrust or existing social hierarchies. In this context, mobile phone usage has rather varied and ambiguous meanings here. These dynamics can pose a challenge to the successful implementation of ICT4D projects aimed at political empowerment. By addressing these often overlooked issues, we offer explanations for the gap between ICT4D assumptions and people’s lifeworlds in Togo and Rwanda.

Concepts, Models, and Research of Extended Education

Extended education flourishes all over the world. Within different cultures and sociopolitical backgrounds, it takes different terms, forms, and developments across nations. Without identifying the common concepts of extended education, we may not expect further developments in extended education research. This study examined the terms that are used to describe extended education in each country. Research focus was given to the kind of connotations the terms contain – in what ways the terms are perceived. Given that extended education in each nation has its own heritage and historicity, the study also suggested four extended education development models. The four models mainly concern the origin of extended education – for what reasons a certain type of extended education was introduced and developed as a legitimate educational arrangement. Finally, this current study attempted to explore the common features and concepts of extended education as an area of education research and academic discipline.

Plurilingualism and translanguaging: emergent approaches and shared concerns. Introduction to the special issue

ABSTRACTThis special issue includes texts by some of the most currently prominent scholars in the fields of plurilingualism and translanguaging. Coming from diverse geographical and cultural contexts, the authors were invited to share their perspectives on the evolution of plurilingualism, translanguaging and their relation to language teaching and learning. The articles in this special issue illustrate the varied and exciting possibilities that can be afforded by these approaches that aim to locate speakers’ fluent, hybrid, multimodal and creative communicative practices at the centre of research and practice. The texts also underscore key commonalities and divergences which demonstrate that these frameworks are best analysed, compared or applied after first acknowledging that they emerge from different research traditions and socio-political backgrounds. Perhaps most importantly, the articles demonstrate that as long as socioeducational inequalities persist there is need for reflection, expansion and complementary actions, especially since both approaches share an interest in social and educational transformation of current models of bi/multilingual education around the globe.

Classic Palace Architecture of the Eastern Podillia in Ukraine: Historical Background and Key Factors

Abstract The article deals with the palace architecture of the style of classicism in the Eastern Podillia in Ukraine of the late 18th and early 20th centuries, in the context of historical and socio-political backgrounds. This issue remains poorly studied, because it was not considered comprehensively for Eastern Podillia. The purpose of the article is to establish the factors and historical preconditions of the architecture of the palace complexes in accordance with the world tendencies and regional features of Eastern Podillia. The complex of general scientific and special research methods was applied in the work. It was established, that the palace architecture of Eastern Podillia was formed dependent on socio-economic and political changes in society, a complex of the main factors and worldview-cultural desires of the owners of estates. Determined, that the principles of the European classicism had an impact on the creation of conceptual features and typical signs of the palace complexes of the Eastern Podilia in the context of regional architectural tendencies and belonging to the territory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 18 century.

Unspoken Stories by North Korean and Korean-American Educators: A Trioethnography on South Korean Education

ABSTRACTThis paper articulates the challenges of the South Korean education system through a co-constructed narrative, employing duoethnographic methodology. The authors offer critical and contextualized perspectives on their personal and professional observations on the dysfunctional aspects of South Korean education including dehumanization and overachievement. Drawing upon the framework of education for sustainable development, the authors suggest implications for educational reform both at the micro and macro, and practical and conceptual levels. This study is significant in that it considers voices of educators with socio-political backgrounds often marginalized in South Korean society.

Occupying Our Space: The Mestiza Rhetorics of Mexican Women Journalists and Activists, 1875–1942

Occupying Our Space: The Mestiza Rhetorics of Mexican Women Journalists and Activists, 1875–1942

Translanguaging in Translation: A Case Study of an English Translation of a Hindi Novel “Godaan”

Translanguaging in Translation: A Case Study of an English Translation of a Hindi Novel “Godaan” Eriko Sato, Aruna Sharma Abstract This paper brings together the field of sociolinguistics and the field of translation studies and examines translated texts through the concept of translanguaging. Although occurrences of linguistic features of the source language (SL) are not normally expected in translated texts, translators occasionally push and flout language boundaries for many communicative purposes such as to convey culture-specific pragmatic nuances, to create a new concept in the receiving culture, to implicitly voice their socio-political ideologies, to preserve rhetorical effectiveness, to experiment with new styles and so on. Such a risk-taking, but strategic language use taken right at a linguistic border by translators is doubtlessly translanguaging, and their translanguaging practices have been contributing to the evolution of languages and to the transformation of societies. The current paper examines one of the English translations of Godaan, Premchand’s masterpiece novel written in Hindi and published in 1936. The translation of Godaanby Anurag Yadav published in 2009 has numerous Hindi words scattered around within the English text without glossaries or footnotes. This research examines these Hindi words as well as the socio-cultural, socio-historical and socio-political backgrounds of the novelin order to explore the mechanism and implication of translanguaging in translation. Full Text: PDF DOI: 10.15640/ijll.v5n2a14

Asian presence in the International Sociological Association

This article attempts to understand the Asian presence in the International Sociological Association (ISA) in terms of (a) attendance at World Congresses of Sociology and (b) participation in decision-making bodies such as the ISA Executive Committee and the boards of the Research Committees. Viewing the size of the Asian population as a proportion of the world population, the Asian presence in the ISA is far from satisfactory. Being a Euro-American transplant in Asia, the sociological concepts and theories have not been able to fully capture Asian social reality. Further, the different socio-political and economic backgrounds of Asian countries – postcolonial (India), postsocialist (China) and democratic-capitalist (Japan) – have also led to differing participation in the ISA. For equity in participation in the ISA and the rapid internationalization of sociology the tension between the ‘universalism’ of Western sociological concepts and theories and the ‘particularism’ of Asian social reality need to be addressed. To achieve the intended objective of the ISA, namely the internationalization of sociology, it is necessary to recognize the specificities of all the ‘provinces’ in the Republic of Knowledge Production.

The internationalisation of higher education in two different contexts: Catalan and Estonian sociolinguistic perspectives

ABSTRACTThe topic of the internationalisation of academia has recently attracted attention from sociolinguists and language-policy scholars. In this paper, we compare two different universities from two contrasting contexts in Europe in order to find out more about their projected stance [Jaffe, A. (2009). Stance in a Corsican School: Institutional and Ideological Orders and the production of Bilingual Subjects. In A. Jaffe (Ed.), Stance: Sociolinguistic perspectives (pp. 119–145). New York, NY: Oxford University Press] and attitudes towards the different languages present in their immediate contexts. In particular, we compare the University of Tartu (Estonia) with the University of Lleida (Catalonia, Spain), analysing several key parameters. The purpose of the comparison is to contrast, from a sociolinguistic point of view, the higher education setting of two medium-sized language contexts in Europe [Vila, F. X., & Bretxa, V. (Eds.). (2015). Language policy in higher education. The case of medium-sized languages. Bristol: Multilingual Matters] with different demolinguistic and language political features. The results show that both institutions adopt a similar stance in connection to their respective national language (a protectionist attitude), but they take different approaches towards the other societal language and English. We read these differences in light of the broader historical and socio-political backgrounds, which we suggest are reflected in the microcosm of the universities here analysed.

Cognitive Sex Differences in Brazil

Considerable data are available about sex differences in intelligence, both at the general (more latent) and the specific (more explicit) levels, in children, adolescents, and adults. However, only a small proportion comes from developing countries, where socio-political conditions and patterns of sexual inequality differ markedly from those observed in developed countries. Comparing sex differences data in intelligence between cultures with contrasting socio-political backgrounds permits examining whether biological factors are behind such sex differences. In an effort towards addressing this, we reviewed and compiled intelligence data from Brazil, and found evidence for a male advantage in adulthood in most dimensions of intelligence. We then analyzed new adult data on three unidimensional IQ tests for the measurement of general intelligence (the g factor), and found evidence of a male advantage in two, but a female advantage in the third. However, scores on two tests appeared to be highly confounded with education level, and once this variable was controlled, the female advantage in one test and the male advantage in another were not noticeable.. In general, our results were mostly in line with the male advantage hypothesis, although this did not appear to be uniformly consistent or of high magnitude in Brazil. Societal implications are discussed. Key words: Intelligence, Sex differences, APM, Progressive Matrices, Brazil.

Editorial Introduction

Editorial Introduction

China's architectural aid: Exporting a transformational modernism

China's architectural exports to less-developed countries, such as conference halls, government offices, hospitals, institutional headquarters, schools, stadia and theatres, have played a special role in the state's foreign aid and diplomatic strategy. Beginning in the late 1950s, such exported architectural projects were presented by the Chinese Communist Party-led government as gifts to many Asian and African nations in exchange for their ideological, political and diplomatic support. In the post-Mao era, these architectural exports were combined with economic assistance, debt relief and expanding market access, suggesting economic cooperation, political engagement and cultural communication. In this study, a range of typical buildings are woven with their particular historical and socio-political backgrounds into a cohesive narrative. This is the first attempt to examine and theorise the development and transformation of this distinctive phenomenon, using architectural aid as a lens through which to unpack the state's motivation for and the institutions/individuals' commitment to constructing China's global influence. It is argued that the exported architectural projects – profoundly marked by the state's intervention – demonstrated what we term a ‘transformational modernism’ that was both a product of social transformation in China and a positive engagement with the recipient nations' local conditions.

Need and Strategies of Motivating ESL Learners in Classroom

It has always been a general observation that some students are highly interested and show a keen inclination towards learning, whereas others exhibit a very lazy disposition. There is surely some reason behind the two kinds of behaviour at the same time. A teacher, despite having good knowledge of the subject and a nice manner of teaching, may prove to be ineffective if the students are not ready to learn. Therefore, there is a great need to motivate the students towards learning. Motivation in education means inculcating and stimulating interest in studies and other related activities in students. It involves the understanding and use of natural urges of the students and also assisting them in acquiring new desirable motives. In this paper, I intend to apply the principles given by the psychologist M.K. Thomson in his theory of motivation, to motivate the English as Second Language learners in the classrooms, particularly the first-year students coming from different socio cultural, political and economical backgrounds to study the professional courses such as B. Tech, BCA, BBA, BHMCT, BJMC and so on to learn English language particularly to enhance their spoken and communicative English.

Sugar in Mid-twentieth-century Australia: A Bittersweet Tale of Behaviour, Economics, Politics and Dental Health

History is replete with debates between health professionals with concerns about practices and products and others who either challenge scientific evidence or believe that the greatest public good is achieved through maintenance of the status quo. This paper provides a 1950s socio-scientific perspective on a recurring problem for health professionals. It analyses dentists' promotion of oral health by discouraging sugar consumption and the sugar industry's defence of its staple product. Despite scientific evidence in support of its case, the dental profession lacked influence with government and large sections of the Australian community. The division of powers within the Australian Constitution, together with the cause, nature and ubiquity of caries and Australians' tolerance of the disease, were relevant to the outcome. In contrast, the sugar industry was a powerful force. Sugar was a pillar of the Australian and Queensland economies. The industry contributed to the history of Queensland and to Queenslanders' collective psyche, and enjoyed access to centralized authority in decision-making. The timing of the debate was also relevant. Under Prime Minister Robert Menzies, the Australian Government was more concerned with promoting industry and initiative than oral health. This was a one-sided contest. Patterns of food consumption evolve from interactions between availability, culture and choice. Food and associated etiquettes provide far more than health, nutrients and enjoyment. They contribute to economic and social development, national and regional identity and the incidence of disease. The growing, milling and processing of sugarcane and the incorporation of sugar into the Australian diet is a case study that illuminates the interface between health professionals, corporations, society and the state. Today, for a variety of reasons, health professionals recommend limits for daily intake of sugar. Calls for dietary reform are not new and invariably arouse opposition. The issue came to the fore between 1945 and 1960, when dentists contended that the consumption of sugar either caused or contributed to a major health problem, namely dental caries (tooth decay). Representatives of the sugar industry defended their staple product against these claims, which emerged at a critical time for the industry. With hindsight, these exchanges can be seen as a precursor to more diverse and recurring debates relating to contemporary health campaigns. This paper documents and analyses the contemporaneous scientific and socio-political backgrounds underpinning these engagements

Outline of a Relational Approach to ‘Nonreligion’

This article proposes a programmatic approach to study nonreligion relationally. “Nonreligion” denotes phenomena that are generally not considered religious but whose significance is more or less dependent on religion (atheists are an obvious example). This approach draws on sociological field-theory to outline how different modes of nonreligiosity result from different configurations of the religious field they relate or are related to, influenced by the cultural and socio-political backgrounds of different societies. Furthermore, modes of nonreligion can be distinguished by different ways of relating to religion. While this relationship is primarily “negative” in some cases, most examples display “positive” characteristics, such as the reference to secular morality through humanism and human rights or the stress of alternative worldviews based on science and naturalism. The article concludes that the diversity of nonreligion ought to be studied in its own right and on the basis of empirical research that focuses on religious-nonreligious entanglements.

Ideologies and Attitudes of Foundation Students at a Multilingual University

This paper explores the different language ideologies and attitudes of foundation students of the Economics and Management Sciences Faculty (EMS) at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), South Africa. It offers a critical examination of the different ideologies and attitudes that students from a multilingual university hold towards English as the sole medium of instruction. It further examines why the students hold the different ideologies and attitudes and how the analysis of these attitudes could inform and improve the teaching and learning in the classroom. By so doing, the lecturers could be informed of the different approaches that they could use in teaching and learning. In addition, the paper presents the factors that appear to play a role in shaping their ideologies and attitudes towards English, a language that many of the students appear to find difficult to use in academic learning. Thus, being aware of these ideologies, a lecturer should be able to motivate the students to study English (integrated and instrumental motivation). Central to these factors are the prevailing language ideologies in this multilingual and multicultural university. This is to suggest that the diverse participants in terms of culture and linguistics hold different ideologies. The findings from this qualitative study are examined using studies on language ideologies by linguistic anthropologists like Kroskrity (2000) and Ricento (2006). After discussing the theoretical framework, the paper then focuses on the ideologies and attitudes of the students based on their linguistic and socio-political backgrounds. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n4p415

Information networks and social media use in public diplomacy: a comparative analysis of South Korea and Japan

This article examines how South Korean and Japanese public diplomacy organizations employ digital media to embrace the principle of ‘networked public diplomacy’ through analyses of the web and social media practices. A network analysis was used to map interorganizational information networks among core public diplomacy organizations in each country. To reveal the key organizations' communication strategies on Facebook, a content analysis was also conducted. The findings indicate that Japan had a strong internal network infrastructure achieved through dispersed connections and partnerships; however, Korea had a centralized network, including a limited number of dominant actors. The results of content analysis suggest that both South Korea and Japanese public diplomats focused on promoting their cultural products and national values through their use of texts and visual images. In addition, user profile analysis gaged the degree of users' engagement in the organizations' profiles and identified the demographic features of users. Comparative data suggest the Korean public diplomacy organization was more successful at attracting and engaging with foreign public than the Japanese public diplomacy organization. These results imply that although these two countries had similar sociopolitical backgrounds and perspectives of public diplomacy, they had distinct forms of internal information networks, communication strategies, and social networking performances with public.

Integrated Agriculture and Allied Natural Resource Management in Northeast Mountains—Transformations and Assets Building

Agriculture and allied natural resource management is a multifarious issue in view of dynamic economic and sociopolitical backgrounds. We investigated human-ecosystem relationship for agriculture development using sustainable natural resource management strategies for improved livelihood in a cultural landscape inhabited of Apatani tribe in northeast India. We argue that social robustness, traditional institutions, and cultural obligations govern resource management; we investigated integrated agriculture and allied resource (water and forest) management strategies by assessing community's current state in light of past 50 years and possible opportunities to strengthen local institutions for resource governance. The community maintains diverse agro-ecosystems to congregate the house consumption and cash needs. Early and late growing rice varieties cultivated along with fish farming to maximize agriculture production. The agro-ecosystems exhibited a high ecological and economic efficiency that brings a high degree of self-sufficiency to the community. Resource management is done by village institutions through collective decisions; needful transformations are done to fulfill the demand of changing environment. Ownership, village governance, and ritual-ceremonies played key role in maintaining resources over past 50 years. The integrated management of resources by Apatanis could be an exemplary model for any society to replicate.

Ethno-religious dynamics and the emergence of the Hezbe Seri Itehad (Secret Unity Party) in Afghanistan in the late 1940s

The Afghanistani government's discriminatory policies against its ethno-religious minorities from the late nineteenth century to the end of World War II brought widespread resentment, which resulted in many local revolts. After the war, these took on a different dimension and led to the founding of an underground political party, Seri Itehad (Secret Unity). The party was different from the other political parties of the time because its goal was to foment an uprising to overthrow the monarchy and so establish a republic. This paper explores why and how the party emerged, and how the unique characteristics of the party's two co-founders, who had little in common in terms of socio-political and cultural backgrounds, shaped the aims, approach, organization, membership and operation of the party. It also examines the consequences of the uprising.