Socio-political Perspective Research Articles

Disability and the Necessity for a Socio-political Perspective

Disability and the Necessity for a Socio-political Perspective

El discurso empresarial en Brasil: tienen la palabra los señores banqueros

From a sociopolitical perspective, the study indicates the principal characteristics of the Brazilian financial system in the 80's and early 90's and analyses financial entrepreneurs' discourse on three subjects : 1) liberalism and neoliberalism ; 2) relations with non-financial entrepreneurs, taking into account their point of convergence as well as corporate and political conflict ; 3) relations with bank employees and their collective action. The article focuses on the bankers who directed the sector's main organizations representing class interests

Attitudes toward the Transportation of Nuclear Waste: The Development of a Likert-Type Scale

Abstract This five-phase study reports on the development of a scale measuring attitudes toward the transportation of nuclear waste. In the United States, 430 male and 400 female students responded to five separate surveys. Phase 1 yielded 30 Likert-type items with part—whole correlations greater than .58; split-half reliabilities as corrected by the Spearman—Brown formula were .88 and .86. Phases 3, 4, and 5 reported on studies that showed that the Attitudes Toward the Transportation of Nuclear Waste (ATNW) Scale was related to environmental measures, other environmental issues, and political and social attitudes. In general, opposition to the transportation project was related to a liberal sociopolitical perspective.

A Socio-Political Perspective on Joint Ventures in China

A Socio-Political Perspective on Joint Ventures in China

The Daily Routines of Mothers with Young Children: Using a Socio-Political Model in Research

This paper addresses the occupational behavior of mothers of young children, focusing on the relationships between the environment, the women's mothering role, and their daily routines. In this study, the use of qualitative methods and a socio-political perspective revealed the meanings the women's mothering role has for them, and the ways in which its content and enactment are shaped within a wider context of social and economic relationships. This paper discusses the implications the study findings have on developing the concept of role in occupational therapy models of practice, and their contribution to developing a science of occupation.

Arthur Schnitzler and Politics

Roberts takes issue with the still-prevalent though erroneous notion that Schnitzler was an apolitical writer. From 1880 to 1931 Schnitzler examined human conflict from the duel to war, and commented on social and political circumstances. Roberts draws upon previously unpublished documents to support his interpretation of Schnitzler's oeuvre from a socio-political perspective.

Non-travelers: The flip side of motivation

This article illustrates the social situation of non-travelers, or people who do not take holiday trips. Two fundamental perspectives underlie the discussion. If living conditions are so problematical that they limit the opportunities for vacationing, there is a causal relationship between social factors and a lack of holiday trips. On the other hand, there can be a normative link between social welfare and holiday travel. Under this sociopolitical perspective, vacationing is considered like any other social right (i.e., its deprivation is compensated by the welfare state). This article reports on a Norwegian study of non-travelers, proposes a typology of non-travelers, and outlines some implication and prospects for future research.

The Cultural and Political Context of Patient Dissatisfaction in Cross‐Cultural Clinical Encounters: A Canadian Inuit Study

In 1986 patient dissatisfaction with medical services in some Canadian Inuit communities reached alarming proportions. Many observers attributed the problem to poor communication. Through an analysis of the process of interpretation in the clinic from a historical and sociopolitical perspective, I investigated the relationship between patient satisfaction and clinical communication. Political and ideological barriers inherent in a colonial medical system were found to constrain Inuit medical interpreters from advocating for their patients' interests and thereby increasing satisfaction with the care. Enhancing Inuit interpreters' capacity to act as advocates may be possible only through changes in administrative priorities that result from macropolitical change.

Prediction and Risk Assessment

Prediction of natural phenomena which have the potential for causing disasters is an extremely difficult proposition both from a scientific and socio-political perspective. Experience has shown repeatedly our inability to predict events leading to disasters. Geophysical predictions, in order to have maximum utility, must specify the date, time, place and magnitude of physical events. In order to meet the minimum criteria for effectiveness and credibility, predictions must be stated within limits which are useful to the public and can be practically applied. Perhaps the best way to deal with the inevitable conflicts and uncertainties associated with the problem of disaster prediction is to either not make such pronouncements or issue forecasts based on the likelihood or probability of event occurrence. In the latter case it is best to provide simplified thresholds for various threat levels and suggest appropriate actions necessary to avert the impacts of an event.

Public Support for Rehabilitation Programs: The Analysis of U.S. Disability Policy

ABSTRACT Although political scientists have displayed relatively little interest in research on disability thus far, a brief review of major issues in rehabilitation in the United States indicates the contribution that policy analysts can make to the study of this subject. This opportunity is enhanced by a recent shift in the definition of disability from a medical orientation, which emphasizes functional impairments, and from an economic approach, which stresses vocational limitations, to a socio-political perspective, which regards disability as the product of interactions between individuals and the environment. The latter definition has become the foundation for a new ‘minority-group’ model of disability that is challenging the traditional ‘functional-limitations’ paradigm and that might profitably be utilized in future research.

An Ideological Treatise on Black Publications and Black Writers

Scholarly publishing by Blacks is placed in an historical and socio-political perspective. Reasons are given to show how racial discrimination and other factors have impeded the work of Black scholars and intellectuals. The concerns of Black writers are discussed, and the importance of the Black experience, as exemplified in the works of these writers, is emphasized. Growth in the number of Black journals over the past twenty years' time is examined, and the founding, early history and future of The Western Journal of Black Studies are outlined.

The Chrysanthemum and the coast: Management of coastal areas in Japan

Abstract This paper furnishes a sociopolitical perspective from which to view coastal management in Japan. The recent history of coastal management is briefly summarized. Three specialized studies of coastal area management are introduced. Coastal management in Japan is a highly complex yet fragmented system. However, there are signs that coastal management there is evolving toward greater coordination and comprehensiveness.

Strikers and the State: A Comment

Douglas Hibbs's article, ‘On the Political Economy of Long-Run Trends in Strike Activity’, is the most recent of several comparative studies of the strike which explicitly reject the narrowly institutional approach characteristic of the ‘industrial relations school’ in favour of a broader socio-political perspective. These new approaches have the advantage of reminding us that industrial conflict is something more than an accident in the collectivebargaining process. Rather, the strike constitutes one working-class strategy – political action is another – in the acting out of class conflict in a capitalist society.

Politics of technology transfer (with special reference to the transfer of nuclear technology)

The object of this paper is to present a critical analysis of the issues associated with the transfer of technology in general, and nuclear technology in particular, from a socio-political perspective. As such, it somewhat differs, both in content and approach, from other presentations of this conference. Nevertheless, it is my strong belief that an analysis of this nature is not only appropriate, but is significant for every nation that aspires to a sizeable transfer of technology, notably nuclear technology. 1 1 Technology, and the resulting technological diffusion, have been conceptualized in varying forms using different theoretical and historical approaches. The crudest approach defines technology as involving only changes in artifacts. The economic approach, being more sophisticated, adds labor and managerial inputs to the physical artifacts. This approach is susceptible to aggregate analysis, and economists and historians have made wide use of it. A third approach views technology as a ‘socio-cultural’ phenomenon, that is, besides involving material and artifact improvements, technology is considered to incorporate a cultural, social and psychic dimension as well. The definition utilized here is complementary to the third approach, in the sense that it adds relevant political attributes, as a significant denominator, to it.