Sociological Processes Research Articles

Songs of Famine and War: Irish Famine Memory in the Music of the US Civil War

This article illuminates ways in which memory of Ireland's Great Famine or ‘an Gorta Mór’ (1845–1852) shaped US music during the US Civil War (1861–1865). Among scholarship on Irish Americans in the Civil War, few sources substantively address lingering memories and trauma from the Great Famine. Yet, a significant amount of the estimated 1.6 million Irish immigrants living in the US in 1860, 170,000 of whom enlisted in the war, were famine survivors. Music's unique role in emotional life offers robust source material for understanding famine memory in this transnational context. Adopting a concept of ‘private, secret, insidious trauma’ from Laura Brown and Maria P.P. Root, as well as understanding Jeffrey Alexander's ideas about cultural trauma as a sociological process, the article highlights a some of the ways in which famine memories emerged in music-making during the war. Case studies include a survey of US sheet music, the transnational performance and reception history of the song ‘Kathleen Mavourneen’, and research on the life of the northern Union army's most successful bandleader, Patrick Gilmore, who left Athlone, in Ireland famine-ravaged West, as a teenager in the late 1840s. The approach is inherently transatlantic, accounting for histories that occurred in the United States, Ireland and the broader Atlantic world dominated by Britain. The essay illustrates how music can contribute to social history, ways in which the application of research on trauma can inform musicological work, and ways in which traumatic memories can emerge across time and distance, particularly in diasporic contexts.

Sociology in a Region as a Subject of Scientific Research

The article examines Russian sociology as a whole and in one particular Russian region (the Ural) through the lens of several scientific approaches. The situation in modern Russian sociology is described as a crisis, and the science itself is in need of a new revival. The Great Sociological Ural is considered as an object of research. The subject of research is the main scientific approaches towards studying sociology in the region. Of special interest is the interpretation of the generational approach, which is considered as a tool for analyzing sociology in the region. The purpose of the article is to present the resurgence process, the formation and development of sociology in the region as a subject of research in the mirror of a number of scientific approaches with an emphasis on generational analysis. The author’s theoretical framework is based on the concept of generations in B.Z. Doktorov’s sociology, including his “ladder of generations”. A generational stratification of the sociological community in the Ural is provided, including seven generations — from the moment of the resurgence of sociology in the Ural (during late 1950’s – 1960’s) up to the present day. A characteristic for each of them is provided. The author’s methodology and methods of empirical research are shown. The main methods used were in-depth interviews, the biographical method, as well as the document research method.

Evolution of laboratory researches and diagnostics of materials

The research laboratories of scientific and industrial enterprises both in our country and abroad at all stages of industrial development faced all the new problems of materials science: determination of the chemical composition, basic characteristics, structural states, physical and mechanical properties of materials which entailed the necessity of laboratory, bench and field tests. Proceeding from the results obtained, decisions are made on the prospects of the design, development and improvement of traditional structural materials and technologies, as well as on their use in various civil and defense industries. Starting from 1932 the results of these studies are systematically highlighted in the publications of the journal « Industrial Laboratory. Diagnostics of materials» throughout the 90-year history of the journal. An emphasis is made on the key problems of formation of the chemical composition and structure, complex tests and certification of new materials and technologies with the subsequent use of the results in pilot and serial industrial production. Promising scientific directions and results of the implementation of the most important national and international concepts, strategies and programs aimed at ensuring the improved safety and security of man, nature and the technosphere are considered. Still much attention will be paid in the future to the results of complex mathematical, analytical, and digital studies, methodology of physicochemical and mechanical tests, the use of multiparameter methods and diagnostic tools for analysis of materials, substances, and living organisms at nano-micro-meso-macro levels, as well as to the mathematical and physical modeling of both dangerous and effective protective processes in engineering, sociology and management.

The Political Economy of Industrialization in Sub-Saharan Africa: Evaluating the Role of Institutions

Sub-Saharan Africa has recently witnessed rising growth rates, but the continent is still largely not industrialised. Mainstream empirical diagnosis has identified the paucity of physical and human capital as the main culprit. However, with the increasing inflow of capital into the continent, such arguments have become hackneyed. A possible culprit identified in the evolving development literature is the quality of institutions. How much has the quality of institutions, structured largely by the prevailing political economy of individual states, influenced Africa’s industrial performance? This study deploys descriptive and analytical methodologies to proffer answers to these questions. The estimates obtained from the Pool Mean Group Panel Autoregressive Distributed Lag (PMG-ARDL) as well as the Augmented Mean Group (AMG) panel estimators point strongly to the fact that institutions are bane of industrialization in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Specifically, we find evidence that in the long run, regulatory quality, rule of law and control of corruption all impact the manufacturing subsector negatively and significantly. The panacea is not only within the matrix of optimal resource allocation, but must integrate the entire political and sociological process, involving governments at all levels, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and faith-based groups.

Theoretical Sociology in Modern Russia: Global and National Perspectives

The article provides a brief analysis of theoretical processes in post-Soviet Russian sociology. The current state and prospects for development of theoretical sociology are discussed in the context of global sociology and in the framework of original sociological theories on Russian soil. Within the first framework, a special place is given to the problem of borrowing and imitating foreign theories that take place among Russian sociologists educated and socialized in the West. It is stated that the development of national theories does not reject a possibility of relying on some global achievements and does not mean indigenization of Russian sociology. The article describes views on the general state of theoretical sociology and assessment of individual Russian theories (modernization, eco-risk, sociology of life, etc.), highlights their weaknesses and problems hindering their development. The author's position on the combination of global and national in theoretical sociology, general sociological and special sociological theories, study of national traditions of science is offered. It is concluded that there are no prospects for a new grand theory, while coexistence of many general theories that determine the probabilistic paths of Russia's development is possible. The need for an active position of Russian sociologists in theoretical construction is emphasized.

Самообразование студентов в дистанционном обучении: перспективы социологических исследований

The article presents theoretical and empirical analysis of the significance of distance learning system in solving the problems of self-education of students' personality, reflecting the sociological aspects of the study. It substantiates the significance of DLS in the long term as a learning platform and as a component of a mixed model, which, in the long term, involves a combination of full-time and distance forms of higher education. The positive and negative aspects affecting the formation of self-developing personal attitudes in the process of using distance learning technology are revealed. The conceptual provisions of formation of methodological basis of sociological research processes of self-education of students are offered. The research problem focused on the use of distance form of higher education as a factor forming skills of self-development, through the implementation of procedures of self-education, which is considered through the totality of its three types: intellectual, spiritual, physical is concretized. The structural model of sociological research indicators developed on the basis of objective-subjective paradigm and structural-functional analysis, where the set of objective indicators is designed to identify external factors and substantiate their impact on the self-development of students' personality, is presented. Subjective indicators, within the framework of the research model, diagnose the existing trends and form promising directions of development of self-education processes and its motivations in the context of distance learning. Recommendations are formulated, which will contribute to the formation of systematized scientific and methodological positions in the development of programs of complex sociological research, collection, processing, analysis and use of the obtained information.

GENDER EQUALITY AND RELIGIOUS LAW: THE ORDINATION OF WOMEN AS RABBIS IN THE CONSERVATIVE MOVEMENT AS A CASE STUDY

AbstractThis article explores one tumultuous encounter between a religious legal tradition and the modern principle of equality—an encounter that also has the potential to shed light on a much wider cluster of questions. The author tracks the ways that the responsa written by prominent Conservative rabbis on the subject of female rabbinic ordination and gender equality implicitly (but unambiguously) reflect the push toward increased equality that weighed on the movement's trajectory, showing that the debate about the ordination of female rabbis reveals two principal trends in Conservative legal rulings, which differ in their responses to the challenge of egalitarianism and their visions of the law, and notes two outlier responsa that cannot be neatly classified within either trend. The author then examines the deep-seated historical, ideational, and sociological processes concurrent with the rise of what some have called the egalitarian age, which have produced these diverging responses and visions, and it determines an appropriate framework to understand them. The author shows that the fight for increased gender equality is situated within an intricate social context that imbues it with meaning and shapes its outcomes and modes of expression. In concluding, the author suggests applying the insights gained in the course of the analysis to other circumstances in which gender egalitarianism clashes with religious tradition. The framework by which the ordination of women in the Conservative movement is analyzed also proves useful, mutatis mutandis, in understanding and comparing the responses of other faith communities as they deal with challenges caused by the egalitarian age.

“Teach more, but do not expect any applause”: Are Women Doubly Discriminated Against in Universities’ Recruitment Processes?

Studies repeatedly find that women and men experience life in academia differently. Importantly, the typical female academic portfolio contains less research but more teaching and administrative duties. The typical male portfolio, on the other hand, contains more research but less teaching and administration. Since previous research has suggested that research is a more valued assignment than teaching in academia, we hypothesise that men will be ranked higher in the peer-evaluations that precede hirings to tenured positions in Swedish academia. We analyze 861 peer review assessments of applicants in 111 recruitment processes in Economics, Political Science, and Sociology at the six largest Swedish universities. Our findings confirm that the premises established in previous research are valid in Sweden too: Women have relatively stronger teaching merits and men relatively stronger research merits, and also that, on balance, research is rewarded more when applicants are ranked by reviewers. Accordingly, male applicants are ranked higher compared to female applicants.

Exploring patient-provider interactions and the health system\u2019s responsiveness to street-connected children and youth in Kenya: a qualitative study

BackgroundIn Kenya, street-connected children and youth (SCY) have poor health outcomes and die prematurely due to preventable causes. This suggests they are not accessing or receiving adequately responsive healthcare to prevent morbidity and mortality. We sought to gain insight into the health systems responsiveness to SCY in Kenya through an in-depth exploration of SCY’s and healthcare provider’s reflections on their interactions with each other.MethodsThis qualitative study was conducted across 5 counties in western Kenya between May 2017 and September 2018 using multiple methods to explore and describe the public perceptions of, and proposed and existing responses to, the phenomenon of SCY in Kenya. The present analysis focuses on a subset of data from focus group discussions and in-depth interviews concerning the delivery of healthcare to SCY, interactions between SCY and providers, and SCY’s experiences in the health system. We conducted a thematic analysis situated in a conceptual framework for health systems responsiveness.ResultsThrough three themes, context, negative patient-provider interactions, and positive patient-provider interactions, we identified factors that shape health systems responsiveness to SCY in Kenya. Economic factors influenced and limited SCY’s interactions with the health system and shaped their experiences of dignity, quality of basic amenities, choice of provider, and prompt attention. The stigmatization and discrimination of SCY, a sociological process shaped by the social-cultural context in Kenya, resulted in experiences of indignity and a lack of prompt attention when interacting with the health system. Patient-provider interactions were highly influenced by healthcare providers’ adverse personal emotions and attitudes towards SCY, resulting in negative interactions and a lack of health systems responsiveness.ConclusionsThis study suggests that the health system in Kenya is inadequately responsive to SCY. Increasing public health expenditures and expanding universal health coverage may begin to address economic factors, such as the inability to pay for care, which influence SCY’s experiences of choice of provider, prompt attention, and dignity. The deeply embedded adverse emotional responses expressed by providers about SCY, associated with the socially constructed stigmatization of this population, need to be addressed to improve patient-provider interactions.

Տրանսցենդենտալ ֆենոմենալոգիան որպես իրավական հետազոտությունների իրականացման մեթոդ

This article examines the essential meanings of phenomenological philosophy and law school of transcendental phenomenology. Attention is paid to methodological features of phenomenological approach of legal perception. In the context of domestic legal doctrine, attention is paid to both advantages and disadvantages of this approach. Conclusion is made that phenomenology is a specific, effective methodology synthesizing diverse explorative perceptions. Phenomenology, as a theory and methodology of law, is part of non-classical legal science, separate elements of this method are used in the context of other non-classical legal approaches such as hermeneutics and axiology of law. It must be emphasized that phenomenology of law is an alternative to sociological and natural-legal perception of law and, at the same time, in its context the synthesis of these two methods of legal exploration is done to some extent. The main feature of legal phenomenology is its orientation to modern law as a sociological process that is going on in the world of “open” life on the one hand, and to potential law as a basis for universal ideal law, on the other hand. Phenomenological approach can be used as a mechanism for exploring current positive law. From such point of view, ideal legal system is discovered in any legal regulation due to which the enforcement of legal regulation is exercised. The purpose of this work is to conduct a comprehensive study of transcendental phenomenology of law as a method of conducting legal study. In order to satisfy the purpose set above, the following problems are introduced.  The study of transcendental phenomenology as an approach,  The study of transcendental phenomenology as a research method,  The reveal of transcendental phenomenology essence as a means of methodology of acknowledgement of law. The methodological basis of this article are the dialectical and historical methods. The object and subject of the research were observed using such general and special methods of scientific knowledge, as dogmatic, comparative-legal, legal modeling, logical analysis. Based on the analysis made in the context of this work, suggestions are made which are directed at developing the efficiency of phenomenology as a means of conducting legal studies, as well as the accomplishment of legal modeling.

СУЧАСНА НАУКОВА ДУМКА ПРО РОЗВИТОК ДУХОВОЇ МУЗИКИ ТА ВИКОНАВСТВА

The purpose of the article is to review modern scientific works of a monographic nature, created on the basis of dissertation research, which is one of the main directions of scientific thought on the development of native wind music and performance in the history of European musical culture. The research methodology is based on the dialectical interconnection of historical, sociological and analytical methods; it allows the analysis of scientific achievements in the study of the development of wind music. The scientific novelty of the article is to identify the main scientific approaches of domestic and foreign scientists to research on historical and sociological processes that affect the development of Russian brass music against the background of European musical art. Conclusions. The current state of scientific and theoretical thought on the development of wind music and performance on wind instruments is characterized by four main areas, which cover the subject: the history of wind instruments development; improvement of game techniques and performance; vocational training of spiritual wind musicians and prospects for the development of wind music and its role in the world of music. Modern scientific works of a monographic nature, created on the basis of dissertation researches – is one of the main directions of research of the history and theory of wind music.

(Dis)Continuities in Racialized Legal Violence

Amid growing research on the history and legacies of racist violence in the United States, there has been limited development of theory and measurement pertaining to racist violence as a sociological process. Social science research has centered on lynching and, to a lesser extent, slavery and broader Jim Crow laws and customs, and rarely have these and other forms been engaged together and in relation to contemporary outcomes. We focus on racialized “legal violence”—uses of law in ways that are harmful to populations defined by race—and use the case of South Carolina “slave courts” to explore modes of racialized violence that are expansive and intertwined. Contrary to a more sequential and linear reading of successive and discreet modes of repression (e.g., “slavery ended. . .”), our analysis shows recursive, multidimensional, and cascading aspects of injurious legal action and inaction that accumulate and repeat over time. Continuities of racialized legal violence, which are contested and thus dynamic, modify and maintain age-old structural constraints. Rather than unfolding in sequence—from settler colonialism to enslavement, Jim Crow, and mass incarceration—“peculiar institutions” are more fluid, sharing repertoires and networks of racialized legal violence that recombine over time.

On Spatial and Platial Dependence: Examining Shrinkage in Spatially Dependent Multilevel Models

Multilevel models have been applied to study many geographical processes in epidemiology, economics, political science, sociology, urban analytics, and transportation. They are most often used to express how the effect of a treatment or intervention might vary by geographical group, a form of spatial process heterogeneity. In addition, these models provide a notion of “platial” dependence: observations that are within the same geographical place are modeled as similar to one another. Recent work has shown that spatial dependence can be introduced into multilevel models and has examined the empirical properties of these models’ estimates. Systematic attention to the mathematical structure of these models has been lacking, however. This article examines a kind of multilevel model that includes both “platial” and “spatial” dependence. Using mathematical analysis, we obtain the relationship between classic multilevel, spatial multilevel, and single-level models. This mathematical structure exposes a tension between a main benefit of multilevel models, estimate shrinkage, and the effects of spatial dependence. We show, both mathematically and empirically, that classic multilevel models may overstate estimate precision and understate estimate shrinkage when spatial dependence is present. This result extends long-standing results in single-level modeling to multilevel models.

Development of Sociological Concepts of Attributes of Consciousness Manipulation

The article studies the development of sociological opinions on the definition and signs of manipulation within the framework of the theory of manipulation of consciousness. The study of manipulation of consciousness has been a popular and relevant topic of many scientific sociological studies since the second half of the XX century. There are many fundamental and applied works on this topic, in which manipulation is studied from the points of view of social political science, social psychology, social philosophy and sociology particularly in its sections like sociology of culture, sociological processes, sociology of management.

MODERN SCIENTIFIC THOUGHT ABOUT THE DEVELOPMENT OF WIND MUSIC AND PERFORMANCE

The purpose of the article is to review modern scientific works of a monographic nature, created on the basis of dissertation research, which is one of the main directions of scientific thought on the development of native wind music and performance in the history of European musical culture. The research methodology is based on the dialectical interconnection of historical, sociological and analytical methods; it allows the analysis of scientific achievements in the study of the development of wind music. The scientific novelty of the article is to identify the main scientific approaches of domestic and foreign scientists to research on historical and sociological processes that affect the development of Russian brass music against the background of European musical art. Conclusions. The current state of scientific and theoretical thought on the development of wind music and performance on wind instruments is characterized by four main areas, which cover the subject: the history of wind instruments development; improvement of game techniques and performance; vocational training of spiritual wind musicians and prospects for the development of wind music and its role in the world of music. Modern scientific works of a monographic nature, created on the basis of dissertation researches – is one of the main directions of research of the history and theory of wind music.

The Prosperity Gospel: A Distortion of the Fundamental Evangelical Tenets

Prosperity Gospel is a problematic issue for the Evangelical and Pentecostal Christianity, and it is so in at least two perspectives. First, it influences the teaching of many preachers who employ this approach to capture new believers on the one hand, and it is sharply criticised by many prominent Evangelical theologians who regard it as a serious heresy, a deception of many Christians, on the other. Second, it is a matter of profound theological question raised from the very core of Christian faith and asking how to find a delicate balance between Jesus' calling to bear the cross and his blessing from the Sermon on the Mount. The most frequent framework is the one that considers the prosperity gospel as the distortion of the substantial Evangelical tenets, and that stems from the various ideological and sociological processes in the 19th United States. The article offers a brief outline of the prosperity message and answers the following research questions: What is the prosperity gospel? What are the roots of it? What are the most critical theological points of the prosperity teaching? What charges are raised by the critics from the Evangelical background? The literary analysis of Evangelical literature is the primary method used to solve the problem.

Sociology for mineral exploration

Abstract This chapter presents a sociological approach that links mineral exploration company characteristics such as management style, culture, skill sets, resources and social responsibility strategy to the core concepts of sociological theory. It is a practical framework for managing a mineral exploration project and its interaction with surrounding communities. The core concepts include interactions and relationships, interactional needs, meanings, normative reference communities and change processes. The chapter presents easy to use tools that include relationship characterization indicators, relationship matrices and a generalized model of the sociological processes that play a role in the start-up and operation of a mineral exploration project.

Suppression, Spikes, and Stigma: How COVID-19 Will Shape International Migration and Hostilities toward It

Border closures associated with COVID-19 constitute a response to an exogenous shock unrelated to migration. In this IMR Dispatch, we argue that the impact of policies initially implemented to halt movement and curb the spread of the disease will nonetheless have medium- and longer term consequences for international migration. Specifically, we argue that these initial border restrictions have set in motion demographic and sociological processes that are likely to culminate in greater support for restricting future migration. Based on demographic evidence, we posit that after extended suppression of migration, OECD countries and Russia will see a migration spike, akin to a “baby boom” for fertility rebounds. Drawing on sociological theory and research, we hypothesize that these spikes in migration will increase anti-immigrant sentiment among native-born residents in destination countries and mobilize political support for reintroducing restrictive migration policies — triggering a feedback loop. In an effort to help facilitate future research and empirical tests of our model, we identify key concepts, processes, and data sources for the analysis of the pandemic’s impact on international migration over time.

INFOGRAPHIC-BASED PROBLEM POSING APPROACH TO INCREASE PARTICIPATION AND RESULT OF LEARNING IN SOCIOLOGY ONLINE LEARNING

The aims of this study is to increase in participation and result of learning among students in sociology online learning by using an infographic-based problem posing approach. Data collection in this class action study conducted by using instruments in the form of observation sheets, formative tests, and questionnaires to obtain students' responses. Subjects of the study were thirty-two students at class XII IPS 1 in SMAN 7 Yogyakarta. Data of the study were presented in percentages per cycle, that were then analyzed to compare the data of each cycle. The results of this study show that the class actions given in the form of the infographic project during the online learning process of sociology can improve participation and result of learning among students. The average of students’ online learning participation in cycle I was 81.51%, while in cycle II it increased to 90.36%. The result of learning was assessed from the level of completedness among students, i.e. 53.13% in cycle I, then it was increase to 90.63% in cycle II. It can be concluded from the study that the application of infographic-based problem posing approach increases participation and result of learning during online learning among students in class XII IPS 1, SMAN 7 Yogyakarta.

The greening of uneven and combined development: IR, capitalism and the global ecological crisis

Contemporary extensions of Leon Trotsky’s argument have seen the introduction of uneven and combined development (UCD) into the field of International Relations (IR) as a theory that is uniquely able to unite sociological and international processes. Yet, despite UCD’s historical materialist foundation, its contemporary applications have been largely abstracted from ecological issues. This presents the theory with a problem that it needs to overcome if it wishes to retain explanatory relevance in a future of ecological uncertainty and crisis. This paper argues that UCD’s historical materialist basis includes a distinctly ecological dimension, which—if recovered—may enable the theory to make sense of contemporary environmental problems and also provide IR with an approach that unites international, sociological and ecological factors. The argument proceeds in three steps. It begins with an overview of UCD and its contemporary omission of ecological processes. To recover the theory’s deep ecology, it then foregrounds the ecological dimension of Karl Marx’s historical materialism, showing how an eco-socialist analysis reveals the capitalist nature of the ecological crisis. Finally, it demonstrates that an enhanced version of UCD—re-grounded in this “ecologized” historical materialism—is uniquely able to integrate the international into a Marxist socio-natural reading of the global ecological crisis.