Taboo Issues Research Articles

Asian women’s participation in the synodal process

This article aims to explore to what extent Asian women’s participation in the current synodal process has opened up space towards the recognition of their concerns in the Catholic Church. While encouraging broad participation, discussion on taboo issues and local synodal initiatives, it remains to be seen whether this synodal process will usher in the radical reform or transformational level of participation women want to see in the church.

OPTIMALISASI PENINGKATAN PENGETAHUAN REMAJA TENTANG KESEHATAN REPRODUKSI MELALUI EDUKASI PADA SISWA SEKOLAH MENENGAH ATAS

Adolescence is a transition period from children to adults. There are many changes that occur during adolescence, both physical and psychological, so that various problems often arise. Reproductive health problems are still a problem that often arises in teenagers which can be caused by a lack of knowledge about reproductive health among teenagers. For Indonesian society, sexuality is still a taboo issue to discuss so that teenagers do not have access to information about reproductive health. Because education about reproductive health for teenagers is still an important intervention and influences the level of knowledge of teenagers, it is hoped that all teenagers will have excellent reproductive health for a healthy and high-quality generation. The educational participants were 53 students from SMA Negeri 1 Paguyangan who were randomly selected to represent the class. The percentage of teenagers who knew about reproductive health before education was 71% and after education was 98%. There is an increase in knowledge before and after education. Adolescent reproductive health should be material that is routinely given to female students so that knowledge about reproductive health becomes material that is very easily accessible.

Essence of religion, culture and indigenous language in a unified sexuality education system

Sexuality education is fundamental in higher and tertiary education institutions (HTEIs). Evidence suggests that its effective education is through translations into the first language of learners. However, in global and multilingual cultural communities such as HTEIs, the foundations for these translations are still a researchable area. Notably, in HTEIs adolescents, young adults and adults co-exist and therefore, any translations must be toned to balance across these groups. The aim of this study was to establish strategies that could enable sexuality educators to effectively transfer information that is steeped in indigenous language, religious and cultural meaning without precipitating stigma and taboo issues. The study setting was the National University of Science and Technology where a cross section of indigenous cultures, languages and religions co-existed with other global cultures. A University Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR) methodology was administered by the researchers using a Delphi research approach to students and staff. Multilingual, multilayered, multireligious, and multicultural nature of the setting presented serious challenges that compromised the prevention of stigma and taboo issues when dealing with sexuality education. We recommend that the strategy to present sexuality education in indigenous languages to the generality of HTEIs population should, in the first instance, involve systematic identification of appropriate interventions that are religious, cultural, and language-specific.Contribution: This research reveals paramount ethical and religious violations that have a potential to precipitate opportunistic sexual relationships that may lead to impediments in capacity building for learners. This research can be utilised by academics on the field of Practical Theology, specifically youth ministry and pastoral care.

Femininity Construction between Rebellion and Victimization in L’Amante du Rif (2011)

This article examines femininity construction in Narjiss Nejjar’s film L’Amante du Rif (2011). This work has stirred a heated debate among cinema critics and movies goers regarding Nejjar’s rebellious representation of women. The study of female identity in films directed by a Moroccan female filmmaker would certainly contribute to the understanding of the complex relationship between the filmmaker’s gender and the discourse they produce; films directed by women offer the opportunity to have women’s experiences, concerns, and aspirations reported by women, which helps the audience and critics alike find out how the filmmaker’s gender has an impact on femininity construction. This article tries to deconstruct women’s cinematic discourse and gauge the extent to which their films can be of help to the women’s emancipation project. No doubt, the cinematic work or the film is the manifestation of a cluster of elements such as politics, ideology, and gender that interplay to produce meaning or a certain reality. Amidst these variants, the content analysis seems to be a suitable method that can situate Nejjar’s film within the women’s filmmaking map. The paper adopts a feminist approach to test the extent to which Nejjar’s unconventional gender representation has served women’s cause. The paper concludes that Nejjar has tried to introduce a rebellious feminist perspective by tackling taboo issues and using obscene language. However, according to some critics, Nejjar’s film was not appreciated by a large segment of the Moroccan audience because it does not respect the local specificities of Moroccans. Moreover, the tragic fate of the two main characters, Aya and her mother, aligns with Carter's notion of women's defeatism in film endings (Carter: 2009, 309).

“Master of the Unsayable”: Elena Ferrante’s Representation of the Complexities of Female Friendship as a Form of “Truth-Telling”

Italian author Elena Ferrante has been described as the “master of the unsayable”. By examining two of her novels, namely My Brilliant Friend (New York: Europa Editions, 2016) and The Lying Life of Adults (London: Europa Editions, 2020), I attempt to explore her realist methodology and depiction of female friendship as a means of creating a sense of truth-telling. Both novels focus on friendships set in Naples, although My Brilliant Friend is set in the post-World War II era and The Lying Life of Adults in the 1990s. I examine Ferrante’s use of content, characterisation, the theme of friendship, and writerly style. By comparing the novels and her techniques in this way I identify what are classically realist methods as well as the means by which Ferrante sets herself apart by using language and subject matter in unique ways to achieve a sense of truthfulness. The article concludes with the proposition that both novels address unsayable or taboo issues in a stark denotative style. However, in My Brilliant Friend Ferrante achieves a deeper sense of this through a particular metaphorical technique that she terms frantumaglia, or fragmentation.

Deconstruction Analysis for Children Literature: Investigating Patriarchy in Indonesian Folktales

This study aims to investigate the dominant issues of patriarchy in Indonesian folktales by utilizing Derrida's deconstruction concept. Five folktales chosen as objects of the study, and data collection did by document analysis. The findings then analyzed qualitatively by applying Derrida’ deconstruction concept as proposed by Barry that involves verbal, textual, and linguistic analysis to investigate the existence of patriarchy issues in the objects of the study. The results show that dominant patriarchal issues found in the folktales describe about labeling for women, violence against women, and male domination in cultural institutions and social life. Since the transcendental aspects considered problematic regarding the development of mental, moral, emotional, intellectual, and social skills in children, further deconstruction recommended to eliminate or to minimize the taboo issues, labeling, adult’ issues, and violence against women found in the folktales. Hence, to keep the folktales interesting and meaningful for todays’ children as the target audience of folktales, deconstruction in the form of a simple parody is highly recommended by enriching the texts with interesting pictures or illustrations, considering the use of simple yet communicative expressions, and focusing the themes about friendship, collaboration, and adventure relevant for children.

Intern nursing students’ perceived barriers to providing end-of-life care for dying cancer patients in a death taboo cultural context: A qualitative study

ObjectiveInternationally, intern nursing students' experiences with dying patients and death are an area of great concern. However, barriers to providing end-of-life care for dying cancer patients have not been extensively investigated in mainland China, where death remains a taboo issue. Therefore, this study aimed to elucidate intern nursing students’ perceived barriers to their performance in providing end-of-life cancer care in the Chinese cultural context. MethodsThis was a descriptive, qualitative study. Twenty-one intern nursing students from three cancer centers in mainland China were interviewed between January 2021 and June 2022. A thematic analysis method was used to analyze the data. The theory of planned behavior was adopted to design the study and identify themes. ResultsA range of barriers related to attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control that hindered intern nursing students from acquiring abilities to deal with patient dying and death were identified in the Chinese cultural context. ConclusionsChinese intern nursing students encountered many barriers that affected their provision of end-of-life care to dying cancer patients. Strategies to improve their ability to provide appropriate end-of-life care should focus on helping them develop appropriate attitudes toward dying and death and how to overcome subjective norms and behavioral control barriers.

Domestic Violence against Women

In Nepal, a tiny federal, inclusive secular state with a wide range of cultural traditions, women are treated as second-class citizens and are routinely denied their basic human right to be free from abuse. The benefits and authority bestowed by the complex social structures, which are dominated by men, impose values, practices, morals, habits, and beliefs that compel women to endure men's aggression. Domestic violence is any violence committed by a large group against women who are involved in personal relationships. In Nepalese society, violence against women is still a very severe and taboo issue. The primary goals of the study was to sketch out the socio-demographic profile of Nepalgunj Ward 12 and to pinpoint the root causes of domestic violence against women as well as to gather suggestions for its prevention and eradication. The households were chosen using a planned sample technique. Descriptive statistics were employed in the analysis of the results, including frequency, percentage, and graph. Physical and psychological abuse accounts for 7.5% and 92.5%, respectively, of all domestic violence cases. Traditional violence as it has historically been connected was not reported by the respondents. Violence exists nowhere in the research location, hence there is no dowry-related violence there. The majority of the abuses, or 47.5%, include aggressive acts committed while intoxicated. The majority of abusers engage in violent behavior on weekends. A small percentage of the women beat their partners when they were expecting, and a few of them required medical attention as a result. The study found that the most effective methods for reducing domestic violence are counseling, income production initiatives, adult literacy and awareness training, and the prohibition of alcohol, gambling, and marijuana.

Baghdad in My Shadow (2019): a Political Thriller in a Multireligious Europe

Abstract This article presents the Swiss-Iraqi director Samir Jamal Aldin and his thriller Baghdad in My Shadow (2019) and puts it into a context of the re-negotiation of identities in a culturally diverse Europe. The director’s intention is presented as a wish to deal with taboo issues related to gay rights, women’s emancipation, and religious fundamentalism within an Iraqi community in contemporary London. The film is analysed with the help of (1) theories analysing tensions between liberal-secular and religious-fundamentalist standpoints, and (2) theories about film viewers’ engagement, amplifying audiences’ emotions and thoughts about complex societal issues. The film could be said to advocate a standpoint of dynamic secularism promoting individual rights. The article argues, furthermore, that Samir as a Swiss-Iraqi filmmaker encourages thick viewing through his thriller format and invites the audience to a deeper emotional and intellectual understanding of liberal principles, honour culture, and hybrid identity positions in contemporary Europe.

Tematy tabu we współczesnej rodzinie jako wyzwanie wychowawcze – perspektywa rodziców nastolatków

<b>Cel.</b> Nie ma społeczeństw, w których tabu nie występuje. Rodzina funkcjonując w rzeczywistości społecznej, nie jest w stanie uchronić się od jego obecności. Wczesna młodość to szczególny czas, w którym dziecko interesuje się światem zewnętrznym. Tabu, jako „zakazany owoc”, fascynuje, intryguje, frustruje. Młodzież czuje potrzebę rozmawiania na trudne tematy, ale zazwyczaj nie potrafi (być może też nie ma odwagi) zainicjować dialogu. Potrzebuje natomiast wiedzy, aby przestać się bać nieznanych elementów rzeczywistości i wyjść poza mity i stereotypy. Rodzice stają zatem przed poważnym wyzwaniem wychowawczym. Celem artykułu jest zobrazowanie problematyki tabu w polskich rodzinach z nastoletnim potomstwem. <b>Materiały i metody.</b> Badaniami objęto 60 rodziców uczniów klas siódmych, którzy wyrazili zgodę na udział w badaniu w czasie trwania zebrań klasowych. Sondaż diagnostyczny przeprowadzono w maju 2022 roku na terenie Wrocławia. Dane dotyczące omawianej problematyki uzyskano za pomocą autorskiej ankiety. W analizie wykorzystano statystykę opisową, analizę czynnikową oraz macierze korelacji. <b>Wyniki i wnioski.</b> Na podstawie przeprowadzonej analizy wyodrębniono następujące czynniki: kompetencje komunikacyjne, umiejętność oraz gotowość prowadzenia rozmowy na tematy tabu. Wykazano, że wysoka ocena własnych umiejętności komunikacyjnych rodzica istotnie koreluje z deklarowaną umiejętnością prowadzenia rozmów na tematy tabu oraz z gotowością prowadzenia takich rozmów, jednakże nie wykryto korelacji powyższych czynników z inicjowaniem rozmów przez rodzica. Istnieje natomiast istotna statystycznie zależność pomiędzy kompetencjami komunikacyjnymi rodziców, a inicjowaniem rozmów na tematy tabu przez dziecko.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Towards Reproductive Health Issue of Adolescents in Rural area, Indonesia: A Cross-sectional Study

Background: Indonesia’s population is dominated by adolescents; however, reproductive health (RH) issues significantly affect them. Limited access to information and taboo issues regarding reproductive health are significant problems in Indonesian rural areas. Objectives: This study investigates the knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding RH issues among high school adolescents in rural areas in Indonesia and provides information about RH issues. Methods: This is a quantitative, pre-and post-workshop evaluation, cross-sectional descriptive study determining the KAP of adolescents regarding reproductive health issues. We used a questionnaire to measure the KAP. It was conducted on all high school students in Mekong 1 High School of Meranti district, Riau province, Indonesia. After filling out the questionnaire, there was a 25-minute workshop to educate them on RH issues. A statistical significance was set at p<0.05 Results: 121 students completed the questionnaire. Most of them were 17 years old lived with parents (93.4%), with their father’s occupation being labor (42.9%) and housewife (89.3%) for their mothers. The median results of their knowledge were low, although they had a positive attitude and mostly had good practice. There were no differences in knowledge and attitude based on class or gender, but there was a difference of practice between genders. The workshop improves their knowledge level significantly. Conclusion: High school students in the rural district have low knowledge, positive attitudes, and poor sexual health and reproduction practices. There are five of the 121 students who had sex before. The workshop that had been done significantly increased their knowledge and attitude.

Symbol Reinterpretation as a Motivation for Integration of Chinese Muslim Ethnic Identity

This study focuses on research with a phenomenological approach regarding the symbolic meaning of the ethnic Chinese Muslim identity at the Lautze 2 Mosque in Bandung City, which focuses on concluding the meaning of ethnic symbols in Chinese New Year as a means to integrate in the form of friendship and participation with the Chinese extended family; the meaning of Ethnic Symbols in Feng Shui which is still used and believed among Chinese Muslims; the meaning of the ethnic symbols in the lion dance which is still preserved as an art in various Chinese performances and endeavors; and the meaning of ethnic symbols in the Lucky Cat, which is still practiced in some Chinese Muslim circles, and is valued as part of the wisdom of the Chinese ancestor. The study attempted to remain integrated with a more significant initial ethnic identity. For Chinese Muslims, family ties or relatives are essential in maintaining friendly relations, and believing Islam is the teachings of rahmatan lil 'alamiin. In addition, there is a reinterpretation of the symbols of Chinese ethnicity as a form of strengthening the identity of the Chinese Muslim ethnic group. This study can be used as theoretical knowledge in the form of theoretical conception to enrich the theories of the study of religions to assess the religious phenomenon associated with symbols of ethnic identity and religious identity, even acculturation between newcomers and natives. In addition, practically from the research, it is suggested to be an academic consideration for various government policies to build inter-religious harmony and harmony between ethnicities and groups, especially regarding religious conversion and belief and taboo issues in Indonesia.

Social-mediated frame alignment: A study of menstrual activism in China during the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT At the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in China, an urgent appeal for the donation of menstrual products for female medics was ignored by medical institutions. This soon triggered an unprecedented wave of socially-mediated menstrual activism. By adopting frame alignment as a theoretical framework, this study aims to explore the frames social media influencers utilize to represent topics relating to menstruation and menstrual activism and how the public responded on this taboo issue. We conducted a qualitative content analysis of the frames adopted by WeChat posts. Statistical results showed that news organization accounts used fewer conflict, human interest, and feminism frames than individual and corporate accounts in order to avoid controversy in cyberspace. This study also demonstrated the use of frames of menstrual stigma and public invisibility of menstruation was associated with the pro-feminist attitudes of followers, while the use of efficiency and respect frames was correlated with anti-feminist attitudes. These findings should also provide insights into social-mediated frame alignment strategies for future menstrual and other types of activism.

MODERN VERSIONS OF SHEVCHENKO’S ALLEGED PATERNITY

The creation of a new scholarly biography of Shevchenko is impossible without testing plausible assumptions and hypotheses prevalent in the mass consciousness. Most of them do not stand up to criticism and miss any detailed analysis, while others seem at first glance so convincing that they are perceived almost as a truth. Shevchenko‘s alleged paternity used to be one of the taboo issues but now it is fervently debated, attracting many — both admirers of his word and ill-wishers.
 In the media, popular editions, and even outlines of the lessons available on the Internet, the idea that the poet was the father of Hanna Zakrevska’s (1822—1857) daughter, Sofiia Platonivna, married Felen (1845—?), is being replicated. Volodymyr Syrotenko (Verbytskyi),
 Candidate of Technical Sciences, actively defends this view. Another hypothesis belongs to the writer Antonina Tsvyd who tries, in her research paper, to substantiate legendary folk stories about the alleged Shevchenko’s son Fedir whose mother was an unknown resident of Sedniv.
 The statements and assumptions made in the publications of these authors have been critically verified by comparison with dependable information, which showed that both versions do not have any real basis and contradict properly proven facts and documents. V. Syrotenko presents his conjectures as the purest truth, while A. Tsvyd, trying to find evidence for dubious legends, resorts to assumptions devoid of logic and common sense while leaving well-known circumstances without attention. Memoirs are also misinterpreted, in particular the ones of Oleksandr Chuzhbynskyi, and it once again testifies to the urgent need for a critical edition of a corpus of memoirs about Shevchenko. It is especially unfortunate that V. Syrotenko’s inventions are recklessly picked up by the community of teachers who ‘legalize’ them in publications and the educational process.

Factors Associated with Perceived Behavioral Control and Adolescents Smoking Behavior in a Rural Area of Indonesia

Introduction: Smoking behavior among teenagers is now not a taboo issue. Not infrequently we find teenagers who are still wearing school uniforms, smoking with friends or alone, even done openly or in hiding. One of the causes of adolescents’ unable to regulate the intensity of their smoking behavior is their low self-control in adolescents. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between Perceived Behavioral Control (PBC) and Smoking Behavior in Adolescents in Bandarkedungmulyo Village, Jombang. Method: The research design applies correlation analytics through the cross-sectional approach. The study population was 174 male adolescents with a sample of 44 respondents and used the purposive sampling technique. Tools The research instrument is a questionnaire sheet and data analysis of the Chi-Square Test. Results: The results showed that almost all respondents had PBC (High) as many as 33 respondents (75.0%) and had Smoking Behavior (Medium) as many as 27 respondents (61.4%). According to the Chi-Square test results obtained a value of 0.368 > (0.05), then there is no relationship between PBC and smoking behavior in adolescents in Bandarkedungmulyo village Jombang, due to the influence of peers and the informant's social environment. The biggest factor influencing the results of this study is peers who have a major influence on the smoking behavior of a teenager. Conclusion: It is hoped that the research can make changes to smoking behavior and how to fend off the impact of smoking behavior on adolescents in Bandarkedungmulyo Village more optimal so that the physical and mental health of adolescents will be more guaranteed and of good quality.

Translating gender and sexuality in children’s literature: Turkey as a case study

Drawing on the translations of sexuality in five Turkish translations of children’s literature, this paper starts with introducing the origins, developments, and trends of gender as well as the dilemma between gender pedagogy and taboo issues closely related to the sexuality and body politics in children’s literature and its translation in different contexts. Particularly focusing on the context of Turkey where sexuality and body politics have always been controversial issues, the paper intends to shed some light on the matter. Thus, the examination of Turkish translations of children’s literature can yield eye-opening outcomes in terms of the understanding of sexuality and the travel of sexual and body-political content from one context to another.

Chapitre 6. Fin de vie active des nouveau-nés : du tabou à la réalité clinique

Some dramatic clinical situations, rare yet recurrent such as perinatal asphyxia, open the door to the taboo issue of active ending of life of newborn babies. Law and morals explicitely forbid it, while they both open their arms to the booming neonatal palliative care. Yet this taboo leads to two paradoxes. Some of these babies will die, in due palliative care, despite their parents’ fierce will to support their handicap. Whereas other babies will survive in awful conditions, to the great dismay of their parents and the medical team which are both deprived of the “liberty” of offering death. In these exceptional circumstances, the limit between therapeutic obstinacy, palliative care and active end-of-life is indeed particularly blurred. Through a clinical case, we try to shed light onto these extremely complex ethical questions arising at the very dawn of life.

Effectiveness of a Sexual Health Care Training to Enhance Psychiatric Nurses' Knowledge, Attitude, and Self-Efficacy: A Quasi-Experimental Study in Southern Taiwan.

Sexual health is a taboo issue in some societies. Limited assessments were conducted during nursing care in mental health services. It is unknown whether psychiatric nurses' competencies would be enhanced through short training courses. The present study employed a quasi-experimental design to evaluate the effectiveness of an 8-hour sexual health care training for psychiatric nurses to improve sexual health knowledge, attitude, and self-efficacy in a teaching psychiatric hospital in southern Taiwan. Volunteered psychiatric nurses were randomly assigned to the experimental or control group. The 8-hour training program contained sexual health knowledge and attitudes, case discussion, role play, and sexual identity or harassment issues. Each nurse received a pretest and a posttest in the 1-month period between August and September 2019. Descriptive and multivariate statistical analyses were used to evaluate the effects. Among the 75 psychiatric nurses, 43 were in the control group and 32 were in the experimental group. The two groups were not significantly different in the working year, gender, education, marriage, and other psychosocial variables. After the training, the overall performance of sexual health care knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy of the experimental group improved significantly than the controls. The sexual health care training program enhanced psychiatric nurses' confidence and generally improved their sexual knowledge and attitudes. It is suggested that sexual health care needs to be highlighted during in-job training to augment the well-being and life quality of psychiatric patients.

Popular Culture, Gender, and Revolution in Egypt

Other| March 01 2021 Popular Culture, Gender, and Revolution in Egypt Nicola Pratt Nicola Pratt NICOLA PRATT is associate professor (reader) of the international politics of the Middle East, University of Warwick. Her research focuses on feminist and postcolonial approaches to international relations and politics of/in the Middle East, including war, violence, security, governance, activism, rights, and popular culture. Contact: n.c.pratt@warwick.ac.uk. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Journal of Middle East Women's Studies (2021) 17 (1): 137–146. https://doi.org/10.1215/15525864-8790347 Cite Icon Cite Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter Email Permissions Search Site Citation Nicola Pratt; Popular Culture, Gender, and Revolution in Egypt. Journal of Middle East Women's Studies 1 March 2021; 17 (1): 137–146. doi: https://doi.org/10.1215/15525864-8790347 Download citation file: Zotero Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search nav search search input Search input auto suggest search filter Books & JournalsAll JournalsJournal of Middle East Women's Studies Search Advanced Search Popular culture, particularly its gendered dimensions, remains relatively understudied in the field of Middle East studies, including Middle East gender studies. Yet it provides a fruitful arena for understanding the construction and reproduction of dominant gender norms, as well as their contestation and subversion. This was especially apparent in the wake of the Arab uprisings, when different forms of creative expression—such as graffiti and independent music—flourished, and popular media openly addressed previously taboo issues, namely, the phenomenon of sexual violence. Ostensibly a field of entertainment, popular culture creates possibilities of reaching new audiences as more institutionalized feminist activism, such as lobbying for legal reforms, may struggle to do. The relationship between popular culture and gender norms and identities is one of the subjects addressed in Politics and Popular Culture in Egypt: Contested Narratives of the 25 January 2011... Copyright © 2021 by the Association for Middle East Women’s Studies2021 Issue Section: Third Space You do not currently have access to this content.

Unravelling the ‘P’ Word in Environment and Development

Partha Dasgupta’s book _Time and the Generations: Population Ethics for a Diminishing Planet_ (2019) engages us in one of the most taboo issues in development debates: the environmental consequences of population. He asks what level of economic activity our planet can support and what that implies for the optimal global population. As a leading British-Indian economist, Dasgupta models how adverse externalities — poverty, degradation of the environment, resource stress — impact the economy and through his mathematical logic shows the importance of knowing optimum population numbers. [...]