Vulnerability Theory Research Articles

POETRY IN PANDEMIC TIMES: MOURNING COLLECTIVE VULNERABILITY IN SUE GOYETTE’S SOLSTICE 2020. AN ARCHIVE.

Focusing on Canadian poet Sue Goyette’s collection Solstice 2020. An Archive (2021), this article examines how dealing with the effects of a global pandemic through the medium of poetry can act as a powerful catalyst in raising awareness about collective vulnerability and mourning. During the locked-down days of 2020, Goyette felt it was her responsibility as a poet to find words to convey the sense of shared vulnerability people experienced in the face of a momentous event that confined them to their homes for days on end. Drawing on vulnerability theory, ecophilosopher David Abram’s thinking on the more-than-human world, Stacy Alaimo’s concept of trans - corporeality, as well as on recent theorizations on the COVID-19 pandemic, this article argues that Goyette’s Solstice 2020 is a most interesting sociological document that represents collective vulnerability, testifies to the conundrums posed by the still ongoing pandemic, and makes visible the deep affinities between humankind and the more-than-human world.

Violência contra a pessoa idosa no contexto rural em tempos de COVID-19: velhas e novas emergências

ABSTRACT Objective to expand the debate on factors present in the daily life of rural older adults in Brazil, which contribute to the increase in elder abuse (EA) in the pandemic. Method a theoretical-reflective study, which presents the Brazilian National Comprehensive Health Policy for Rural and Forest Populations and the Vulnerability Theory as frameworks, proposed by Ayres, that seek to understand the exposure of individuals to aggravating health outcomes. The development was based on national and international literature, and was organized by the guiding axis “vulnerabilities, formal and informal networks of protection against EA: reflections in times of the COVID-19 pandemic in a context of rurality”. Results the social distancing necessary for mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic may be negatively impacting rural older adults facing EA. It is believed that the set of strategies of formal and informal networks has not adequately met older adults’ needs in rural areas. Final considerations and implications for practice it is of fundamental importance that, amidst the coronavirus pandemic, strategies are implemented for maintenance and expansion of the formal and informal network social equipment of protection against EA, taking into account rural people’s needs.

Educating Resilient Social Work Professionals

This article deals with the concept of vulnerability in social work and how social work students understand the concept of professionalism. The article is based on an empirical study of social worker students and on analysis of the literature used in the education. Theoretically, the article rests upon vulnerability theory as elaborated by Martha Fineman. The analysis suggests that the social worker students share an understanding of the client as vulnerable, and of the social worker as not vulnerable. This entails a view that the social worker is objective and somewhat distanced from his/her clients. The article argues that this understanding runs the risk of producing non-reflexive social work practitioners that are not aware of their own vulnerable position. In conclusion, we state that an understanding of professionalism centred on a shared vulnerability of all beings could bridge the often-used dichotomous understanding of the social worker as either “helper” or “authoritative bureaucrat” and thus lead to a more resilient concept of professionalism.

The Challenge of Social Vulnerability Assessment in the Context of Land Use Changes for Sustainable Urban Planning—Case Studies: Developing Cities in Romania

Urban growth triggers massive changes in land use cover, exacerbating extreme natural and technological events. In order for land use planning to be efficient, it requires the integration of comprehensive risk and vulnerability assessment. This paper aims to create a bridge between the existing vulnerability theories and their implementation in land use planning policies and proposes an innovative approach to determine whether the changes in the territorial dynamics of cities draw considerable changes in communities’ social vulnerability. The methodology identifies and selects three case studies from the Urban Atlas inventory, representative of the dynamics of large Romanian cities, taking into consideration the following hazards: earthquakes, floods, and technological hazards. Vulnerability was then assessed by assigning each land use class a specific vulnerability level. The methodology involved assessing the level of vulnerability specific to the situation in 2018 compared to 2006. The results showed that major changes in land use are related to the transition of areas with a low level of vulnerability to areas with a higher level of vulnerability as a result of the urban areas expansion to the detriment of natural and agricultural areas. This is generally translated into a higher degree of vulnerability due to an increased density of artificial elements and of population in the residential areas. The findings of the study of territorial dynamics in the proximity of large industrial operators did not reveal a tendency that differed from the general trend. Although many territorial changes have been observed in the period 2006–2018, it is necessary to extend the analysis, with the issue of the new versions of the Urban Atlas, to confirm the identified trends and to express the up-to-date situation.

Law-students wellbeing and vulnerability

ABSTRACT There is compelling evidence that law students in the UK, USA, and Australia are subject to low levels of wellbeing. There is also compelling evidence that university students in the UK are also subject to low levels of wellbeing. Low wellbeing is produced by difficulties responding to stressors and life events, or low resilience. Therefore, law students are a sub-group of a larger group of young people with low resilience, however, law students have lower self-reported wellbeing than the overall student group. The trend for student wellbeing is downwards. Vulnerability theory offers a theoretically coherent heuristic that can enable us to think constructively about the problems of law students and students generally and to generate ideas for potentially beneficial courses of action. With such widespread phenomena, for law students across three continents and over many years, it is unrealistic to posit individualistic explanations as causes. Resilience, and consequent wellbeing, is not best understood as a characteristic of individuals but as generated or degraded by life histories, family and community resources, institutional supports or stressors, and social factors. We need to look at institutional and cultural factors if our response is to be coherent and effective. We need to seek a responsive law school in a responsive university in a responsive state.

Indigenous peoples and identity*

This article analyses the question of Indigenous peoples’ identity through the lens of Martha Fineman’s theory of vulnerability and human rights law. Answering questions of Indigenous identity is a difficult and complex endeavour, and is subject to many considerations, including individual, collective, internal and external perspectives. The theory of vulnerability of Martha Fineman provides the author with a prism through which to examine Indigenous identity and inequality across the social, economic, cultural, environmental and political spectra in the Indigenous peoples’ context, and permits the elaboration of a normative pathway to inform legal responses able to compensate for situations of inequity. In the author’s opinion, Fineman’s theory of vulnerability provides an innovative perspective from which to engage in the epistemological, analytical and normative legal analysis that is required, with the aim of supporting the resilience of the Sami peoples at the collective and individual level. The debate within the paradigm of human rights is based on the premise of the existence of different groups with different identities within States (such as minority groups and Indigenous peoples). The recognition of different rights defined internationally and constitutionally has resulted in the possibility for these groups of recognition of their specific cultural traits.

Fluid vulnerability theory as a framework for understanding the association between posttraumatic stress disorder and suicide: A narrative review.

Suicide is a persistent issue in the United States and across the globe. A large body of published research shows that posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) increases the risk of suicidal ideation, suicidal behaviors, and death by suicide. However, the existing literature examining why that association might pertain is widely dispersed across disciplines (e.g., psychology, nursing) and lacks an integrative theoretical framework, making it difficult to conceptualize the current state of science in this area. Therefore, the primary aims of this narrative review were to (a) provide a comprehensive and interdisciplinary critique of the current state of knowledge regarding mechanisms that underlie the association between PTSD and suicide and (b) organize that knowledge according to a specified theoretical framework. The framework guiding this review is "fluid vulnerability theory," a diathesis-stress model of suicide that emphasizes the dynamic nature of suicide risk across cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physiological domains. A summary of the findings, including patterns that emerged, gaps that remain, and recommendations for the advancement of science and practice in this area are addressed in this narrative review.

Embracing vulnerability: how has the Covid-19 pandemic affected the pressures school leaders in Northern England face and how they deal with them?

ABSTRACT Research into the effects of pressure on school leaders has focused more on its impacts at the system level than on the human impact on leaders. Using theories of vulnerability, this paper attempts to redress this balance, examining the challenges school leaders in North East England faced during the initial phase of the Covid-19 pandemic and the support they accessed. Combining an online survey of 132 school leaders with in-depth interviews, the study found that the pandemic had an amplifying effect, increasing both leaders' responsibilities and the pressure on them. It also found that many find it difficult to admit when they are under pressure and have no source of support. This suggests new ways need to be found to help all leaders, and particularly male and secondary leaders, to embrace their vulnerability, access professional support, and increase schools' focus on the mental health of children and adults.

The ‘Entrepreneurship Approach’ to Determining Employment Status: A Normative and Practical Critique

Recently, the concept of entrepreneurship has attracted increased attention in the Australian case law on employment status. Some judges have adopted an ‘entrepreneurship approach’ in determining whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor, while others have rejected this approach. Although the concept of entrepreneurship has appeared increasingly frequently in the cases, it remains an under-theorised concept. This article critically evaluates the concept from a normative worker-protective perspective. It assesses the entrepreneurship approach by reference to theories of power and vulnerability in the employment relationship, and critically examines cases from the United States of America (‘US’) that illustrate the nature and practical operation of the entrepreneurship approach. The article argues that an entrepreneurship approach that operates in a manner similar to the ‘ABC’ test in the US warrants consideration by those seeking to revitalise the tests for employment status in Australia.

A Review of Forest Ecosystem Vulnerability and Resilience: Implications for the Rocky Desertification Control

With a changing climate and socio-economic development, ecological problems are increasingly serious, research on ecosystem vulnerability and ecological resilience has become a hot topic of study for various institutions. Forests, the “lungs of the earth”, have also been damaged to varying degrees. In recent years, scholars have conducted numerous studies on the vulnerability and resilience of forest ecosystems, but there is a lack of a systematic elaboration of them. The results of a statistical analysis of 217 related documents show: (1) the number of studies published rises wave upon wave in time series, which indicates that this area of study is still at the stage of rising; (2) the research content is concentrated in four dimensions—ecosystem vulnerability assessment, ecosystem vulnerability model prediction, ecological resilience, and management strategies—among which the ecosystem vulnerability assessment research content mainly discusses the evaluation methods and models; (3) the research areas are mainly concentrated in China and the United States, with different degrees of distribution in European countries; and (4) the research institutions are mainly the educational institutions and forestry bureaus in various countries. In addition, this paper also reveals the frontier theory of forest ecosystem vulnerability and resilience research from three aspects—theoretical research, index system, and technical methods—puts forward the problems of current research, and suggests that a universally applicable framework for forest ecosystem vulnerability and resilience research should be built in the future, and theoretical research should be strengthened to comprehensively understand the characteristics of forest ecosystems so that sustainable management strategies can be proposed according to local conditions.

Suicide Cognitions Scale: Psychometric Support in a Community Sample Using Bifactor Modeling and Altered Item Content.

The Suicide Cognitions Scale (SCS) measures suicide-related beliefs proposed by the Fluid Vulnerability Theory. A recent investigation of a revised version of the SCS (i.e., SCS-R) which omits items explicitly referencing suicide has indicated that the measure is highly influenced by a general factor and may be useful for distinguishing severity levels of suicidal thoughts and behaviors; however, limited concurrent validity studies with a range of suicide-related experiences have been conducted. As such, this study replicated and extended previous psychometric research on the SCS-R in an online survey study with a community sample of N = 10,625 U.S. adults. Results confirmed the unidimensional structure of the SCS-R. Logistic regression analyses indicated that the total score of the SCS-R is useful in distinguishing varying levels of suicidal thoughts and behaviors such as past-month planning for suicide without attempt versus past-month suicide attempt. Implications and limitations are discussed.

Gray relational analysis based assessment of escalator accident risk in subway stations

In order to better achieve active defense in the escalator risk management, this study based on the vulnerability theory, task driven theory, management error theory, proposed a Gray Relational Analysis (GRA) based fuzzy assessment of escalator accident risk approach. The risk assessment index system of subway station escalator accident was constructed based on the commonness and essence of management defects; the weight of risk index was calculated scientifically and reasonably by using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP); escalator accident risk was evaluated by the combination of GRA and Fuzzy approach. The results show that escalator equipment, environment, safety knowledge of riders are all in good condition in the station. However, ‘Maintenance’ of escalator in the Beijing subway station is in an extremely high risk level. The contributions of this studies are: (1) general risk elements analysis model for escalator accidents which enable to compose any risk factor possible to induce escalator accident in subway station; (2) GRA based risk assessment approach can avoid the problem when expend the range to left and right. It can also judge whether the continuous improvement effect of the object is significant by the difference degree of each risk level before and after.

Neural Vulnerability Factors That Predict Future Weight Gain

The current article discusses five neural vulnerability theories for weight gain and reviews evidence from prospective studies using imaging and behavioral measures reflecting neural function, as well as randomized experiments with humans and animals that are consistent or inconsistent with these theories. Recent prospective imaging studies examining predictors of weight gain and response to obesity treatment, and repeated-measures imaging studies before and after weight gain and loss have advanced knowledge of etiologic processes and neural plasticity resulting from weight change. Overall, data provide strong support for the incentive sensitization theory of obesity and moderate support for the reward surfeit theory, inhibitory control deficit theory, and dynamic vulnerability model of obesity, which attempted to synthesize the former theories into a single etiologic model. Data provide little support for the reward deficit theory. Important directions for future studies are delineated.

The most adverse fire scenario research of steel frame structure fire-resistant design based on structural vulnerability analysis

The complex responses of the building under fire condition lead to difficult realization of structural fire-resistance design. By identifying the weakness areas, the defined most adverse scenario of the structural fire-resistance design has practical significance. In this paper, the characteristics of fire load, steel at elevated temperature and failure modes of steel beam and column in fire test, were discussed to determine that the damage consequences of steel components under fire were equivalent to component fracture. Meanwhile, the calculation method of joint well-formedness after component failure was given to recognize the failure mode of steel frame structure under fire condition based on structural vulnerability theory (SVT). Then, the most adverse fire scenario of the steel frame structure fire-resistance design under the conditions of single component failure and component failure continuously were analysed. The calculation method of the most adverse fire scenario based on the structural SVT was proposed. According to the failure mode identified by the SVT, the most adverse fire scenario was that the component with the minimum damage pattern subjected to fire in the condition of a single component failure occurred. When the component failed continuously, the components induced the maximum damage pattern (the vulnerability index was the largest) were the key components and such components exposed to fire was the most adverse fire scenario. Finally, two calculation models-6-story 4-span planar steel frame and 3D CFS composite shear wall structures-were selected to verify the proposed calculation of the most adverse fire scenarios. It was concluded that the proposed calculation method could reduce the number of fire scenarios that need to be calculated for design and was suitable for application to performance-based fire resistance design.

Storm damage risk assessment for offshore cage culture

This study establishes a practical methodology for storm damage risk assessment and zoning for offshore cage culture by superimposing the vulnerability theory onto hydrodynamic modeling. The peak significant wave height is statistically correlated to the normalized fatigue load criteria at specified loading cycles to classify the destruction duration and damage state during storm events. The yield damage of the flotation pipe under cyclical wave oscillations was identified as the major failure mechanism of the sea cage. The structural failure risk would significantly decrease to 4.5-m waves, which is much lower than the manufacturing standard due to cumulative damage in a relatively short operation time. The wave-circulation model was applied to hindcast 112 high-impact typhoon scenarios in the study area for the return period analysis of the storm wave field. The damage risk distribution of the cage culture was mapped across the landscape to increase storm strength according to the vulnerability classification. The effectiveness of island shielding was explicitly revealed, and the leeward side was overall less risky as the return period increased, with the safe area shrinking inshore. For extreme conditions over a 100-year return period, the shield performance of leeward bays varied significantly due to the shoreline profile differences. Some existing cage deployment locations are at-risk relative to the structural resistance capability, whereas other unrecognized areas might be suitable for cage culture. These findings imply the necessity of storm risk assessment before proactive prevention measures and deployment zoning. The methodology may also be adapted to storm risk predictions for other facilities in the coastal ocean.

Vulnerability and Volition in the Testamentary Law of Undue Influence and Captation

This article examines how contemporary analyses of vulnerability theory are reflected in legal approaches to undue influence and captation in the Canadian common law of wills and estates and in the Civil Code of Québec in the law of succession. Critical theorists point to the risks of assuming that vulnerability lies exclusively with the elderly and persons with disabilities. The equation risks oversimplifying matters, which could compromise the equality and dignity of members of these groups. There is also a risk of overlooking the harm that may be suffered by those who are victims of social or economic oppression. A more nuanced approach posits that vulnerability is a common human trait that cuts across social identities and experiences. Due to prevailing assumptions about vulnerability, this article hypothesizes that challenges to wills based on undue influence and captation will most often occur when the testator is elderly and/or has a disability at the time of execution of the will. Canadian common law and Quebec civil law jurisprudence are examined to assess this hypothesis. This analysis reveals that certain conditions do give rise to triggers heightened judicial scrutiny of wills, but that they do not in and of themselves determine legal outcomes. The case law thus suggests a moderate—but tempered—risk that courts will draw presumptions about age and capacity when assessing the presence of undue influence or captation. Perhaps more significant is the absence of challenges to wills involving young and healthy testators. Jurists might therefore wonder whether we are at risk of overlooking some cases of untoward conduct due to the conceptual associations we make between age, incapacity and vulnerability.

Covid-19 and Poverty Assessment in Nigeria – The Vulnerability Approach

The aim of the study was to abstract from the vulnerability theory to predict the likelihood of more people in Nigeria falling into the poverty trap as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. The study used a parametric technique to obtain estimates of the mean and variance of one-period ahead log-consumption. In doing this, the study hypothesized that estimating household consumption function is important in making inferences about the future and in assessing the vulnerability of household to shocks. The simulation analysis shows that of the 82 percent of the households that are vulnerable to poverty, only about 13 percent are in transitory poverty while the rest are in structural poverty. The implication of this finding is that poverty situation in Nigeria is widespread, entrenched and inter-generational. The current coronavirus pandemic has merely worsened the poverty situation and is not the fundamental cause of poverty in Nigeria. The study recommended among others, that anti-poverty intervention measures of the government, going forward, must be forward-looking and aim largely to increase the productive capacity of the populace instead of merely aiming to alleviate their current state of poverty.

Consumption of Visually Impaired Students Based on the Theory of Consumer Vulnerability and Resilience

This study analyzes the consumption of elementary-school educational service by visually impaired individuals based on the theory of consumer vulnerability and resilience of Baker and Mason (2012). To this end, an ethnographic investigation was performed on a non-governmental organization (NGO) involved in the education of visually impaired students and conducted in accordance with the procedure of Transformative Consumer Research described by Crockett, Downey, Firat et al. (2013). Data were collected through narrative interviews with 16 elementary-school students, six in-depth interviews with managers and teachers from the NGO Lar, and five in-depth interviews with the guardians of the students, in addition to seven months of participant observations. The data were analyzed using the data analysis spiral technique. The results indicate that pressures from the individual, family, school community, and macro forces caused the state of vulnerability. Impotence in the face of practices by school managers and teachers as well as dependence on friendly schools appeared in the form of shock caused by two triggers events: the attempt to enroll students and the first days of school. The resilience of the consumers, the school community, and the NGO contributed to reduce the vulnerability.

Covid-19: Lessons for and from Vulnerability Theory

Covid-19: Lessons for and from Vulnerability Theory

Populations, Pandemics, and Politics

Discussions about social justice and governmental responsibility are often framed in abstract terms, referencing aspirational concepts such as “equality” or “autonomy.” While this is particularly evident in law, grand narratives also shape policies related to public health and welfare, as well as many other areas that overlap with law. Of specific interest in the context of this collection is the idealized rendition of the body that permeates these grand narratives. In law, as well as in political theory, philosophy, economics, and ethics, the body is abstracted to the point that its material realities and their implications for social policy can be conveniently ignored. The pandemic has disrupted, even discredited, dominant political narratives, which minimized or ridiculed the need for safety nets and other social welfare policies. COVID-19 has forced a consideration of the inescapably and uncomfortably concrete into public consciousness, opening up the possibility for a revisioning of our thinking about both individual and societal requirements and responsibilities. Fortunately, vulnerability theory presents a constructive and needed alternative to the traditional paradigm for thinking about the nature of the state and its social institutions and relationships in this post-pandemic reality.