Traditional Context Research Articles

Diversity and use of traditional medicinal plant species in Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park, Indonesia

Abstract. Husaini IPA, Maulany RI, Nasri N, Ngakan PO. 2022. Diversity and use of traditional medicinal plant species in Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 23: 5539-5550. The people of Minasatene (Pangkep District) in Bantimurung-Bulusaraung National Park, South Sulawesi (Indonesia) have used traditional medicinal plants for many centuries. However, this local knowledge has not been recorded. This study aims to examine the diversity of plant species used to treat various ailments in the area. A set of semi-structured questionnaires was distributed to 60 respondents, consisting of traditional healers, elderly people, herb sellers and local people of Minasatene. This was used to obtain a demographic profile, vernacular names of plants and their uses, plant parts used, modes of preparation and methods of application. The diversity and use of the medicinal plant species in a traditional context were descriptively analyzed. The data were further extrapolated using Use Value (UV) to analyze the relative importance of plant species based on the number of uses; Fidelity Level (FL) to determine the specific uses of each plant species and preference over other species, and Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) to investigate an agreement between each group of diseases and related remedies. The study reveals that there were 74 species of medicinal plants belonging to 65 genera and 44 families being used as traditional medicines, which have been known to treat 54 ailments. Among the plant species, soursop (Annona muricata) had the highest UV (0,95), while the fig tree species, Ficus septica (100%) had the highest FL with the most frequent citation. From the data gained, it was found that skeletomuscular disorders had the highest ICF value (0,92).

The Journalist on Social Media: Mapping the Promoter, Celebrity and Joker Roles on Twitter and Instagram

This study takes an empirical approach to analyze how journalists perform the roles of promoter, celebrity, and joker on social media. These roles already play out in print and broadcast, but much less is known about how they are performed outside of traditional media contexts. This study addresses this gap in the literature through a content analysis of 4,100 posts by 23 Chilean journalists in 2020 on Twitter and Instagram. The analysis draws on key variables derived from the literature, including frontstage and backstage performance, personal context, platform, follower count, gender, and type of parent media organization. Results suggest that Twitter tends to serve as a space for professional performance bounded by established norms and practices, while Instagram tends to offer a space for a more fluid performance beyond the institutional boundaries of the news media. Findings indicate that professional social media contexts are more suited spaces to perform the promoter role, while personal or backstage contexts are more suited for the celebrity and joker roles. Results indicate how journalists take on specific roles on Twitter and Instagram, considering the affordances of these platforms.

Bias in the background? The role of background information in asynchronous video interviews

SummaryAsynchronous video interviews (AVIs) have become popular tools for applicant selection. Although AVIs are standardized, extant research remains silent on whether this novel interview format could introduce new forms of bias. Because many applicants complete AVIs from their homes, their video background could provide evaluators with information about stigmatizing features that (a) are usually “invisible” in traditional selection contexts but become observable in AVIs, (b) are not always legally protected, and (c) can impact evaluators' judgments. Across three experimental studies, we examined how cues indicating parental status (Study 1), sexual orientation (Study 2), and political affiliation (Study 3) can impact perceptions of applicant warmth and competence and ratings of interview performance and potential work performance. The effect of background information varied by stigmatized feature. Applicants depicted as parents were perceived to be higher on warmth and received higher interview performance ratings but were not evaluated more negatively on competence or potential work performance. There was no effect of sexual orientation on any outcome variables. However, applicants who supported the same political party as the evaluator were viewed as warmer and received higher ratings of interview performance and potential work performance. Thus, organizations should encourage applicants to use neutral backgrounds.

Learning from ‘failures’ in the development of mobile and technology-enhanced learning initiatives

Mobile and digital technologies can support learning experiences outside of the traditional classroom contexts and provide opportunities for collaborative elearning initiatives. Following design-based research (DBR) principles, curriculum developers face challenges in building mobile learning opportunities that are fit for purpose, adequately supported, and embraced by instructors and students alike. However, published accounts of mobile and technology-enhanced learning initiatives are currently largely restricted to ‘successes’ and lack descriptions of the processes and challenges involved in development. Critical factors for success – derived from accounts of ‘failed’ projects – may also be useful to guide the planning of initiatives in development. I present here potential steps towards a guiding framework for mobile and technology-enhanced learning developers that incorporates both an appraisal of these critical success factors within the context of a developing initiative and the instructive value of ‘productive failure’.

Adverse effects of ayahuasca: Results from the Global Ayahuasca Survey.

Ayahuasca is a plant-based decoction native to Amazonia, where it has a long history of use in traditional medicine. Contemporary ritual use of ayahuasca has been expanding throughout the world for mental health purposes, and for spiritual and personal growth. Although researchers have been conducting clinical trials and observational studies reporting medical and psychological benefits, most of these do not report ayahuasca's immediate or medium-term adverse effects, so these are underrepresented in the literature. With the expansion of ayahuasca ceremonies from their traditional contexts to countries around the world, there is an important public health question regarding the risk/benefit balance of its use. We used data from an online Global Ayahuasca Survey (n = 10,836) collected between 2017 and 2019 involving participants from more than 50 countries. Principal component analysis was performed to assess group effects. Logistic regression analysis was performed to test for adverse effects associated with history of ayahuasca use, clinical, context of use and spiritual effect variables. Acute physical health adverse effects (primarily vomiting) were reported by 69.9% of the sample, with 2.3% reporting the need for subsequent medical attention. Adverse mental health effects in the weeks or months following consumption were reported by 55.9% of the sample, however, around 88% considered such mental health effects as part of a positive process of growth or integration. Around 12% sought professional support for these effects. Physical adverse effects were related to older age at initial use of ayahuasca, having a physical health condition, higher lifetime and last year ayahuasca use, having a previous substance use disorder diagnosis, and taking ayahuasca in a non-supervised context. Mental health adverse effects were positively associated with anxiety disorders; physical health conditions; and the strength of the acute spiritual experience; and negatively associated with consumption in religious settings. While there is a high rate of adverse physical effects and challenging psychological effects from using ayahuasca, they are not generally severe, and most ayahuasca ceremony attendees continue to attend ceremonies, suggesting they perceive the benefits as outweighing any adverse effects. Knowing what variables might predict eventual adverse effects may serve in screening of, or providing additional support for, vulnerable subjects. Improved understanding of the ayahuasca risk/benefit balance can also assist policy makers in decisions regarding potential regulation and public health responses.

A New Handbook of Rhetoric: Inverting the Classical Vocabulary

A New Handbook of Rhetoric: Inverting the Classical Vocabulary

Managing, Structuring and Scaling Innovation in International Organizations

This article summarizes my award-winning dissertation on innovation for transforming the United Nations (UN) to solve the grand challenges in a technologically evolving world. It answers: how do the processes of managing, structuring and scaling innovation impact international organizations and the fulfilment of their missions? Findings show that innovative initiatives lead to the development of responsible innovation capacity, that scaling digital solutions for wicked problems requires global/local ecosystem actors to take on new roles in each location, and that innovation units create value through relationships not owned by one party. These contributions exhibit the cross-sectoral potential for delivering global impact through innovation. It also shows that IB scholars have the frameworks and tools to move beyond traditional contexts to address real problems in the global economy.

Introduction

Introduction

The indiscreet charm of Eccentrism

The article is devoted to a centennial of Eccentrism, a collection of manifestos by the artistic group FEKS (The Factory of the Eccentric Actor), created and published in 1922. The author focuses on the problem of the collection’s originality as a manifesto and the personalities of its individual authors: G. Kozintsov, G. Kryzhitsky, L. Trauberg, and S. Yutkevich. The history of their writing and the manifestos themselves are considered from the viewpoint of FEKS’s nascent aesthetic platform and in a broader context of the manifesto tradition of the Russian avant-garde movement. The article offers a hypothesis that Eccentrism was conceived by the group’s founders as a kind of FEKS periodical, but that project was doomed once Kryzhitsky and Yutkevich left the group in the summer of 1922. Further analysed are each of the four articles in the collection, their interplay in getting the group’s message across, and the role of each of the four directors in the genesis of FEKS. All four contributions create a consistent message; Eccentrism combines a sharp and rhythmic language, typical of avant-garde manifestos, with a snappy imperative tone and juvenile self-advertisement.

Thinking the Unthinkable: Indonesia’s Search for a Reliable Partnership with the US or China

The rise of China stipulates the changing of global architecture on power relationship. Many argue that China attempts to dethrone the United States as a single, unchallenged power in international relations. As this situation continues to develop, China seems to be unpredictable in exercising its foreign policy, specifically at the regional level of Asia Pacific. The uncertain circumstance and fear of losing its power, force the US to interfere the region with a noble motive of safeguarding the other states from Beijing’s aggressive moves. Many countries builds strong connection with China to boost their economic development while at the same time trusting the US more than anyone else in this world for their security, including strategic military cooperation. Among many countries, Indonesia stands in that dilemmatic situation where she needs to capture all opportunities from her growing neighbour and accommodate her traditional security partner. This research aims to unveil Indonesia’s preference on determining a reliable partner for its foreign policy given two available options of the US and China. If Indonesia, in the future when the regional rivalry intensifies, has to select one of them as its primary partner, who will Indonesia choose? This research argues that Indonesia will lean to the US in maintaining its security affairs in the region. This argument base on the findings that in traditional context, US has been very close to Indonesia and until today, its close ties remain. Second, that China’s aggressive moves in the region impedes Indonesia to conduct positive relationship with China in strategic security context. This research applies positivist approach with qualitative methods in which data collection is conducted through literature review and observation.

Stratford Caldecott’s Idea of Education

This essay overviews key aspects of Stratford Caldecott’s idea of liberal arts education, within the Roman Catholic tradition and especially focuses on the centrality of the Eucharist in his thought. It also considers how, according to Caldecott, liberal arts education contains a kind of liturgical affordance or sympathy with the form and nature of worship (within Roman Catholicism). In so doing, this paper offers, to date, the most substantive scholarly introduction to key aspects of Caldecott’s Eucharistic idea of education, within the context of the liberal arts tradition (broadly conceived).

The development of EFL Learners' willingness to communicate and self-efficacy: The role of flipped learning approach with the use of social media.

Promoting English as a Foreign Language (EEL) learners' willingness to communicate and self-efficacy in different contexts has drawn the attention of many investigators. This review explored the effect of digital-based flipped learning classrooms on enhancing learners' willingness to communicate and self-efficacy. The related literature indicated that learners' intention to communicate is affected by social media and digitalized materials used in flipped classrooms. Compared to the traditional educational contexts, this review showed higher levels of self-efficacy in flipped classrooms among EFL learners. Furthermore, the review expounded on the implications and future directions for EFL teachers, teacher educators, educational policy-makers, and advisors. The ideas can improve their awareness of learner self-efficacy, willingness to communicate, and the use of flipped learning approach in educational contexts.

Professional education toward protean careers in music? Bigenerational Finnish composers’ pathways and livelihoods in changing ecosystems

Contemporary professional landscapes in classical music fields are rapidly changing and younger generations of musicians are confronting their creative careers, more often than not in connection to self-employment and freelancing. This narrative inquiry investigates the pathways and livelihoods of composers in a changing professional ecosystem through interviews with 10 bigenerational composers in Finland. The analysis is presented in three “factional stories,” in which the empirical material is crafted into “fictional form” by an anonymous first-person narrator. The stories depict how the secure, traditional careers of the older generation are found to be bound to traditional orchestras and ensembles, whereas the protean careers of the younger generation of composers involve passionate pathfinding amid pluralizing ecosystems, within but also beyond traditional contexts and through various collaborations. The younger composers are expanding significantly, or consciously distancing themselves from, the traditional model and values of a contemporary composer. Competition is found to be increasing and professional education described as too short and insufficient in its concentration on technique—this does not provide new understandings and skills beyond traditional composing craft needed for navigating the profession and securing livelihoods. Although similarities are found in the pathways of both composers’ generations, such as strong career callings and experiences of luck, the “struggle” for a composer to find a place in society is more strongly experienced by the younger generation, for which the development of an ongoing “learner identity” is required to embrace—and not resist—such a challenge. As a whole, the study provides a new understanding of composers’ pathfinding through changing ecosystems and suggests that traditional and protean music careers co-exist—even within a single person—while they can also be clearly separated from each other. The study informs higher music education programs in Western countries.

Fostering Innovative SMEs in a Developing Country: The ALI Program Experience

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play an essential economic role through income and employment generation as well as reducing inequalities. In this regard, continuous innovation is a pillar for guaranteeing SMEs’ survival worldwide. In Brazil, the ALI Program (Portuguese acronym for Local Innovation Agent) trains groups of SMEs to implement a continuous innovation process based on agile methodologies. This paper applied focus group methodology to investigate whether, after participating in the program, SMEs practice some innovation processes in their business and the difficulties perceived by entrepreneurs in incorporating innovation processes into their ventures. Based on the extant literature and on the focus group, it was observed that SMEs see innovation as a risk, fear innovating because of tradition, family, and/or generational context, and do not see innovation as a process suitable to be systematized with agile tools. In addition, factors such as the age of the SMEs’ leaders, the age of the SMEs, the gender of the SMEs’ leaders, and the nature of the SMEs (family business or not) may affect their openness to innovation. Recommendations are stated for practitioners (such as ALIs) to improve their training quality, policymakers to improve and create similar programs, and researchers interested in future research directions.

How Do Traditional Gender Roles Influence Women’s Lives in Taiwan? An Investigation of Highly Educated Women’s Willingness to Create Families

In comparison to other countries in East Asia in which a significant gender gap can be identified, Taiwan is reported to have an exceptionally high level of gender equality. However, Taiwan’s fertility rate is notably low (1.05 in 2019), even among East Asian countries with declining fertility rates. Childbirth outside marriage is rare in Taiwan; hence, the marriage rate directly affects the number of newborn babies. This implies that Taiwan’s gender equality index does not properly reflect the actual situation in society and that the situation may not be so different from in other East Asian countries. Namely, invisible forms of gender inequality may exist in Taiwan, and traditional gender roles may affect women’s lives, including their willingness to start a family. To examine this proposition, semi-structured interviews were undertaken with 43 women aged 30–40 years old, with a focus on those with a basic university education or higher who are most likely to experience gender equality. Results show that Taiwanese women—especially highly educated women—enjoy superficially equal positions and avoid traditional contexts in order to protect their rights and avoid the gender roles associated with traditional families. Welfare that the state should be responsible for, such as childcare and nursing care, is supplied by women in the name of tradition, but the willingness of females to start a family is declining. Promoting family participation for males and supporting more comprehensive equality are two of the keys to increasing the marriage/fertility rate and closing the gap between public and private equality.

A review of social roles in green consumer behaviour

AbstractDespite the broad interest and rapid increase in studying green consumer behaviour (GCB) from a social perspective, related articles have been presented in a piecemeal fashion and have lacked a review of social roles in GCB. Additionally, the research focus may differ from the influence of digital technology. Therefore, this study draws on a review of 439 GCB articles that focus on social roles and utilizes both quantitative and qualitative analyses to provide a general picture of theories, social factors, research topics and topic trends with a specific emphasis on the research differences between the traditional and digital contexts. The findings indicate that the GCB field has experienced exponential growth since 2014. Subjective norms, social influence, culture, marketing influence and social media influence are the main drivers of GCB. Eight research topics are identified, among which topics on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and the theory of consumption values (TCV) maintained high popularity. Furthermore, the TPB is more prevalent in the traditional context in which scholars prefer to predict GCB using macrosocial factors, such as policy and culture. In comparison, signal theory and commitment‐trust theory have received more attention in the digital context in which trust is vital. Research interests in online platforms and green hotels have recently increased in the digital context. Gaps and suggested directions for future studies are further identified.

The evolution of a micro-credential


 
 
 In 2017, key representatives from the University microcredentials team and the Library collaborated to develop, deliver and embed into curriculum, digital literacy micro-credentials in multiple course shells via the University’s new learning management system. The first microcredential delivered was Information Literacy. This credential aimed to address student needs to recognize when information was needed and strengthen their ability to locate, evaluate, and use information effectively (ALA Clearing House, 2017). Students who earned the microcredential were rewarded with a digital badge that outlined the achieved learning outcomes and recognition of this award was reflected on their official academic transcript. In addition, the badges were shared on social media platforms like LinkedIn as a way to demonstrate new skills and engage prospective employers. In 2019, the original credential was reviewed to ensure relevancy. A subsequent eight-week sprint process was initiated. The review process sought feedback from various stakeholders that included the RMIT Creds team learning designer, the subject matter experts (SMEs) from the Library and student reviewers. Results from the review process for the Information Literacy credential highlighted key changes to content and learning outcomes to reduce confusion for students and ensure learning outcomes addressed the module content directly. In addition, a shift away from a traditional educational context of information literacy to a broader professional context was also recommended to ensure relevancy to industry.
 
 

Black Theology and Insights from African Women's Theologies

AbstractThe rise in the public visibility of anti‐Black racism and intra‐Black xenophobia and racism has created a renewed thirst for responses that are unashamedly “Black centred” across disciplines and spheres. Can “Black theology” capitalize on this renewed thirst to recalibrate itself into a relevant response with the potential to impact lives outside of its traditional contexts of the US and South Africa? Using feminist methodologies, this article seeks to investigate the relationship between Black theology in Africa and African women’s theologies. Framed within similar concerns as feminist theologies, African women's theologies are also characterized by a commitment to prioritize women's experiences where traditionally, only men's experiences have been valued and prioritized. From this methodological approach, two critical questions will be brought to the fore: Where are the women in Black theology? What would Black theology look like if it considered gender a critical variable for theologizing? This article puts forward the following assertions: First, that Black theology in Africa has mainly been South African and failed to make its mark north of Limpopo due to its commitment to dismantle the political system of apartheid. Second, that Black theology in South Africa did not privilege gender as a variable worthy of pursuing because it focused more on what undermined the (South) African man. Third, that within Black theology lies the largely untapped potential to address not only growing waves of anti‐Black racism, but also, using an intentional intersectionality lens, to privilege gender, disability, and ethnicity in its purview.

A shape grammar for the spontaneous occupation settled in fishing villages: The case of Garopaba, Brazil

This work presents the second stage of a larger study which conducted the elaboration of a shape grammar based on the analysis of the remaining fishing villages in the Santa Catarina State, Southern Brazil. The architectural and formal structure of the villages provide a perspective of the constructive methods and features embedded in the spatial arrangements and represent a local cultural heritage site. The aim of the present work relies on unraveling its spatial resources using a shape grammar approach, in order to contribute to the preservation of a distinct culture, and is intended to be used to safeguard its formal language planning. Also, through the analytical grammar, it would be possible to contribute in framing design guidelines regarding the remaining villages, to keep it steady on the traditional context, safeguarding its peculiar character. As such, the method in this body of work considered the analysis resulting from the first stage, in order to develop an analytical shape grammar using Garopaba village as a case of study. This stage involved the establishment of a formal language for the analytical grammar, consisting of initial form, vocabulary, families, and spatial relations, and thus, a series of rules emerged, decoding the composition arrangements. The results involved the verification of the considered parameters, confirming the existence of spatial patterns. Thus, it was possible to conclude that the grammar contributes to identifying the occupation process occupation and the spatial patterns which underlies an artisanal fishing village. Also, the grammar allowed the creation of urban compositions similar to the structure of traditional fishing communities in Santa Catarina, generating different discussions regarding the analytical approach towards fishing villages arrangements, compared to the examples studied, specifically, in Garopaba city.

Influence of algorithmic management practices on workplace well-being – evidence from European organisations

PurposeExisting literature on algorithmic management practices – defined as autonomous data-driven decision making in people's management by adoption of self-learning algorithms and artificial intelligence – suggests complex relationships with employees' well-being in the workplace. While the use of algorithms can have positive impacts on people-related decisions, they may also adversely influence job autonomy, perceived justice and – as a result – workplace well-being. Literature review revealed a significant gap in empirical research on the nature and direction of these relationships. Therefore the purpose of this paper is to analyse how algorithmic management practices directly influence workplace well-being, as well as investigating its relationships with job autonomy and total rewards practices.Design/methodology/approachConceptual model of relationships between algorithmic management practices, job autonomy, total rewards and workplace well-being has been formulated on the basis of literature review. Proposed model has been empirically verified through confirmatory analysis by means of structural equation modelling (SEM CFA) on a sample of 21,869 European organisations, using data collected by Eurofound and Cedefop in 2019, with the focus of investigating the direct and indirect influence of algorithmic management practices on workplace well-being.FindingsThis research confirmed a moderate, direct impact of application of algorithmic management practices on workplace well-being. More importantly the authors found out that this approach has an indirect influence, through negative impact on job autonomy and total rewards practices. The authors observed significant variation in the level of influence depending on the size of the organisation, with the decreasing impacts of algorithmic management on well-being and job autonomy for larger entities.Originality/valueWhile the influence of algorithmic management on various workplace practices and effects is now widely discussed, the empirical evidence – especially for traditional work contexts, not only gig economy – is highly limited. The study fills this gap and suggests that algorithmic management – understood as an automated decision-making vehicle – might not always lead to better, well-being focused, people management in organisations. Academic studies and practical applications need to account for possible negative consequences of algorithmic management for the workplace well-being, by better reflecting complex nature of relationships between these variables.