Traditional Norms Research Articles

NOOR: Illuminating Vitiligo through Cinematic Entrepreneurship and Social Change

The moving and inspiring short film NOOR explores the experiences of those impacted NOOR is a moving and thought provoking short film that delves into the lives of people affected by Vitiligo (Pulberi). The disease causes depigmentation of the skin, causing white patches of skin on the body. The film highlights the tests, trials, and consequential successes faced by such a person, all the while learning to accept oneself as one is with the resultant self-confidence. The aim of this treatise is to develop an impactful cinematic experience that portrays the unique experiences of persons who suffer from Vitiligo, including psychological misery, suffering social stigma, and the resultant effects on self-esteem and confidence. The much-needed unknown disorder is shown in the film so that its psychological effects and the tribulations faced by people who have it can be seen. The drive to delve into the topic of Vitiligo stems from the necessity to discuss uncomfortable subjects that are usually misunderstood and face social stigma. Vitiligo imposes a significant effect on one’s mental status, self-esteem, and self-confidence, not to mention its visibility. The crux of the film revolves around the theme of a person suffering from Vitligo who has a driving passion to create a career in athletics, which is hindered due to her condition. The entrepreneurial component of this endeavor is conceptualizing NOOR's potential beyond its function as a film. It acts as a model for a broader commercial project—a whole multimedia platform focused on raising awareness and empowering individuals with Vitiligo. This platform goes beyond conventional cinema by including interactive experiences, educational tools, and a community involvement program. The main objective is to utilize this film representation not just for educational purposes but also as a stimulus for societal contemplation, encouraging conversations regarding traditional beauty norms, and nurturing a more comprehensive and compassionate community. This method harnesses the potential for entrepreneurship by creating engaging visual material and generating chances for social change and empowerment focused on Vitiligo.

From theory to empirics and back: A misunderstanding around the Veblenian dichotomy

Objective: to trace the emergence and consolidation of a wrong meaning when moving from an inaccurately interpreted theoretical concept to empirical evidence. The authors suggest the case of Thorstein Veblen’s evolutionary theory and identify how researchers interpret and apply its selected elements.Methods: discourse analysis. The authors rely on Veblen’s original writings, research papers by Russian authors who refer to the so-called Veblenian dichotomy, and own research findings. The latter show the application of Veblen’s concept to study (1) the features of Russian 19th century economic culture, and (2) contemporary techniques of manipulating personal financial decision-making.Results: the authors found that Veblen had distinguished between contrasting analytical categories when describing different human dispositions, or instinctive proclivities, underlying habitual ways of thinking and doing and economic conduct. Some dispositions lead to productive behavior, while others lead to unproductive one. This concept is essential for institutional analysis. Our research discovers its inaccurate interpretations in the research literature. Starting from a distorted understanding of the theoretical concept, empirical studies contribute to the entrenchment and spread of a misconception, thus feeding a particular ideological agenda. The authors separated Veblen’s original concepts, including ethical ones, from subsequent interpretations and elaborations, to monitor the changing treatment of traditional values in research literature as productive or ceremonial ones. Research findings indicate that the articles by Russian institutionalists contain a systematic bias with regard to the treatment of traditional norms and values as merely ceremonial ones, implying backwardness and archaic patterns, which impede technological progress and “modernization”.Scientific novelty: the application of Veblenian analytical tools in an applied institutional study is reconsidered. Authors’ own analytical technique is suggested to assess the norms underlying economic behavior in terms of their productivity. This technique is applied to the Russian empirical material, both historical and contemporary. To our knowledge, the proposed research technique has not been used in the previous literature.Practical significance: the research findings and their interpretation indicate that Veblen’s ethics and his analytical approach remain relevant. This article contributes to the “restoration” of core values and economic culture of the Russian people. Veblen’s evolutionary theory is suggested as an alternative to the widespread trite methods of cross-country and cross-cultural socio-economic comparisons which presume the supremacy of “Western” values.

Barriers and opportunities for health service access among fathers: A review of empirical evidence.

Engagement with health supports benefits the whole family, yet few health services report successful engagement of fathers. Our aim was to describe available evidence on barriers and opportunities relevant to health system access for fathers. Scoping reviews were conducted seeking empirical evidence from (1) Australian studies and (2) international literature reviews. A total of 52 Australian studies and 44 international reviews were included. The most commonly reported barriers were at the health service level, related to an exclusionary health service focus on mothers. These included both 'surface' factors (e.g., appointment times limited to traditional employment hours) and 'deep' factors, in which health service policies perpetuate traditional gender norms of mothers as 'caregivers' and fathers as 'supporters' or 'providers'. Such barriers were reported consistently, including but not limited to fathers from First Nations or culturally diverse backgrounds, those at risk of poor mental health, experiencing perinatal loss or other adverse pregnancy and birth events, and caring for children with illness, neurodevelopmental or behavioural problems. Opportunities for father engagement include offering father-specific resources and support, facilitating health professionals' confidence and training in working with fathers, and 'gateway consultations', including engaging fathers via appointments for mothers or infants. Ideally, top-down policies should support fathers as infant caregivers in a family-based approach. Although barriers and opportunities exist at individual and cultural levels, health services hold the key to improved engagement of fathers. SO WHAT?: Evidence-based, innovative strategies, informed by fathers' needs and healthy masculinities, are needed to engage fathers in health services.

Shared concerns versus ideological preferences: The New York Times’ coverage of two Olympics games held in the global health crisis

The Olympic Games are often framed by the U.S. media as political events, with the media’s preference for democratic political systems, while global health crises are often framed in a similar way, demonstrating shared concerns about human interests. When the Olympics occur during a global health crisis, a tension emerges between the ideological framing of the Olympics and the shared concern for human interests in media coverage. By analyzing New York Times coverage of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics and the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, this study aims to show how ideological preferences in Olympic coverage interact with shared concerns about health crises. Furthermore, the analysis of this interaction leads to a rethinking of traditional journalistic norms that view journalists as detached observers.

THE PHILOSOPHY OF BAUDLER'S POETRY

This paper explores the poetics of Charles Baudelaire, one of the key figures of French symbolism, through the analysis of his poetic actions, themes, and influences. Baudelaire, known for his vision of a modern world shrouded in dark melancholy and despair, creates a poetic universe that transcends traditional aesthetic norms and lays the foundations of symbolist aesthetics. Through the analysis of Baudelaire's verses, we discover the complex relationship between beauty and evil, as well as the deep melancholy that permeates his poetry. Baudelaire's relationship to man and his view of human nothingness and conflict with the world are also explored, and thus we mark the inseparable connection between poetry and philosophy. Through the use of symbolic language and metaphors, Baudelaire creates poetic images that express existential anxiety and the inner struggle of man with himself. In addition, we analyze the role of poets in the development of Marxist aesthetics and political thought. Through it all, his poetry is a complex, deeply introspective, and universally relevant body of art, as summarized in the book Flowers of Evil, which continues to inspire and provoke readers around the world.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/soc/0758/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

How Do Men Evaluate and Blame Victims of Mobbing? Depending on the Victims' Identification as Feminist or Egalitarian.

In the current research, our objective was to explore how men assess and assign blame to both a man and a woman who are victims of workplace mobbing, depending on whether they identify as feminist or egalitarian. It is well recognized that the label "feminist" carries distinct connotations when applied to individuals of different genders. However, it remains unclear whether these varied connotations are due to the label itself or its underlying meaning. Given that the feminist label has been traditionally stigmatized, we aimed to disentangle the influence of the label from its semantic content. To achieve this, we compared the evaluations and attributions of victim blame directed toward targets labeled as feminist with those labeled with a similar but more neutral term-that is, egalitarian-as well as with unlabeled targets. Considering that much of the previous research in this area has focused on samples predominantly composed of women, we aimed to investigate how men respond to these labels. Through three experiments involving male participants (N = 628), we presented fictitious scenarios depicting a man or a woman who were victims of workplace mobbing due to their identification as feminist or egalitarian. The key finding of our research is that the feminist label, rather than its semantic content, significantly influences the evaluations and assignment of blame expressed by men who strongly adhere to traditional male role norms. These findings underscore the importance of these labels (feminist and egalitarian) in social judgments, particularly when applied to victims of workplace mobbing.

Torn between Prescription and Innovation

This paper reports on the affordances of corpora in the context of a teaching model that aims to highlight and strengthen the relevance and applicability of (socio-)linguistic content knowledge of World Englishes for university-based teacher education and the ELT classroom. We use large electronic corpora as one resource for the student teachers to explore the spread and extent of use of innovative and variable linguistic structures in Englishes around the world, and to critically examine the fuzzy boundary between errors and variety-specific, innovative linguistic structures. To examine the potential impact that a specific teaching intervention on World Englishes and corpora may have on student teachers’ judgments of the intelligibility and formal correctness of several features of World Englishes, a rating task was administered to an experimental and a control group. Additionally, students of the experimental group were interviewed about their experiences with the corpus intervention and their opinions and attitudes toward the use of corpora for teaching English and, specifically, linguistic variation and innovations in English. The findings suggest that the teaching intervention seems to initiate an increased awareness of the variability of linguistic structures in World Englishes, and supports future teachers in questioning traditional prescriptive norms.

Unveiling Silent Struggles – A Qualitative Study on Perception of Subfertility in Rathnapura District, Sri Lanka

Introduction: This qualitative study explores the perception of subfertility in the Rathnapura district of Sri Lanka. Subfertility is a public health issue with profound socio-cultural, psychological, and economic consequences for affected individuals and couples. Understanding the social constructs and perceptions of subfertility is essential for addressing the unique challenges individuals face within the social framework.
 Methods: A qualitative study was conducted through Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and Key Informant Interviews (KIIs). The sample size was determined by theoretical saturation. Purposive sampling was used for FGDs, resulting in six groups of subfertile couples, and KIIs comprised 30 key informants from several subfertility service provider categories and relatives of subfertile couples. Data were collected by the trained research team, ensuring methodological rigour. Thematic analysis was conducted to extract meaningful insights from the gathered information.
 Results and Discussion: The findings of this study described the multifaceted perceptions related to subfertility, including significant emotional effects, societal stress, and stigma associated with subfertility. The desire for children was reflected as a source of happiness and achievement, with a preference for male offspring. Participants had varied beliefs about the causes of subfertility, including biological factors and supernatural influences. Accessing treatment options was challenging due to limited facilities, financial constraints, and cultural trusts. Additionally, religious and spiritual faiths influence the interpretation of subfertility, creating a complex interaction of cultural, social, and psychological factors. Cultural views and traditional norms play a significant role in shaping the perception of subfertility.
 Conclusion and Recommendations: The perception of subfertility is deeply influenced by cultural beliefs, societal norms, and gender roles. The stigmatisation associated with subfertility places considerable emotional strain on affected individuals and couples. Recognizing these social dynamics is crucial for developing effective interventions that address the unique challenges faced by individuals experiencing subfertility in this context. Sexual and reproductive health knowledge should be increased in the community, and culturally sensitive interventions are required to challenge prevailing societal norms and educate the public about subfertility.

Association of filial attitude, filial behavior and death literacy: implications for development of death system in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area of China

BackgroundFilial piety, as a major traditional norm in Chinese culture and in Chinese families, affects the attitudes and behaviors of adult children toward their parents and impacts their end-of-life decision-making and the quality of death of their parents. Death literacy is a novel concept aimed at promoting palliative care in the context of public health.AimsTo understand attitudes and behaviors related to filial piety and to examine the role of death literacy in filial behaviors toward dying parents among residents in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area of China.MethodsA cross-sectional online survey that employed the convenient and snowball sampling methods was adopted. Filial Piety Representations at Parents’ End of Life Scale and Death Literacy Index were used.ResultsThis study identified a significant gap between the filial piety attitudes and behaviors of Chinese adult children. Gender, caregiving experience and death literacy were predictors of filial behaviors in an end-of-life context.ConclusionProviding truth disclosure support, offering guidance to young adult children and caregivers of terminally ill fathers, and strengthening factual and community knowledge of death are necessary to enhance the reciprocal comfort of both adult children and dying parents in the context of Chinese filiality.

Unpacking Gender Norms in China: A Discourse Analysis of Opposition Voices to Selling Sanitary Products on Trains

Recently, there has been an online debate about whether sanitary pads should be sold on China's high-speed trains. In this paper, the author puts a major focus on those distasteful and malicious comments by male participants in this controversy and examines how these reflect the conflicts and complexity that exist underneath gender roles for women in contemporary Chinese society. Discourse analysis is used in the study. Twenty-five social media posts and comments are systematically coded according to their tones, themes of opposition, and implied gender dynamics. As a result, it is discovered that a large number of comments exhibit gender stereotypes and are insensitive to women's needs; this reveals the general negligence about and misconceptions regarding womens sanitary needs. Additionally, the predominant tone of these comments is sarcastic and hostile, which shows adherence to traditional gender role norms and disdain for public discussion on women's health issues. Concerns about economics and practicality are also mentioned but tend to be lost amid the overall dismissal of women's needs. This study reveals how public awareness and attitudes toward women's sanitary needs are influenced by the tension between traditional gender views and progressive social thought.

(290) Exploring the Link Between Conformity to Masculine Ideologies and Responses to Sexual Rejection in Cisgender Men and Cisgender Women

Abstract Introduction Sexual rejection occurs when a person’s sexual advances are terminated by a potential sexual partner, leading to responses that may disregard the partner’s choice, such as attempts to entice or express resentment. Traditional masculine ideologies (TMIs) could play a role in motivating enticing or resentful responses. TMIs often emphasize superiority, encompassing power, control, dominance, and frequent sexual activity. When individuals adhering to TMIs face sexual rejection, they may experience feelings of inferiority and respond with enticing or resentful behaviors to reassert superiority. Objective Explore links between TMIs and the use of enticing and resentful responses following experiences of sexual rejection. Methods A German-speaking sample of 351 cisgender men and 345 cisgender women (age: M = 28.11, SD = 8.05) were randomly assigned to read one of two hypothetical stories in which participants should imagine being sexually rejected by their partner (rejection condition), or engaging in sexual activity with their partner (no-rejection condition). Afterward, participants had to report how they would react to sexual rejection. TMI was assessed with the Conformity to Masculine Norms Inventory. Results Compared to cisgender women, cisgender men more often would react with enticing tactics (β = .77, p < .001). Compared to participants who were rejected, participants who were not rejected more often would react with enticing tactics (β = .43, p < .001). Participants with higher levels of TMIs (being a playboy, dominating women, holding heterosexual self-presentation) more often would react with enticing tactics (β = .18, p < .001; β = .15, p < .001; β = .11, p < .001, respectively). Compared to men with higher levels of TMI (heterosexual self-presentation), women with higher levels of TMI (heterosexual self-presentation) more often would react with resentful responses (β = .68, p < .001). This effect was reinforced through sexual rejection, as opposed to no sexual rejection (β = -.63, p < .001). Conclusions When sexual rejection hasn’t occurred men are more inclined to enticing behaviors. This tendency may stem from potential misunderstandings about desires and consent after initial sexual intercourse. Conversely, when sexual rejection does occur, resentful responses are more common among women adhering to a heterosexual self-presentation. Heterosexual self-presentation might align with adherence to traditional sexual scripts in which men are not expected to decline the sexual advances of a desiring woman. Consequently, rejection may be perceived as a direct challenge to their identity as a woman, triggering feelings of resentment. Therapists can apply these findings to better assist individuals or couples in their sexual relationships. By examining how adherence to traditional gender norms and scripts influences reactions to sexual rejection, therapists can help clients recognize these influences and promote respectful responses that honor all partners’ desires and boundaries. Disclosure No.

Exploring the Impact of Lesson Study in Vietnamese Primary Education: Perspectives of EFL Lecturers

This qualitative study investigates the incorporation of Lesson Study, a pedagogical approach from Japan, into Vietnamese primary education, with a specific focus on the perspectives of Vietnamese English as a Foreign Language (EFL) lecturers. These educators, though not directly involved in primary education, engage with it through various roles like teacher training and curriculum development. The research is based on in-depth interviews with nine EFL lecturers from two educational institutions in Vietnam. Employing thematic analysis, the study identifies five key themes: collaborative enhancement of teaching practices, navigating cultural and systemic challenges, improved understanding of student learning needs, professional growth and empowerment, and challenges such as resistance to change and time constraints. These themes underscore the potential of Lesson Study in fostering collaborative and reflective teaching practices, as well as professional development. However, they also highlight the obstacles imposed by traditional educational norms and practical limitations. The study emphasizes the necessity of support structures and resources for effective implementation of Lesson Study, advocating for adaptations to align with local educational contexts and cultural values. Contributing to the discourse on professional development in EFL teaching, this research underscores the importance of collaborative, reflective practices in educational innovation. Moreover, it stresses the significance of considering unique cultural and systemic elements in applying pedagogical methods like Lesson Study. Offering specific insights into its application in the Vietnamese primary education context, this study not only enhances understanding of cross-cultural educational transfer but also provides practical guidance for educators and policymakers. It paves the way for further research in diverse educational settings, expanding the international conversation on educational practices.

Self-perceptions of masculinities and testicular cancer: Qualitative explorations.

Masculinities have been explored in men with testicular cancer (TC), though limited contemporary research is available on traditional masculine norms important to masculine self-perception. The purpose of this research was to explore the discourse of TC experience in relation to masculine self-perception. A qualitative descriptive study was conducted consisting of semi-structured interviews with 21 men. Men were aged between 31 and 47 (Mage=35.7). Most men were diagnosed with Stage 1 cancer (66.6%), all men had finished active treatment and time since diagnosis ranged from 17.3 to 71.8months (M=47.2). Independent coding was conducted by two researchers and was refined in coding meetings with authors. Themes were developed in a predominantly deductive manner, and analysis of themes was undertaken using a reflexive analysis approach. Traditional masculine norms showed differing relationships to masculine self-perception. Two main themes were identified [1] Maintained or enhanced masculine self-perception and [2] threats to masculine self-perception. Subthemes demonstrated that maintaining emotional control, strength and 'winning' was important to men, and reduced physical competencies (i.e., strength, sexual dysfunction, virility) challenged self-perception. Strict adherence to traditional norms in response to threatened self-perception related to psychological distress. Leveraging traditionally masculine norms such as physical strength and control and developing flexible adaptations of masculinities should be encouraged with men with TC to retain self-perception and potentially enable better coping. Masculine self-perception of gay/bisexual men may centre around sexual functioning, though further research is required.

CULTURAL NORMS AND THEIR EFFECT ON ENTREPRENEURIAL ENDEAVORS: PERSPECTIVES FROM BANGLADESH

This paper explores the effect of traditional practices and cultural norms on entrepreneurship and business success in Bangladesh. Using a constructive survey questionnaire, data was collected from 172 businesspersons. Factor analysis and regression analysis were employed to analyze the data. The findings highlight that traditional family structures, gender roles, social hierarchies and traditional business networks significantly influence entrepreneurship in Bangladesh. These factors can either enable or hinder entrepreneurial activities, access to resources and funding, and decision-making processes. The study also identifies challenges faced by entrepreneurs because of traditional practices and cultural norms, such as limited resources for female entrepreneurs and barriers to fair competition. Based on the findings, implications are drawn for policy development, programming within educational institutions and entrepreneurial practice.

School-based sexual and reproductive health education among adolescents in developing countries

The increase in risky sexual behavior among adolescents indicates the need to strengthen sexual and reproductive health. Schools have an essential role, but few studies are related to mapping models of school-based sex and reproductive education for adolescents in developing countries. This scoping review examines school-based sexual and reproductive health education among adolescents in developing countries. A systematic approach was used to search the literature through 5 electronic databases: Science Direct, EBSCO, PubMed, CrossReff, and Proquest. Subsequently, two reviewers conducted a conformity analysis with the inclusion/exclusion criteria, and then the search results that met the requirements were analyzed descriptively. A total of 14 articles met the inclusion criteria. The model of sexual health education in schools comprises digital-based education, peer groups, and comprehensive sex education to improve life skills. Barriers to implementation include culture, traditional norms, organization, commitment, and supporting resources. The supporting factors are student enthusiasm, exciting methods and media, community, and parental support. School-based sexual and reproductive education increases knowledge and attitudes about sexual health. Therefore, there is a need for a comprehensive sexual education model integrated into the school curriculum using attractive media and involving several well-organized stakeholders.

“Collaborators”, “Guides”, “Facilitators”, and “Advocates”: Using a Spatial Lens to Understand the Roles of NGO Practitioners in Supporting Youth Participation

Youth participation has become an increasing focus for international development programs in the Global South. However, in the home, as well as in the community and formal decision-making spaces, traditional norms often dictate that young people are expected to refrain from raising their views. This presents a dilemma for NGO practitioners who are working with communities on youth participation initiatives. In this paper, I explore the valuable insights of a small number of NGO practitioners who face this dilemma in their practice. I argue that a spatial lens is critical to understanding the key challenges and complexities of youth participation. Particularly, it is essential to understand that practitioners can contribute to the distanciation of the resources, discourses, and practices that enable young people’s participation in intergenerational spaces with adults. I suggest that NGO practitioners can play four key roles, as collaborators, guides, facilitators, and advocates, in different spaces and contexts. By taking on these various roles, they can contribute to young people’s empowered participation. While this study is focused on the context of international development initiatives, the findings can also be applied broadly to initiatives focused on youth participation.

The Effect of Irrational Relationship Beliefs on Attitudes Toward Intimate Partner Violence in Emerging Adults: Moderating Effect of Gender.

Attitudes toward intimate partner violence (IPVA) can be considered as approval/acceptance or disapproval/nonacceptance of physical violence against the intimate partner, psychological abuse, and control of the intimate partner. Individual (such as antisocial tendencies and irrational relationship beliefs [IRB]) and social factors (such as traditional norms and beliefs) shape IPVA. Studies on intimate partner violence (IPV) have revealed a significant relationship between IPVA and IPV. For this reason, IPVA is key to understanding IPV. This study was conducted to examine the effect of IRB on IPVA in Turkish emerging adults and the moderating effect of gender. Participants consisted of 551 students studying at a university in Central Anatolia. Of the participants, 374 were female, and the remaining 177 were male. All participants had at least one previous relationship experience. In the preliminary analysis performed, males' IPVA scores were higher than those of females. The study findings revealed that IRB and gender positively and significantly predicted IPV attitudes. Another important finding showed that the effect of IRB on IPVA was stronger for females. The results highlighted the importance of working on transforming irrational beliefs into rational beliefs in women's acceptance of IPV.

Inequality and social stratification in Russia during the Putin regime: From market transition to war on Ukraine

AbstractThe collapse of the USSR in late 1991 inspired social science research on levels, patterns, and trends in inequality within Russia, due to theoretical interest in how market transition affects social stratification. The start of the Putin regime in 2000 marked a new era in Russia's post‐Soviet political economic trajectory: in contrast to the 1990s, the economy first took off, then stagnated, while the state rolled back institutions of democracy and civic freedoms. In short, Russia became a consolidated market economy under authoritarian rule. In this context research has continued to produce insights into social stratification. The labor market featured high levels of employment but with downward wage flexibility, modest decreases in earnings inequality, and persistent returns to education, gender wage gaps, and locality‐based differences. Waves of labor migration to Russia, resurgent traditional gender norms, shrinking population, housing inequality, health disparities, and a small contingent of ultra‐rich represent additional noteworthy developments. Although market transition is no longer an intriguing theoretical lens through which to view social stratification in Russia, the topic nonetheless holds broader theoretical interest because inequality became closely intertwined with Russia's political economy, social policies, and geopolitical actions, including those that culminated in Putin's decision to invade Ukraine.

Efficient methods for iterative ultrasound image reconstruction using L1 and L2 norm regularization

Ultrasound image reconstruction can be posed as an inverse problem, with image pixels as parameters to a model of wave propagation that are estimated from raw ultrasound channel data. Such framework allows one to make assumptions about channel signals and image properties in form of regularization that can be used to improve reconstruction accuracy in the presence of electronic and acoustic noise. A simple model assumes spherical wave propagation from point sources in a homogeneous medium, similar to delay-and-sum (DAS) beamforming; solving such problems numerically can require many iterations and can result in blurred images when traditional L2 norm regularization is used. We use Fast Iterative Shrinkage Thersholding Algorithm (FISTA) to reduce the number of iterations to less than 10, and to apply L1-norm regularization to the data, which improves edge sharpness and image contrast. We demonstrate the concept using FIELD II simulated ultrasound signals from point, speckle, and anechoic targets with controlled levels of electronic and speckle noise. The FISTA-reconstructed point targets show reduced sidelobe levels by 15 dB compared to the traditional DAS image, and the reduction in full-width at half maximum by a factor of 2. We also implement iterative reconstruction in omega-k frequency domain, which allows factoring the forward and adjoint operators at each spatial frequency and paves the way for an intuitive and more memory efficient, multi-threaded implementation of the method.

Poisonous Progress: Dark Fantasy, Violence, and the Fear of Change in Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle and Espido Freire’s Irlanda

This article examines Spanish author Espido Freire’s Irlanda (1998) and American author Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1962) as parallel narratives that make full use of gothic transgression to highlight the trauma of progress in the lives of the young narrators. The teenage protagonists of both texts create realms of dark childhood fantasy for themselves and their sisters, using violence and witchcraft against their cousins (representatives of capitalistic, heteronormative values) as a reaction to their profound fear of change – a symptom of their liminal state between the progress that is expected of them and the stasis that they prefer. The pairing of these two novels showcases the gothic obsession with the subversion of linearity, demonstrating the trauma that results from societal insistence on continual growth according to traditional social and gender norms.