This book introduces students to the collection, uses, and interpretation of statistical data in the social sciences. It would suit all social science introductory statistics and research methods courses. Separate chapters are devoted to data in the fields of demography, housing, health, education, crime, the economy, wealth, income, poverty, labor, business statistics, and public opinion polling, with a concluding chapter devoted to the common problem of ambiguity. Each chapter includes multiple case studies illustrating the controversies, overview of data sources including web sites, chapter summary and a set of case study questions designed to stimulate further thought.

This is the first critical account of the internationally renowned Mondragon cooperatives of the Basque region of Spain. The Mondragon cooperatives are seen as the leading alternative model to standard industrial organization; they are considered to be the most successful example of democratic decision making and worker ownership.

China's Scientific Elite is a study of those scientists holding China's highest academic honour - membership of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Having carried out extensive systematic data collection of CAS members Cao examines the social stratification system of the Chinese science community and the way in which politics and political interference has effected the stratification. The book then goes on to compare the Chinese system to the stratification of the US scientific elite. The conclusions are fascinating, not least because one national elite resides in a democratic liberal social system, and the other in an authoritarian social system.

Social inequality is a worldwide phenomenon. Globalization has exacerbated and alleviated inequality over the past twenty-five years. This volume offers analytical and comparative insights from current case studies of social inequality in more than ten countries within all the major regions of the world. Contributors provide an assessment of the overall social globalization phenomenon in the global world as well as an outlook of transformations of global social inequality in the future. This book will be a timely addition for students and scholars of globalization studies, social inequality, sociology, and cultural and social anthropology.

In the stories and poetry that comprise 'Other Agitations, ' Mike Sharpe's ingathering of history, economics, literature, and philosophy richly informs his satire. Franz Kafka, Jane Austen and Ernest Hemingway, Bernard Shaw, Isaac Bashevis Singer and Emily Dickinson serve as 'agitators.' Sharpe rewrites familiar tales creating new originals in his unique style and weltanschauung. Truth, in human hands, becomes conditional

Most studies of exiles and emigres from Nazi Germany have concerned the lives of outstanding scientists and scholars in various fields. This book is based on in-depth interviews with 34 men and women who had to flee from Germany and came to Britain between 1933 and 1940, focusing on "ordinary" people. Special attention is given to the social, educational and cultural backgrounds of the exiles, all of which were to play a crucial role in their new lives. Attention is also given to the historical and personal circumstances of their enforced departure, including family members who voluntarily or for other reasons stayed behind, often to perish ultimately in the Holocaust.

Why have Africans not gained a more dominant position in urban manufacturing in Kenya? This question is explored through an analysis of the institutions, both formal and informal, that have affected patterns of capital accumulation in Kenya by the African and Asian (Indian) communities. Using a new institutional economics approach, this book explores the history of economic activity through the pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial periods, including the transformative period of British rule. During the colonial period, Asians were brought in to build the railways and subsequently focused on urban-based activities. Africans, meanwhile, found it difficult to move out of agriculture. Thus, the ethnic-sectoral division of activities was entrenched by the formal laws and powers of the British. Following independence, the network and financial capital that Asians had built up allowed them to survive early attempts at the Africanization of industry. Africans, now supported by the formal institutions of the state, still found it difficult to engage in manufacturing because they lacked the informal networks that support trade and credit. The analysis is supported by the results of a contemporary survey of 120 manufacturing firms in Nairobi's metal sector that highlight the division between smaller African firms and larger Asian ones.

Sustainability Assessment is an increasingly important tool for informing planning and development decisions across the globe. Required by law in some countries, strongly recommended in others, a comprehensive analysis of why Sustainability Assessment is needed and clarification of the value-laden and political nature of assessments is long overdue. Currently the writing on the subject is limited and comprises, for the most part, guidance documents and completed assessments. This book overcomes these shortcomings by simultaneously providing the knowledge, inspiration and range of assessment tools in decision-making students require to tackle Sustainability Assessment challenges nested within wide-ranging values and sustainability-grounded evidence. The collection details the current state-of-the art in relation to Sustainability Assessment theory and practice, and considers the pluralistic nature of the tool and the implications for achieving sustainable decision-making. The contributors set out the context for Sustainability Assessment and then outline some contested issues which can affect interpretations of whether the decision tool has been effective. Current practice worldwide is assessed against a consistent framework and then solutions to some of the inherent weaknesses and causes of conflict in relation to the perceived sustainability of outcomes are put forward. The book is unique in setting out state-of-the-art in terms of Sustainability Assessment practice by focusing on those countries with developing experience. It also covers emerging factors influencing effectiveness of decision-making tools and evaluates how they affect the performance of Sustainability Assessment. Written by authors among the leading university academics teaching impact assessment courses in the most acclaimed universities worldwide operating in this field, it is ideally suited for the growing numbers of courses in impact assessment education and training.

Sustainability Assessment is an increasingly important tool for informing planning and development decisions across the globe. Required by law in some countries, strongly recommended in others, a comprehensive analysis of why Sustainability Assessment is needed and clarification of the value-laden and political nature of assessments is long overdue. Currently the writing on the subject is limited and comprises, for the most part, guidance documents and completed assessments. This book overcomes these shortcomings by simultaneously providing the knowledge, inspiration and range of assessment tools in decision-making students require to tackle Sustainability Assessment challenges nested within wide-ranging values and sustainability-grounded evidence. The collection details the current state-of-the art in relation to Sustainability Assessment theory and practice, and considers the pluralistic nature of the tool and the implications for achieving sustainable decision-making. The contributors set out the context for Sustainability Assessment and then outline some contested issues which can affect interpretations of whether the decision tool has been effective. Current practice worldwide is assessed against a consistent framework and then solutions to some of the inherent weaknesses and causes of conflict in relation to the perceived sustainability of outcomes are put forward. The book is unique in setting out state-of-the-art in terms of Sustainability Assessment practice by focusing on those countries with developing experience. It also covers emerging factors influencing effectiveness of decision-making tools and evaluates how they affect the performance of Sustainability Assessment. Written by authors among the leading university academics teaching impact assessment courses in the most acclaimed universities worldwide operating in this field, it is ideally suited for the growing numbers of courses in impact assessment education and training.

Social identity theory is one of the most influential approaches to identity, group processes, intergroup relations and social change. This book draws on Lacanian psychoanalysis and Lacanian social theorists to investigate and rework the predominant concepts in the social identity framework.

Social Identity in Question begins by reviewing the ways in which the social identity tradition has previously been critiqued by social psychologists who view human relations as conditioned by historical context, culture and language. The author offers an alternative perspective, based upon psychoanalytic notions of subjectivity. The chapters go on to develop these discussions, and they cover topics such as:

• self-categorisation theory
• group attachment and conformity
• the minimal group paradigm
• intergroup conflict, social change and resistance

Each chapter seeks to disrupt the image of the subject as rational and unitary, and to question whether human relations are predictable. It is a book which will be of great interest to lecturers, researchers, and students in critical psychology, social psychology, social sciences and cultural studies.

Examining the genral character and key issues of local politics, People, Power and Place discusses the effect of local government policieson the general population and identifies those who gain or lose under them. Based on a comparitive investigation of Britain and the United States, the book explores the changing influences of institutions and individuals in local political systems and activity. This perspective, first published in 1991, illustrates the role of national, international and historical factors in the evolution of local government as well as outlining the practice of local politics in both countries.

Originally published in 1990, this work analyses the use of contemporary computer models to simulate urban systems. The work deals with the two significant traditions of model-building: firstly the building of integrated models following the seminal research of Lowry first published in 1964, but with relatively simple submodels; and secondly, intensive research on particular submodels with a variety of techniques. This volume constructs a model-building exercise which integrates the two traditions: an integrated model (in a modular form with alternative components) using the most advanced submodels. The book concludes with a presentation of an example of an operational model of this type.

The vision of the original architects of the European Community was to create a Europe of economic prosperity and social harmony. Economic integration has come ever closer, but sustained growth and a reduction in social disparities seem as far away as ever. This book examines the prospects for the real cohesion in Europe and finds that, far from promoting it, many of the Community's current policies are divisive. The neo-liberal philosophy is producing policies which favour relatively wealthy regions and major corporations at the expense of less favoured regions and peoples.

Some communities exist for tens, even hundreds, of years. Others short-lived. What, then, makes for communal 'success'? Bary Shenker, who lived on a Kibbutz for a number of years, compares the Hutterites, the Kibbutzim and therapeutic communities - and argues that there is no simple formula. Through historical and sociological analysis, combined with personal experience and insight, the author provides fresh thoughts on a form of a social life which fascinates us all. First published in 1986.

Social exclusion and inclusion remain issues of fundamental importance to democracy. Both exclusion and inclusion relate to the access to participation in the public realm, public goods and services for certain groups of people who are minorities, marginalized and deprived. Democratization has led to the inclusion of the previously excluded in the political process. While the problems of exclusion remain even in advanced Western countries in respect of the minorities of sorts, and the underprivileged, the problem of deep-rooted social and cultural exclusions is acute in post-colonial countries, including India. This book analyses social exclusions in India, which remain the most solid challenges to Indian democracy and development. Communal clashes, ethnic riots, political secessionist movements and extremist violence take place almost routinely, and are the outward manifestations of the entrenched culture of social exclusion in India. With its interdisciplinary approach, the book looks at the multidimensional problems of social exclusion and inclusion, providing a critical, comprehensive analysis of the problem and of potential solutions. The authors are experts in the fields of historical sociology, anthropology, political theory, social philosophy, economics and indigenous vernacular literature. Overall, the book offers an innovative theoretical perspective of the long-term issues facing contemporary Indian democracy.

This book provides a comprehensive examination of the intersection of social class and the helping professions, including examinations of the role of social class in American culture, classism, social class and mental health, and the American Dream. It will be a valuable tool for practitioners in a variety of mental health professions, providing a clearer understanding of social class as it relates to themselves and their clients. The first section contains an introduction to the global, historical, and sociological aspects of class and an in-depth look at urban and rural poverty, the middle class, and the upper class and economic privilege. The reader will find not only an examination of these social constructs, but also an opportunity to examine their own experience with social class. The next section brings the reader into the world of their clients in more specific ways, examining the role social class plays in mental health and mental health counseling, in the family structure and in counseling families, and in the experiences people have throughout the educational process and in schools. Finally, the last section of the book discusses specific techniques and models to use in the reader s clinical practice, including how to assess clients experiences of class and classism and how these experiences have shaped their worldview and view of the self. Case studies throughout demonstrate fair and accurate diagnosis, assessment, and treatment.

On the eve of the invasion of Iraq, President G.W. Bush argued that if setting up democracy in Japan and Germany after WW II was successful, then it should also be successful in Iraq. This book provides a detailed comparison of the reconstruction of Japan from 1945 to 1952 with the current reconstruction of Iraq, evaluating the key factors affecting the success or failure of such projects. The book seeks to understand why American officials believed that extensive social reengineering aiming at seeding democracy and economic development is replicable, through identifying factors explaining the outcome of U.S.-led post-conflict reconstruction projects. The analysis reveals that in addition to the effective use of material resources of power, the outcome of reconstruction projects depends on a variety of other intertwined factors, and Bridoux provides a new analytical framework relying on a Gramscian concept of power to develop a greater understanding of these factors, and the ultimate success or failure of these reconstruction projects. Appraising the effectiveness of American power in the contemporary international structure, this work is a significant contribution to the field and will be of great interest to all scholars of foreign policy, international relations and conflict studies.

Local Literacies is a unique detailed study of the role of reading and writing in people's everyday lives. By concentrating on a selection of people in a particular community in Lancaster, England, the authors analyse how they use literacy in their day-to-day lives. It follows four people in detail examining how they use local media, their participation in public life, the role of literacy in family activities and in leisure pursuits. Links are made between everyday learning and education. The study is based on an ethnographic approach to studying everyday activities and is framed in the theory of literacy as a social practice. This Routledge Linguistics Classic includes a new foreword by Deborah Brandt and a new framing chapter, in which David Barton and Mary Hamilton look at the connections between local and global activities, interfaces with institutional literacies, and the growing significance of digital literacies in everyday life. A seminal text, Local Literacies provides an explicit usable methodology for both teachers and researchers, and clear theorising around a set of six propositions. Clearly written and engaging, this is a deeply absorbing study and is essential reading for all those involved in literacy and literacy education.

Local Literacies is a unique detailed study of the role of reading and writing in people's everyday lives. By concentrating on a selection of people in a particular community in Lancaster, England, the authors analyse how they use literacy in their day-to-day lives. It follows four people in detail examining how they use local media, their participation in public life, the role of literacy in family activities and in leisure pursuits. Links are made between everyday learning and education. The study is based on an ethnographic approach to studying everyday activities and is framed in the theory of literacy as a social practice. This Routledge Linguistics Classic includes a new foreword by Deborah Brandt and a new framing chapter, in which David Barton and Mary Hamilton look at the connections between local and global activities, interfaces with institutional literacies, and the growing significance of digital literacies in everyday life. A seminal text, Local Literacies provides an explicit usable methodology for both teachers and researchers, and clear theorising around a set of six propositions. Clearly written and engaging, this is a deeply absorbing study and is essential reading for all those involved in literacy and literacy education.

This book traces the history of working people who helped established the foundation of the American empire in the Pacific from its origins after the American Revolution to its coming of age in the 1840s and 1850s. Beginning with the expeditions of the Columbia and the Lady Washington, Lampe argues that the early American Pacific can best be considered through the interaction of four major locations, connected through the networks of trade: the merchant ship, the Northwest Coast, Honolulu, and Canton (Guangzhou). In each of these locations, the labors of a diverse population of working people was harnessed in the critical labors of empire building, including the transportation of goods. The central question that the consideration of working people in the Pacific economy during this period is, Lampe argues, the role of power applied on these laborers by an international capitalist class, emerging alongside the Pacific commercial empires. Lampe also finds that this power was not uncontested and emerged in response to the activities of labor. Working people, on the ship and in the port cities, found ways to secure their piece of the profitable trade, often through illicit means.

The articles in this collection provide an alternative view of Middle Eastern history by focusing on the oppressed and the excluded, offering a challenge to the usual elite narratives. The collection is unique in its historical depth - ranging from the medieval period to the present - and its geographical reach, including Iran, the Ottoman Empire/Turkey, the Balkans, the Arab Middle East and North Africa. The first to focus on the oppressed and the excluded, and their differing strategies of survival, of negotiation, and of protest and resistance, the book covers: both major social classes and sectors the working class the peasantry the urban poor women marginal groups such as gypsies and slaves Based on perspectives drawn from the work of the great European social historians, and particularly inspired by Antonio Gramsci, the collection seeks to restore a sense of historical agency to subaltern classes in the region, and to uncover 'the politics of the people'.

This book discusses the resilience of communities in both developed and developing world contexts. It investigates the notion of 'resilience' and the challenges faced by local communities around the world to deal with disturbances (natural hazards or human-made) that may threaten their long-term survival. Using global examples, specific emphasis is placed on how learning processes, traditions, policies and politics affect the resilience of communities and what constraints and opportunities exist for communities to raise resilience levels.

This book is intended for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in social structure and political sociology as well as academic sociologists and libraries. It should have significant appeal to researchers and students in European studies and others interested in European integration.

The Bosnian Diaspora: Integration in Transnational Communities provides a comprehensive insight into the situation of the Bosnian Diaspora, including not only experiences in 'western' countries, but also the integration experiences of Bosnian migrants in neighbouring territories, such as Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia. The book presents the latest trans-national comparative studies drawn from the US and Australia as well as countries across Europe, to explore post-crisis interactions among Bosnians and the impact of post-conflict related migration. Examining the common features of the Diaspora, including the responses of migrants to changes within Bosnia and the position of displaced people in both Bosnian society itself and local political discourses, this volume addresses the influence of global anti-Muslim rhetoric on the Bosnian Diaspora's self-identification and refugees' relationships to their home country. The extent to which refugees and returnees can be described as agents of globalization and social change is also considered, whilst addressing the issue of Bosnian integration into various receiving countries and the influence exercised by European reception policies on receiving nations outside Europe. An extensive exploration of a major post-conflict European Diaspora, this book will appeal to those with interests in migration, ethnicity, integration and the displacement effects of Yugoslav conflicts.

"The Blackwell Companion to Social Inequalities" is a first-rate collection of social science scholarship on inequalities, emphasizing race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, age, and nationality.
Highlights themes that represent the scope and range of theoretical orientations, contemporary emphases, and emerging topics in the field of social inequalities.
Gives special attention to debates in the field, developing trends and directions, and interdisciplinary influences in the study of social inequalities.
Includes an editorial introduction and suggestions for further reading.