Volume five of this expanding series of books draws together a collection of papers based on a particular form of critical ethnography developed by Phil Francis Carspecken and his colleagues at the University of Houston. Each chapter is based on a unique field project conducted in the Houston area which was planned and conducted by its particular author, but each chapter shares and exemplifies a common methodological theory. The Houston version of critical ethnography attempts to deal with some challenges from certain feminist and postmodern writers about the validity of qualitative research, and the authors argue that clear methods and standards exist for conducting qualitative studies such that well supported findings may be distinguished from highly questionable ones. Following an initial chapter by Carspecken which outlines the theory and methodology adopted, are seven case studies which cover such topics as multicultural literature, the supervision of teachers in training, school restructuring, charter schools, and race and standardized testing.

This volume seeks to address the emerging relationships between qualitative research and digital data. At the present time, ubiquitous digital data is altering the foci of research, the contexts in which research takes place, and the methods and tools available for qualitative research. Alongside new challenges and opportunities, there are many ways in which established qualitative methods are being used to situate and interpret digital phenomena. This book examines and engages with the ambivalence of digitization, illuminating the diverse ways in which researchers approach, negotiate, understand and interpret objects and practices of digital research. The chapters in this volume are organized around four key themes: researching impacts of digitization on social worlds; researching uses of digital data within social worlds; researching digital visualization of social worlds; researching with digital data and methods. The volume is designed to appeal to qualitative researchers seeking to study processes of digitization, adjust existing methodologies for digital worlds, and develop new ways of examining and using digital research.

This is the 15th volume in a series of studies on research in marketing.

Research, Action, and Change offers an introduction to action research in Catholic schools through the specific lens of community and spirituality and provides eight original action research studies conducted by leaders in Catholic schools. Studies include action research on literacy practices of high school students, differentiated instruction and the introduction of an ELL program in elementary schools, the introduction of an advisory program for at-risk high schools students, accessing federal IDEA funds, and more.

Researched and written by a collaborative team of Americans and Russians, "Marriages in Russia" explores the myths and realities of how the first years of market transformation have affected Russian family life. The research project, in which 2418 individual interviews of randomly sampled heterosexual couples are used, was initiated to determine if the relationships between gender attitudes and the relative social statuses of spouses--based on such factors as education, occupational prestige, and income--influence the marital quality spouses experience. Whether these variables are linked to domestic violence, as data show they are in the United States, is also examined. The results are surprising in that they often contradict general beliefs about Russian gender attitudes and gender attributes, and the analysis of these findings is ultimately a fascinating look at the post-Cold War realities of family life in Russia.

This is volume 15 of a series which aims to provide details of advances in stratification research from various, international, points of view.

This collection explores the contested meanings and diverse practices of social research in the context of contemporary theoretical debates in cultural and social theory, addressing fundamental questions facing those working in the social and human sciences today.

Seymour W. Itzkoff is one of the world's leading intelligence researchers. His exciting new book Our Unfinished Biological Revolution offers a bold and highly original new study on the evolution of human intelligence from the origin of life to our times. With the help of evolutionary theory, Itzkoff explains the nature of human intelligence as we know it today. Most importantly, it demonstrates that evolution led to the rise of what intelligence researchers call the general intelligence factor: the human ability to plan ahead and solve problems for which natural selection did not prepare us. The book also argues that humans vary in intelligence (as with all traits shaped by Darwinian evolution), and hence in their propensity to think abstractly and anticipate long-term consequences of their actions. Our Unfinished Biological Revolution explores the social implications of these two factors as they unfold in modern technological societies, in which intelligence plays an increasingly important role. Finally, the book argues that human intelligence may offer our best hope in solving the daunting problems of the present era?including population growth, the exhaustion of natural resources, and the rise of simplistic and devastating ideologies.

The 'European project' is in a state of perpetual crisis in which the root cause is a lack of identification by ordinary citizens with Europe and European institutions. The Evolution of European Identities employs state of the art analysis of in-depth interviews by renowned practitioners to give a unique 'bottoms up' perspective on the development (or its lack) of a sense of 'European mental space'. Linking conceptual findings with case studies, the book provides unique insights into groups that have been especially sensitized by their life experiences to question what it means to be European in the twenty-first century. The groups explored in this book include: adults who experienced European education exchanges when young; transnational workers; civil society organization activists; persons involved in cross-border intimate relationships; farmers who are subject to European markets, regulations and subsidies; and migrants into 'fortress Europe'.

Hispanic Americans make up the largest ethnic group in the country, and this volume accurately reflects their concerns, interests, and issues. By providing easy access to over 300 statistical charts, graphs, and tables, the book allows novice and professional researchers to easily locate statistics on: demographics, immigration, naturalization, social characteristics, education, health, politics, labor force, and economic conditions. The Statistical Handbook on U.S. Hispanics also includes a glossary of terms and a list of sources to be consulted for more information or additional statistical data. An extensive subject index makes it simple to locate specific tables and charts.

A comparative survey which discusses how national leaders in six Western democracies, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, and the United States, are nominated for the highest office in their country. The combinations of methods each country utilizes to nominate their leaders are described. The text emphasizes that most national leaders have served a long apprenticeship in various public offices--sometimes having made several attempts--before actually being nominated to the nation's highest public office. Increasingly, the text shows that opinion polls, television, and professional campaign management are playing a greater role in the leadership selection process in all six countries. This book will be of interest to upper-level college and graduate students and faculty in comparative government, political parties, and public affairs and academic as well as public libraries.

Dennis McInerney's Publishing Your Psychology Research has bridged a much needed gap in the research process literature, providing a well-oiled treaty from both insider and outsider perspectives as to what it takes to become a credible and published author.Dr. Shawn Van EttenDirector of Institutional ResearchHerkimer County Community CollegeState University of New YorkDo you want to publish your psychology research in the 'best' journals? Whether you are new to the game or a seasoned researcher, Dennis McInerney shows you how to maximise your chances of publication from the very beginning of your research project. Richly illustrated with tips and examples, Publishing Your Psychology Research demystifies the publication process. It explains how to design your research to ensure it has potential for publication, and how to write up your results into an effective article. It outlines what journal editors are looking for, how to select the appropriate journals to approach, and how to react to reviewers' feedback.Publishing Your Psychology Research is an essential handbook for anyone interested in building a reputation as a researcher in their chosen field of psychology. is lead author of the widely used australian textbook, Educational Psychology: Constructing Learning (Pearson), and author of Helping Kids Achieve Their Best (Allen + Unwin). He has published many research papers in major international journals, revieww articles for scholarly journals and is series editor for Research on Sociocultural Influences on Learning and Motivation (Information Age Press).

Presents new models, methods, and techniques and considers important real-world applications in political science, sociology, economics, marketing, and finance Emphasizing interdisciplinary coverage, Bayesian Inference in the Social Sciences builds upon the recent growth in Bayesian methodology and examines an array of topics in model formulation, estimation, and applications. The book presents recent and trending developments in a diverse, yet closely integrated, set of research topics within the social sciences and facilitates the transmission of new ideas and methodology across disciplines while maintaining manageability, coherence, and a clear focus. Bayesian Inference in the Social Sciences features innovative methodology and novel applications in addition to new theoretical developments and modeling approaches, including the formulation and analysis of models with partial observability, sample selection, and incomplete data. Additional areas of inquiry include a Bayesian derivation of empirical likelihood and method of moment estimators, and the analysis of treatment effect models with endogeneity. The book emphasizes practical implementation, reviews and extends estimation algorithms, and examines innovative applications in a multitude of fields. Time series techniques and algorithms are discussed for stochastic volatility, dynamic factor, and time-varying parameter models. Additional features include: * Real-world applications and case studies that highlight asset pricing under fat-tailed distributions, price indifference modeling and market segmentation, analysis of dynamic networks, ethnic minorities and civil war, school choice effects, and business cycles and macroeconomic performance * State-of-the-art computational tools and Markov chain Monte Carlo algorithms with related materials available via the book s supplemental website * Interdisciplinary coverage from well-known international scholars and practitioners Bayesian Inference in the Social Sciences is an ideal reference for researchers in economics, political science, sociology, and business as well as an excellent resource for academic, government, and regulation agencies. The book is also useful for graduate-level courses in applied econometrics, statistics, mathematical modeling and simulation, numerical methods, computational analysis, and the social sciences.

Formulating effective responses to the global challenges of mitigating climate change and securing a sustainable energy future requires a clear understanding of the interdependent causalities between institutions, local decision making, strategic alliances and eco-innovations, as well as policies. It has been acknowledged that the linear "Manhattan project" model is not an adequate governance model for mastering the dynamic complexity of socio-technical transitions; therefore this book aims at advancing research on systematic transition management models. It offers qualitative and quantitative analyses of socio-technical transitions in road transportation and housing, bringing together tailored theorizing on sustainability transitions and applied system dynamics modeling. It highlights the interconnected causal feedbacks that are required to overcome the lock-in situation in road transportation and housing fueled by fossil energies. Showing which concerted actions and framework conditions are required in the transition phases in order to initiate and sustain socio-technical transition, it serves as a guide to model-based strategy making, policy design and analyses in support of sustainable futures.

This guide to information-finding sources and techniques is attuned to the needs of researchers in all the social and behavioral sciences with a particular focus on public administration and related fields. This guide is unique in its analyses of how to design the research process in an evolving manner using approaches that reflect combinations of models, methods, and data sources. This guide is also comprehensive in its coverage of a broad spectrum of the important primary and secondary source materials in all their current forms. Students and researchers in the policy sciences, especially at the graduate level, will find this research and reference guide an essential one.

Simpson's broadly conceived guide covers sources and methods of approach to doing social science research. The book opens with an analysis of information-finding and public administration as a special and disparate series of fields for study. Subsequent chapters discuss research strategies and designs and offer annotative bibliographies evaluating the usefulness of primary and secondary sources, examining guides to the literature, the conventional library catalog, journal literature, indexing and abstracting services, computer searches, separately published bibliographies, public statistics, machine-readable data files, government documents, sources of methodology and research instruments, other sources of information, archives and other primary sources, and annual reviews. This topical and logically developed set of chapters makes the guide easy to use, and a general subject index makes this reference most accessible.

Is the behaviour of a crowd in an emergency situation predictable? Are the different patterns occurring in pedestrian flow based on common rules? How does panic change human reactions? These and other questions have been the scope of the international conference on Pedestrian and Evacuation Dynamics. This book contains elaborate manuscripts written by scientists as well as practitioners from various disciplines: architecture, civil, naval and fire safety engineering, physics, computer science and mathematics. There has been considerable progress over the last decade and the central topic of human motion and behaviour has come more and more into the centre of interest, mainly due to increasing computer power and the development of new simulation models. This is the first conference dealing with modelling and simulation of pedestrian and crowd movement as well as the dynamical aspects of evacuation processes.

For countless generations people of every culture have practiced a broad range of dramatic and sometimes frightening techniques to peer into the future. In this fascinating book acclaimed author Clifford Pickover presents a nearly exhaustive list of fortune-telling techniques, from the ominous practice of human sacrifice to reading clues on the Internet.
Pickover not only explores a vast and colorful array of methods of prediction--including dreaming--he also evaluates the accuracy of some of the most astonishing prophecies made throughout history. Just how accurate were such famous soothsayers as Nostradamus, the Delphic Oracle, Edgar Cayce, the children of Fatima (whose third vision has only recently been revealed), and dozens more?
This book takes us one step further by exploring our own inner psyches: Why does looking into the future provide a source of solace in a world filled with uncertainty, disease, and chance? And why do the most noted prognosticators so often warn of natural catastrophes of biblical proportions, such as earthquakes and floods that will signal the end of the world?
Through insight and wit, Pickover will unlock the door of your imagination with engrossing mysteries, intriguing illustrations, and even modern patents and computer techniques. Also included is a range of practical experiments and recipes--from Stone Age to New Age.
Prepare yourself for a strange but captivating ride

This book is designed to encourage and support in-service and pre-service teachers who want to conduct classroom-based action research about literacy teaching and learning. It can be used by individuals, small groups, or in education courses that include action research projects. The aim of the text is to facilitate active engagement in the process of action research. Comprehensive explanations of various research methods and approaches are not included; the content is pragmatic and provides the novice researcher with a solid, experience-based foundation for developing research knowledge and skills. It is hoped that readers, upon completing this text, will continue learning about and conducting action research, honing their skills and increasing their knowledge. Additional resources for further development are included in the final chapter of the book.

The authors challenge psychological perspectives on happiness and subjective wellbeing. Highlighting the politics of quantitative and qualitative methodologies, case studies across continents explore wellbeing in relation to health, children and youth, migration, economics, religion, family, land mines, national surveys, and indigenous identities.

The book focusses on questions of individual and collective action, the emergence and dynamics of social norms and the feedback between individual behaviour and social phenomena. It discusses traditional modelling approaches to social norms and shows the usefulness of agent-based modelling for the study of these micro-macro interactions. Existing agent-based models of social norms are discussed and it is shown that so far too much priority has been given to parsimonious models and questions of the emergence of norms, with many aspects of social norms, such as norm-change, not being modelled. Juvenile delinquency, group radicalisation and moral decision making are used as case studies for agent-based models of collective action extending existing models by providing an embedding into social networks, social influence via argumentation and a causal action theory of moral decision making. The major contribution of the book is to highlight the multifaceted nature of the dynamics of social norms, consisting not only of emergence, and the importance of embedding of agent-based models into existing theory."

Using an interdisciplinary social-science approach, Temporal Horizons and Strategic Decisions in US-China Relations: Between Instant and Infinite takes on the challenge of understanding the foreign policy decision process through the lens of the temporal horizon. A temporal horizon is the distance into the future a decision-maker prioritizes when evaluating outcomes and considering possibilities. By looking at a number of recent key moments of US-China relations that have immediate, short-term, long term, and far-reaching implications, the book considers which are predominant in the policy process. Looking at the role of time as a factor in the decision-making process is not new to political science, but this book attempts to break down and articulate the process by looking at a range of specific time frames. The book places special attention on future considerations in a variety of ways, combining the insights of psychology, economics, and future studies to consider political science in a new manner.

Presents the case for an exciting new research program in the social sciences based on the theory of recognition developed by Axel Honneth and others in recent years. The theory provides a frame for revealing new insights about conflicts and the potential of recognition theory to guide just resolutions of these conflicts is also explored.

This book focuses on how new pedagogical scenarios, task environments and communication tools within Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) environments can favour collaborative and productive confrontations of ideas, evidence, arguments and explanations, or arguing to learn. The first to assemble the work of internationally renowned scholars, this book will be of interest to researchers in education, psychology, computer science, communication and linguistic studies

The authors consider the nature of explanatory models in the social sciences in order to suggest ways in which conceptual systems differ. They suggest that, in many cases, theorists, researchers and clinicians can utilize insights from rival models in building their own models, without sacrificing the integrity of their own work.