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Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Social theory
This innovative book provides a critical analysis of diverse experiences of Co-creation in neighbourhood settings across the Global North and Global South. A unique collection of international researchers, artists and activists explore how creative, arts-based methods of community engagement can help tackle marginalisation and stigmatisation, whilst empowering communities to effect positive change towards more socially just cities. Focusing on community collaboration, arts practice, and knowledge sharing, this book proposes various methods of Co-Creation for community engagement and assesses the effectiveness of different practices in highlighting, challenging, and reversing issues that most affect urban cohesion in contemporary cities.
This book brings together a collection of emergent research that moves the debate on desistance beyond a general consideration of individual and social structural influences. The authors examine empirical developments which have implications for policy surrounding resettlement and re-offending, but also for punishment practices. Presenting thought-provoking theoretical advances and critiques, the editors challenge and enrich traditional understandings of desistance. A wide range of chapters explore how some criminal justice interventions hinder the desistance process, but also how alternative approaches may be more helpful in promoting and supporting desistance. Thorough and diverse, this book will be of great interest to scholars of criminology and criminal justice, social policy, sociology and psychology, and of special interest to researchers and practitioners working with (ex-)offenders.
This volume explores contemporary social conflict, focusing on a sort of violence that rarely receives coverage in the evening news. This violence occurs when powerful institutions seek to manipulate the thoughts of marginalized people-manufacturing their feelings and fostering a sense of inferiority-for the purpose of disciplinary control. Many American institutions strategically orchestrate this psychic violence through tactics of systemic humiliation. This book reveals how certain counter-measures, based in a commitment to human dignity and respect for every person's inherent moral worth, can combat this violence. Rothbart and other contributors showcase various examples of this tug-of-war in the US, including the politics of race and class in the 2016 presidential campaign, the dehumanizing treatment of people with mental disabilities, and destructive parenting styles that foster cycles of humiliation and emotional pain.
In Sociology of Waiting, Paul Christopher Price investigates how people wait and analyzes what individuals do while waiting. It is a key feature within U.S. and other societies; waiting is universal. Sociologically, waiting gets at order and our ability or inability to pause. Crowds cannot rush into concert venues and supermarket clerks cannot check-out customers simultaneously. So, we must wait! In all our waiting, we've developed strategies and structures for "delays," and such methods and structures provide order as well as understanding: we recognize why we wait. The sociology of waiting is a classic piece of everyday sociology, a timeless piece of routine behavior. Waiting is as natural as breathing, eating and drinking; indeed, mothers wait nine months before infants are brought to term, and summer will always follow spring. Waiting provides its' own lessons. That is, watching cars weave through traffic and receive citations by police, we learn that waiting may have saved time and money. Shining the light on waiting permits a far superior understanding of order and how our society organizes itself around taking turns. Waiting is a matter that takes-up much of our valuable time and resources-consequently, reducing wait-time has become big business.
Using "risk" as a conceptual lens, this book analyzes how communities across East Asia responded to the disruption unleashed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The contributors to this book look at how governments, societies, and individuals have perceived, experienced, dealt with and interpreted the pandemic and the transformations it has brought across countries like Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, and the Philippines. They examine pressing concerns such as infodemic, digital health literacy, media cynicism, telework, and digital inequalities in conjunction with issues such as public trust, identity formation, nationalism, and social fragmentation. They look at a wide range of questions relating to communication, mediation, and reactions to the challenges of the pandemic. An insightful resource for scholars of risk studies and of East Asian societies, the book is also a valuable reference for students and researchers of media and communication studies and sociology.
This book explores two public sector scandals in the UK, drawing on Max Weber's thought on 'the iron cage' to understand how these cases of patient-neglect in NHS hospitals and failures by police and social workers to address the organised sexual exploitation of young girls occurred. Through examination of the management failures and institutional vulnerabilities, and with attention to the trends of bureaucratisation and rationalisation that characterised both scandals, it reveals the explanatory power of Weber's thought, developing a theoretical model that updates and extends Weber's work in light of the cases discussed. The final chapter examines the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and highlights how the focus on a rational techno-medical solution to the pandemic offered by the vaccines together with bureaucratic expansion has created an authoritarian and totalitarian society which represents the ultimate realisation of Weber's iron cage. Showing that ordinary people, including professionals, are still trapped in the 'iron cage', it will appeal to scholars of sociology and social theory, as well as those providing training and working within the caring and service professions of policing, social work and nursing.
This book applies the general theory of critical rationalism in order to develop a new sociology of the open society, in general, and a new analysis of the transition from a closed society to an open society in particular. It presents a criticism of Karl Popper's analysis of human action for opening up a closed society, followed by a critical study of the mainstream sociology to show how justificational models of knowledge and rational action have prevented sociology from addressing the contribution of human action to social change. This book provides new sociologies of closed and open societies. It argues that in the closed society "a low level" of critical rationality is activated by people to define the meaning of the good life and social institutions of law, polity and economy. Masoud Mohammadi Alamuti proposes five mechanisms of opening up closed society through the model of social change, inspired by the philosophy of critical rationalism. This volume is "the first systematic attempt" to apply the philosophy of critical rationalism in order to present a "normative sociology of the open society". It will be of interest to postgraduate researchers and professional readers in philosophy, sociology, moral science, law, politics and economics. In addition, this book would benefit research centres, policymakers and civil society activists interested in the ideas of critical rationalism and the open society.
This book presents Durkheim as an important political sociologist, inspired by and advocating socialism. Through a series of studies, it argues that Durkheim's normative vision, which can be called libertarian socialism, shaped his sociological critique and search for alternatives. With attention to the value of this political sociology as a means of understanding our contemporary world, the author asks us to look again at Durkheim. While Durkheim's legacy has often emphasised the supposed conservative elements and stability advocated in his thought, we can point to a different legacy, one of a radical sociology. In dialogue with the decolonial critique, this volume also asks 'was Durkheim white?' and in doing so shows how, as a Jew, he experienced significant racialisation in his lifetime. A new reading and a vital image of a 'political Durkheim', The Political Durkheim will appeal to scholars and students with interests in Durkheim, social theory and political sociology.
Does charitable giving still matter but need to change? Philanthropy, the use of private assets for public good, has been much criticised in recent years. Do elite philanthropists wield too much power? Is big-money philanthropy unaccountable and therefore anti-democratic? And what about so-called "tainted donations" and "dark money" funding pseudo-philanthropic political projects? The COVID-19 pandemic has amplified many of these criticisms, leading some to conclude that philanthropy needs to be fundamentally reshaped if it is to play a positive role in our future. Rhodri Davies, drawing on his deep knowledge of the past and present landscape of philanthropy, explains why it's important to ask what philanthropy is for because it has for centuries played a major role in shaping our world. Considering the alternatives, including charity, justice, taxation, the state, democracy and the market, he examines the pressing questions that philanthropy must tackle if it is to be equal to the challenges of the 21st century.
Most contemporary analyses of violence focus on economic, social, and political inequalities as well as on a general malaise. In contrast, Gotz claims that violence arises, in part, from a loss of respect for others concomitant with a decline of manners and courtesy. Manners are expressions of respect. Eliminate manners and respect vanishes with them. The connection between the decline of manners and the increase of violence is documented by reference to a variety of social instances and trends. A special weight is placed upon the failure of schools to instill respect and courtesy in their charges. The schools' failure can be redeemed through a concerted effort to instill manners. A major part of the book, therefore, is devoted to the justification of schooling as an important factor in the re-awakening of respect for others. A provocative analysis for scholars and researchers involved with contemporary social and educational problems.
By analyzing the cases present in this volume, the editors develop important steps towards a theory of social change that can adequately address the complex realities and intersectionality of identity (race, gender, class, sexuality, nationality) within and among these new movements.
This book explores a variety of interconnected themes central to contemporary Marxist theory and its further development as a critical social theory. Championing the critique of political economy as a critical theory of society and rejecting Marxian economics as a contradiction in terms, it argues instead that economic categories are perverted social categories, before identifying the sheer unrest of life - the struggle to make ends meet - as the negative content of the reified system of economic objectivity. With class struggle recognised as the negative category of the cold society of capitalist wealth, which sees in humanity a living resource for economic progress, the author contends that the critique of class society finds its rational solution in the society of human purposes, that is, the classless society of communist individuals. A theoretically sophisticated engagement with Marxist thought, A Critical Theory of Economic Compulsion will appeal to scholars of social and political theory with interests in critical theory and post-capitalist imaginaries.
This book analyses the waves of protests, from spontaneous uprisings to well-organized forms of collective action, which have shaken European cities over the last decade. It shows how analysing these protests in connection with the structural context of neoliberal urbanism and its crises is more productive than standard explanations. Processes of neoliberalisation have caused deeply segregated urban landscapes defined by deepening social inequality, rising unemployment, racism, securitization of urban spaces and welfare state withdrawal, particularly from poor peripheral areas, where tensions between marginalized youth and police often manifest in public spaces. Challenging a conventional distinction made in research on protest, the book integrates a structural analysis of processes of large scale urban transformation with analyses of the relationship between 'riots' and social movement action in nine countries: France, Greece, England, Germany, Spain, Poland, Denmark, Sweden and Turkey.
This book outlines the history and developments of interactionist social thought through a consideration of its key figures. Arranged chronologically, each chapter illustrates the impact that individual sociologists working within an interactionism framework have had on interactionism as perspective and on the discipline of sociology as such. It presents analyses of interactionist theorists from Georg Simmel through to Herbert Bulmer and Erving Goffman and onto the more recent contributions of Arlie R. Hochschild and Gary Alan Fine. Through an engagement with the latest scholarship this work shows that in a discipline often focused on macrosocial developments and large-scale structures, the interactionist perspective which privileges the study of human interaction has continued relevance. The broad scope of this book will make it an invaluable resource for scholars and students of sociology, social theory, cultural studies, media studies, social psychology, criminology and anthropology.
In an age of extreme political polarization and waning of reasoned debate across political divides, Capitalism for Realists carefully explores the inner workings of capitalism in a consciously non-partisan and balanced way. Does the modern capitalist economy alleviate poverty and exploitation, or exacerbate them? What, exactly, is 'neoliberalism,' and how well or poorly has it performed in the past 40 years? Does capitalism undermine democracy, or is it rather one of its key necessary conditions? How have altruism, cooperation, tolerance, violence, and trust fared under the influence of the modern market society? Should we analyse capitalism through the mainstream economic lens or a more critical Marxist perspective? This book offers answers to these questions. Synthesizing decades of research across disciplines, Capitalism for Realists offers an overarching perspective on the modern economy by theoretically unifying many of the claims and conclusions about it offered by various traditionally rivalrous social science paradigms, such as institutional, neoclassical, and public choice economics on the one hand, and Marxist sociology on the other. The book presents and critically assesses the latest data and debates on such crucial contemporary issues as the relationship between poverty, exploitation, inequality, and capitalism, the nature of 'neoliberalism' and the successes and failures of both state-led industrial policy and the Washington consensus, capitalist peace theory, historical origins of modern capitalism, and more. What emerges is a clear picture of the merits and demerits of the modern economy too nuanced to be simplified and categorized by the prevailing political discourses. Rich in empirical detail, this lively, accessible book will appeal to undergraduate and graduate students with interests in sociological theory, political theory, economics, and political and economic sociology.
--Riveting accounts of difficult expeditions-some historically famous-offer a unique window onto polar ventures. --Exemplifies historical and social science methods for student readers. --Draws valuable findings that apply to many forms of modern disasters and challenges.
--A timely analysis of how to make democracies more administratively effective--and true to the intentions of democracy --The lead author is a distinguished political philosopher --Valuable assigned reading for advanced courses on social theory, political theory, public administration, democracy, political sociology, and more
--A timely analysis of how to make democracies more administratively effective--and true to the intentions of democracy --The lead author is a distinguished political philosopher --Valuable assigned reading for advanced courses on social theory, political theory, public administration, democracy, political sociology, and more
This book explores why animals, at some point, disappeared from the realm and scope of sociology. The role of sociology in the construction of a science of the 'human' has been substantial, building representations of the human sphere of life as unique. Within the sociological tradition however, animals have often been invisible, even non-existent. Through in-depth comparisons of the texts of prominent early sociologists Emile Durkheim and Edward Westermarck, Tuomivaara shows that despite this exclusion, representations of animals and human-animal relations were far more varied in early works than in the later sociological cannon. Addressing a significant gap in the interdisciplinary field of animal studies, Tuomivaara presents a close reading of the historical treatment of animals in the works of Durkheim and Westermarck to determine how the human-animal boundary was established in sociological theory. The diverse forms in which animals and 'the animal' appear in the works of early classical sociology are charted and explored, alongside the sociological themes that bring animals into these texts. Situated in contemporary theory, from critical animal studies to posthumanism, this important book lays the groundwork for a disciplinary shift away from this sharp human-animal dualism.
This book explores how public organizations and not-for-profit organizations (NPO) can be more collaborative, innovative and effective in solving social issues in both developing and developed countries. "Social innovation," led by social entrepreneurs and/or social enterprises, emerged in the late 1990s, and spread in 2000s. As the West faced management failures, demand increased for corporations to take on more social responsibility. Based on intensive research on social innovation processes at the municipal and the community level in Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and Japan, the book analyses the factors that affected the most effective and efficient social innovations.
This book explores the ways in which memories of Stalin-era repression and displacement manifest across times and places through diverse forms of materialization. The chapters of the book explore the concrete mobilities of life stories, letters, memoirs, literature, objects, and bodies reflecting Soviet repression and violence across borders of geographical locations, historical periods, and affective landscapes. These spatial, temporal, and psychological shifts are explored further as processes of textual circulation and mediation. By offering novel multi-sited and multi-media analyses of the creative, political, societal, cultural, and intimate implications of remembrance, the collection contributes fresh interdisciplinary perspectives to both the field of memory studies and the study of Soviet repression. The case studies in this collection focus on the personal, autobiographical, and intimate representations, experiences, and practices related to the remembrance of Stalinist repression and displacement as they are mediated through memoirs, fiction, interviews, and versatile commemorative practices. Taken together, the book asks: what happens to memories, life stories, testimonies, and experiences when they travel in time and space and between media and are (re)interpreted and (re)formulated through these transfers? What kinds of memorial forms are gained through processes of mediation? What types of spaces for remembering, telling, and feeling are created, negotiated, and contested through these shifts? What are the boundaries and intersections of intimate, familial, community, national, and transnational memories? By analytically contextualizing the various case studies within broader memory discourses in a range of geographical and political contexts, the book offers rich and multilayered interpretations of the enduring ramifications of communist repression. The collection demonstrates that these multiply moving memories not only reflect Eastern European memory culture but reach far beyond and have transnational and transgenerational significance. As such, this timely book will be essential reading for anyone with an interest in the former Soviet Union or memory studies more broadly.
This book dissects the complex social, cultural and political factors which led the UK to take its decision to leave the EU and examines the far-reaching consequences of that decision. Developing the conceptual framework of securitization, Ryder innovatively uses primary sources and a focus on rhetoric to examine the ways that political elites engineered a politics of fear, insecurity and Brexit nationalism before and after the Brexit vote. He situates Brexit within a wider shift in international political ideas, traces the resurgence in popularity of far-right politics and explores how Britain and Europe now face a choice between further neoliberal reform or radical democratic and social renewal.
This edited collection highlights the diversity and reach of global leisure studies and global leisure theory. It explores the impact of globalization on leisure, and the sites of resistance and accommodation found in local, virtual and global leisure spaces. Unlike any other collection on leisure studies, Global Leisure and the Struggle for a Better World is truly representative of the diversity of the large and growing leisure scholarship across the globe. It demonstrates how researchers in leisure studies and sociology of leisure are applying complex theory to their work, and how a new theory of global leisure is emerging.
1. Unlike more conventional texts, this book offers over 50 pithy and thought-provoking essays on a wide range of socially and legally prohibited acts, offering students a critical analysis of these issues. 2. Each entry offers further readings and suggestions for other media to develop the reader's understanding of these issues. 3. The new edition has been updated and extended and includes new entries on issues such as the alt-right, protest, online abuse, cybercrime, drug trafficking, populism and use of weapons.
This book investigates the sociohistorical making of place and people in Copenhagen from around 1900 to the present day. Drawing inspiration from Pierre Bourdieu's sociology of social space and symbolic power, and from Loic Wacquant's hypothesis of advanced marginality and territorial stigmatisation, the book explores the genesis and development of the notorious neighbourhood of Copenhagen North West. As an extraordinary place, the North West provides an illustrative case of Danish welfare and urban history that questions the epitome on inclusive Copenhagen. Through detailed empirical analysis, the book spotlights three angles and entanglements of the social history of this area of Copenhagen: the production of socio-spatial constructions and authoritative categorisations of the neighbourhood, especially by the state and the media; the local social pedagogical interventions and symbolic boundary drawings by welfare agencies in the neighbourhood; and the residents' subjective experiences of place, social divisions and (dis)honour. In this way, The Making of Place and People in the Danish Metropolis analyses how social, symbolical, and spatial structures dynamically intertwine and contribute to the fashioning of divisions of inequality and marginality in the city over the course of some 125 years. It will appeal to scholars of sociology, urban studies, and urban history, with interests in social welfare. |
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