Children's Engagement as Urban Researchers and Consultants in Aotearoa/New Zealand: Can it Increase Children's Effective Participation in Urban Planning?

Children conducting research and engaging in ‘adult’ domains such as urban planning challenge perceptions of children as merely ‘adult becomings’ — perceptions which, along with lack of pathways for participation, have largely excluded children from effective participation in the public realm. This paper considers two urban participatory projects in Aotearoa/New Zealand: in the first, children (10–13 years) researched peer perceptions of Auckland city life; in the second, they were consulted by Auckland Council on the redevelopment of a city square. We reflect on processes and outcomes, and the extent to which facilitating such projects may increase children's meaningful participation in urban planning.     

Redoing Gender: How Women in the Funeral Industry Use Essentialism for Equality

Although some research considers women's participation in traditionally male‐dominated jobs as an ‘undoing’ of the gender system, other scholars argue that women's participation in non‐traditional roles can actually maintain hegemonic masculinity. Because women have recently entered the funeral industry in unprecedented numbers, the profession offers a unique context to study how women negotiate a sense of belonging in male‐dominated fields. I draw on 22 interviews with women in the funeral industry to reveal how gender is done and undone in an occupational context. In what Hughey ( 2010 . Social Problems, 57, 653–679) refers to as a ‘paradox of participation’, I argue that women in the funeral industry redefine the image of the ideal funeral director by using gender essentialist logic, which originally acted as a barrier to their entry to the field, to justify their participation. By showing how gender essentialism and egalitarianism can constitute reinforcing logics instead of an opposing binary, this research contributes to the literature concerning women in non‐traditional roles.     

Motivations and Differential Participation in a Community Currency System: The Dynamics Within a Local Social Movement Organization1

Community currency is an understudied, alternative social movement. These local networks are grassroots, collective efforts to form an alternative market with the hopes of empowering the economically marginalized and building social capital. Original data collected from members of a local currency system are employed to investigate their motivations to join and the congruence between motivating factors and various forms of participation. Four categories of motivations are identified and multivariate models are estimated to assess which are the most salient predictors of differential participation. The results provide some support for the congruence hypothesis. As Knoke (1988) predicted, member motivations play a role in shaping forms of participation. This evidence is used to draw larger implications for social movement research.     

Place Brands,Nonbrands, Tags and Queries: The Networks of Urban Activism in the Creative City Istanbul

This article aims for a deeper understanding of an emerging urban-political culture that interweaves digital platforms and urban spaces, institutions and the extra-institutional. It explores political possibilities and limitations of urban activism in the context of ‘creative city’ oriented policy-making in Istanbul, Turkey. My approach highlights the production of agency/disempowerment and solidarity/isolation through socio-technical networks that assemble multifarious issues of concern and care. Activist strategies in Istanbul engaged the productive tension between (1) biopolitical apparatuses introduced with ‘creative city’ governance that extract value from the creative production and cultural participation of citizens and (2) the disregard or devaluation of citizen bodies in socially exclusive processes of urban transformation. The struggle over the impoverished Romani neighbourhood Sulukule, which faced demolition, introduced a mode of urban activism consisting in the appropriation of organizational techniques and regimes of value and visibility of Istanbul's ‘creative city’ governance apparatuses. Repurposing place branding for a technique of networked self-organization and claiming brand value for the deprived neighbourhood, activist practices transfigured the place brand into the anti-brand and nonbrand as well as into tags, queries and addresses operating in digital space. This article analyses Sulukule's struggle – and its connections and disconnections to other struggles – to explore activism's potential to challenge stratifications and inequalities between people and places engendered by ‘creative city’ projects, which themselves are often implicated in exclusive urban transformation processes.     

Gender and social conformity: Do men and women respond differently to social pressure to vote?

In this paper, we re-analyze data from a large-scale field experiment (N = 344,084) on voter turnout in order to determine whether men and women respond differently to social pressure aimed at voter mobilization. To date, there have been mixed results regarding the interaction between a person’s gender and receptivity to social influence. On the whole, our analyses confirm prior findings that social pressure increases voter turnout but uncover little to no evidence of gender differences in receptivity to social pressure cues in the context of political participation.     

Participant engagement in environmentally focused social network research

Environmentally focused social network analysis (Env. SNA) has increasingly benefited from engagement, which refers to the process of incorporating the individuals, organizations, actors, stakeholders or other study participants into the research process. Research about engagement in the wider field of environmental management shows that successful engagement often requires significant planning and exchange among researchers and stakeholders. While there is no one size fits all approach, several important guiding principles have been established. To date, this engagement literature has not focused specifically on SNA, even though several examples of engaged SNA exist in the literature and point to some specific challenges to engagement when working with relational data. Drawing upon data from a survey of researchers who have incorporated engagement into Env. SNA, we focus specifically on the goals, scope, effectiveness, benefits and challenges of doing engaged Env. SNA research. We additionally highlight four case studies and demonstrate that researchers and participants find engagement to be a valuable experience with benefits in the researchers’ understanding of the context and meaning of their findings. Finally, we provide recommendations to scholars looking to embark on engaged Env. SNA research.     

Peace and Conflict Resolution Organizations in Three Protracted Conflicts: Structures,Resources and Ideology

Guided by organizational and social movement theories, this study compares the structures, resource bases, ideologies, and strategies of nongovernmental organizations engaged in peace and conflict resolution (P/CROs) in three regions with extended violent conflicts: Northern Ireland, South Africa, and Israel/Palestine. Qualitative content analysis techniques are used to analyze 27 detailed case reports. We analyze the funding patterns and structural attributes of the P/CROs in our sample, with particular attention to how they obtain fiscal resources and membership in spite of the risks they may experience. We then explore the degree of formalization among P/CROs over time and, finally, we examine the ideological frames that P/CROs use and how these frames relate to their tactics. Throughout the analysis we pay attention to how the political context of each region influences P/CRO behavior.     

He Said,She Said: Comparing Mother and Father Reports of Father Involvement

This study compares mother and father reports of fathers’ involvement, including frequency of involvement and emotional involvement, with their child and examines demographic and social factors that predict the discrepancy in father and mother reports. Using matched pairs of parents (n = 2,058) from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing data, this study finds that father and mother reports of fathers’ involvement differ significantly. For example, fathers report spending 17.6% more time engaged in 11 activities with their young children than mothers report. How parental disagreement is measured yields starkly different results given the underlying distribution of these data. The paper also provides insight into what data issues should concern researchers studying fathers’ involvement and contributes to the growing literature on fathers’ involvement.     

Beneficiaries’ participation in development organizations through local partners: A case study in Southern Africa

In a case study of one European non‐governmental organization (NGO) (data obtained from 10 staff members in Europe and Southern Africa, and 19 representatives of local partner organizations) we investigate whether the involvement of the partners in local and ‘northern’ policy‐making affects their perception of the governance quality of their organizations and that of the European donor organization, as well as the perception of the NGO's staff members. The answer is positive as to the local organizations, but local partners (as representatives of the eventual beneficiaries) are hardly involved in decision‐making at donor level. Finally, the presence of specific participation mechanisms seems to be more affected by beneficiary country factors than by activity‐related influences.     

Sustainability Processes among Naturally Occurring Retirement Community Supportive Service Programs

ABSTRACT

Sustainability remains a concern for community models to better support older adults’ aging in place in their own homes and communities. Based on qualitative data from leaders of 53 Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) Supportive Service Programs, which is among the most prominent community practice models in aging, we aimed to develop an empirically-grounded framework on sustainability processes. Results indicated that programs use funding, staff members, interorganizational partnerships, and volunteers to offer services to attract older adults, and that older adults’ participation, in turn, is perceived as influencing the accrual of additional resources. Across themes, respondents discussed the importance of being responsive to the community and facilitating consumer participation.     

How Does High School Extracurricular Participation Predict Bachelor’s Degree Attainment? It is Complicated

This study answered novel questions about the connection between high school extracurricular dosage (number of activities and participation duration) and the attainment of a bachelor’s degree. Using data from the Common Application and the National Student Clearinghouse (N = 311,308), we found that greater extracurricular participation positively predicted bachelor’s degree attainment. However, among students who ultimately earned a bachelor’s degree, participating in more than a moderate number of high school activities (3 or 4) predicted decreasing odds of earning a bachelor’s degree on time (within 4 years). This effect intensified as participation duration increased, such that students who participated in the greatest number of high school activities for the most years were the most likely to delay college graduation.     

Australian young people's participatory practices and internet use

This paper examines the relationship between Internet use and political participation among Australian young people. Based on original survey data it demonstrates that there clearly exists a 'digital divide' amongst 18-34-year-old Australians, which is delineated on demographic characteristics of geography, education level, income level and occupational classification. While the Internet has far from replaced the traditional information sources of television and newspapers, it does, however, facilitate participation undertaken by already politically engaged young people. The Internet has fundamental importance in facilitating information sharing and organizing for young people involved in activist and community groups. The paper also provides case studies of two non-government, youth-oriented organizations with participatory Internet sites (Vibewire Youth Services and Inspire Foundation) to further explore the potential of Internet enhancement of young people's autonomous political spaces. One site provides Internet-only, youth-specific mental health services and has developed a portal for active community-based participation. It has won commendations for encouraging youth ownership of service provision and providing space for youth participation. The other site provides discussion and journalism for and by young people on a range of cultural, social and political issues. This site also engages in mainstream political issues through 'electiontracker', which provided four young people with the opportunity to join the mainstream media in following and reporting on the 2004 Australian federal election campaign. The focus in this paper on heterogenous acts of participation is able to expand our understanding of the democratizing potential of young people's Internet-based political practices.     

Social Networks and Sustained Activism in Local NIMBY Campaigns

This paper compares six NIMBY (not-in-my-backyard) movement organizations to explain why some of these social movement organizations expanded their goals while others did not. Analysis of interview and survey (N = 113) data reveals that friendship networks within the movement foster goal expansion (in part because people want to preserve the context for these friendships). External local political networks promoting their own rhetorical and resource agendas will inhibit goal expansion if they establish trusted links to the NIMBY organizations.     

Interactive effects of work psychosocial factors on participation in workplace wellness programs

This study explored concurrent effects of six work psychosocial factors on current participation and the self-reported likelihood of future participation in workplace wellness programs using a cross-sectional survey, an ad hoc focus group, and structured interviews. Classification and regression tree analysis was used to analyze survey responses from 343 employees (194 nonparticipants, 95 participants, and 54 engaged participants). A thematic analysis of focus group (n?=?7) and interview (n?=?5) narratives was also undertaken. In combination with high work control, high superior support was associated with an engaged participant profile. Job demand was the third important variable with low and very high levels associated with participation. With regard to high likelihood of future participation, among respondents with age older than 50, high predictability of occupational activities and control were identified as a significant factor, and among others, high superior support and control. The analysis of narratives revealed peer relations and flexible working hours to be positively linked to participation and general job stress was identified as having a bidirectional relationship. Employees stated that stress led them to take advantage of these programs as a source of relief and that their availability/participation has contributed to lowering their stress. These findings inform practitioners about the importance of addressing poor psychosocial factors as a participation barrier and having a holistic approach to employee well-being.     

Surrendering the environment for capital gain and Olson’s group theory: A case study of the dissolution of housing co-operative societies in Hong Kong

This paper describes the rise of the co-operative housing of civil servants and its fall during the transition of Hong Kong from a British colony to a special administrative region of the People’s Republic of China. Olson’s group theory was adopted to explain the timing of the dissolution in a context of uncertainty in the property rights of land; the terms of civil service appointments; and the housing market. The size of the ownership body and the value of the land were evaluated as factors affecting dissolution decisions. It was found that in agreement with Olson’s theory, the number of members of the body had a statistically significant positive relationship with the life (between formation and dissolution) of the co-operative body. In addition, it was also found that factors that affected the opportunity cost of maintaining status quo, including the value of the land on which the co-op scheme sits and the real option value of redevelopment, had a significant impact on the timing of the dissolution of the co-op. The implications for using Olson’s theory were also discussed.     

Femininity is not inferiority: women-led civil society organizations and “countering violent extremism” in Nigeria

The United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, and the Millennium Development Goals, brought the inclusion of women in the security agenda into the international limelight. Although these global frameworks, and other international resolutions, underscore the importance of women’s participation in the politics of peace and security, Nigeria’s frameworks have not been inclusive. Extant literature has examined the role of women within the context of mainstream responsibilities for “counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency” that are held by the military and paramilitary forces. This study interrogates the role of women-led civil society organizations in “countering violent extremism” activities in Nigeria. Using a mixed-methods approach, it demonstrates that the participation of women-led civil society organizations in “countering violent extremism” activities has generated certain positive results for achieving women’s inclusion and gender equality in politics and society.     

Sex and Sexuality in the Shadow of Death: Reflections on the First Two Seasons of Six Feet Under

In this short article, arising out of the context of the author’s participation in an audience research study of spectatorial uses of the moving image, depictions of sex and sexuality in HBO’s Six Feet Under are explored, with particular reference to the way in which the show’s seeming awareness of unconscious processes is deployed in order to make the characters more whole.