Understanding Contemporary Challenges to INGO Legitimacy: Integrating Top-Down and Bottom-Up Perspectives

In recent years, INGO legitimacy has been subject to growing scrutiny from analysts and practitioners alike. Critics have highlighted a backlash against INGOs in the Global South, a growing mismatch between INGO capacities and contemporary global challenges, and diminishing support for norms such as democracy and human rights that underpin INGOs’ work. Although these problems have attracted significant attention within the academic literature, this article argues that existing explorations of INGO legitimacy have broadly conformed either to a top-down approach focused on global norms and institutions or a bottom-up approach focused on the local dynamics surrounding states and populations in the Global South. We suggest that this divide is unhelpful for understanding the current predicament and propose a new approach, which pays closer attention to the interaction between bottom-up and top-down dimensions, and to historical context. This new approach can provide important insights into current debates about the future roles and internal structures of INGOs.     

The march for gender equality of Algerian women: The struggle for spatial and historical recognition

Social and political anti-government movements have been major headlines across the globe in recent years, with a noticeable participation of women. In the MENA region, such movements spanned Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, and Lebanon among others. Through an ethnographic inquiry into the Algerian pro-democracy movement Hirak (2019–2021), we delve into women's experiences of the Hirak to show how women remain marginalized politically, economically, and socially despite their heavy and praised participation. Using a recognition theory lens, we unveil dialectics of unity and division in the struggle for recognition among women in Algeria, a post-colonial context charged with conflicting ideological stances. We detect two structural dimensions of the struggle, a spatial/physical dimension and a historical/temporal dimension that help surface different gender positionalities and their dynamics as they vie for recognition. We stress the importance of not homogenizing women's political struggles, especially in the Global South.     

Practices and Policies for Doctoral Education and Leadership

ABSTRACT

This study explored bachelor’s-level social work students’ readiness to practice with individuals with intellectual disability (ID) and their attitudes toward individuals with ID. Fifty-eight students completed a Web-based survey that assessed their knowledge of four etiological conditions and their willingness to maintain social contact with individuals with various etiological conditions. Students also participated in focus groups that further explored their understanding of ID and readiness to practice in the ID field. The survey results indicated scientific understanding of causes and effective interventions as well as openness to interact with individuals with ID. Thematic analyses of focus group interviews highlighted four themes underlying students’ readiness to practice in the ID field. Discussion includes implications of findings for social work education.     

Business and human rights governance and democratic legitimacy: the UN “Protect,Respect and Remedy” Framework and the Guiding Principles

Global Corporate Social Responsibility schemes have assumed an authoritative role in today's diversifying global business and human rights governance regime, yet scholarship has paid scant attention to their democratic credentials. This article analyzes the democratic legitimacy of the UN “Protect, Respect and Remedy” Framework and the corresponding Guiding Principles, as developed by the former UN Special Representative for Business and Human Rights, Professor Ruggie. Applying De Búrca's democracy striving approach, the article provides insights into how the design and actual performance of the six year mandate of the Special Representative meet the democratic ideal of equality, participation and accountability. The findings hold that, to guarantee the continuant striving for the fullest and equal participation of all stakeholders, further steps are warranted to ensure that individuals from the Global South can equally and meaningfully partake in the implementation process of the Guiding Principles and contest their authority if deeming them to fail to meet the normative expectations of the people.     

Risk and Recruitment: Patterns of Social Movement Mobilization in a Government Town

Abstract

Based on document analysis and in-depth interviews with 80 respondents, this paper examines the importance of risks associated with activism in shaping recruitment and participation patterns in a government town. Residents have a history of involvement in civil rights activism, peace activities, and environmental organizing outside their community. However, citizens have not mobilized around local environmental problems despite a 50-year legacy of contamination from nuclear weapons production. I examine two organizing efforts in the community and analyze how residents' perceptions of risk associated with activism contributed to the relative success and failure of each. I argue that risk is an important variable that is critical to our understanding of social movement recruitment and participation patterns.     

Choosing to Stay: (Im)Mobility Decisions Amongst Mongolia’s Ethnic Kazakhs

One of the defining characteristics of globalization is the increased flow of migrants across international borders. Fluctuating migration flows in rural communities of the Global South have the potential to significantly contribute to or undermine the livelihoods of local residents. Households that choose not to migrate, that remain immobile, play a key role in sustaining rural communities. Migration studies in the Global South, however, have largely neglected these households. Utilizing questionnaire and life history interview data collected between 2006 and 2009, we examine immobility amongst the Kazakh ethnic minority population in rural Mongolia. Our findings challenge the dichotomous portrayal of immobile households as either ‘left behind’ or ‘embedded’ within their community, providing evidence that immobility decisions are both fluid and flexible and require more interrogation from scholars. Our findings help broaden the social and cultural context in which immobility studies are conducted and the characterization of immobility amongst non-migrant populations. More broadly, this study contributes to our understanding of the implications to livelihood sustainability in rural communities.     

South Koreans’ perceptions of North Koreans and implications for public relations campaigns

Analyzing data from a telephone survey of South Korean respondents, we explored public campaign strategies for relationship building between South and North Koreas. We examined three important questions essential for the relationship building: What are the typical images of the North that South Koreans find in the media? How do South Koreans perceive North Koreans? Do such perceptions guide their intention to integrate with North Koreans? Our findings may provide important insights in developing communication agenda and message strategies, particularly for policy makers and public communication practitioners, whose efforts aim to build a favorable relationship between the South and the North.     

GPs' and health visitors' participation in child protection case conferences

This study was conducted in two related but separate phases. Phase one compared the frequency and type of participation by general practitioners and health visitors in child protection case conferences. Two hundred consecutive case conferences involving 83 general practitioners from 33 practices were independently reviewed and scored to assess the level of general practitioner and health visitor participation, whether by written report and/or by attendance. Health visitors showed a far higher level of participation in case conferences than general practitioners and their attendance was more often rated essential by the social worker than that of the general practitioner. There was no evidence in those cases where social workers rated the general practitioner's attendance as essential that this resulted in increased general practitioner participation. General practitioners were equally unlikely to participate in initial, first review and subsequent review case conferences. Most importantly, general practitioner participation/non-participation was not related to length of notice given. In phase two, 76 general practitioners from the sample of 83 were interviewed in order to elicit factors underlying their decision on participation in child protection case conferences. Personal and practice characteristics and attitudes towards the case conference and towards social workers were examined and subsequently analysed. No significant associations were discovered apart from a link between previous training in child protection and a less negative attitude towards communication with social workers and the belief that the general practitioner's participation in the case conference helps him/her in the subsequent management of the case. Personal contact between local social workers and the primary health care team was seen as likely to be helpful in the establishment of a climate of trust which would facilitate the flow of sensitive information in both directions. Health visitors were often regarded by general practitioners as fulfilling the role of delegate to the case conference without having any formal remit to carry out this task.     

Cooperatives and Community Development: A Perspective on the Use of Cooperatives in Development

Community developers have long understood the importance of local participation in the events and processes that shape communities. Effective, democratic, and people-and-place-centered development strategies have the potential to achieve such participation. This article suggests that cooperatives can be an effective participatory strategy to bootstrap low-income people into the socio-economic mainstream. Woolcock and Narayan's (2000) social capital and poverty transition model is adapted to demonstrate the development potential of cooperative businesses. We hope to stimulate discussion among community development scholars and practitioners, policymakers, and the public on the potential of cooperative business as a community development strategy, particularly in resource limited communities.     

Social capital and business giving to charity following a natural disaster: An empirical assessment

This study examines the participation of local businesses in disaster relief efforts in their own communities. We utilize a unique survey of 463 businesses in Pitt County, North Carolina, collected shortly after devastating flooding caused by Hurricane Floyd. Our results indicate that managerial social capital especially through religious participation is positively related to provision of assistance to employees as well as making cash contributions and the value of cash donations. Manager ties to civic organizations positively predict in-kind donations including temporarily loaning vehicles and equipment to relief efforts. Local branches of national chains were less likely than locally owned franchises to provide assistance to employees and less likely than independent local businesses to provide in-kind contributions. We do not find evidence that business charitable giving is affected by the number of years the business operated in the community or the number of years the owner or manager has lived in the area.     

Democracy as a transitional compass: women’s participation in South Africa and Kerala,India

ABSTRACT

In this article I explore the attempts by the states in South Africa and Kerala to create spaces for public participation by specifically focusing on women’s involvement in local spaces. Democracy is a crucial part of any emancipatory future that seeks to challenge and overcome inequality. I show that both states have ‘invited’ participation by women in various ways, but that the transformative potential of this participation is limited by national political economy, bureaucratization, and the lack of political will. In South Africa, the invited spaces eventually transformed into avenues for delivery and in response the women in this study shifted to inventing ways to engage in development in their personal lives. By using a double comparison – South Africa over time and South Africa compared to India – I argue that transformative politics requires a combination of invented and invited spaces.     

Directions in a Post-aid World? South–South Development Cooperation and CSOs in Latin America

The architecture of international aid to developing and emerging economies is undergoing significant change. Post-aid world conditions will reshape relationships between international aid actors including donors, civil society organizations (CSOs), governments, and other institutions. These trends draw attention to South–South Development Cooperation (SSDC) as a promising direction in regions like Latin America. CSOs’ participation in SSDC might challenge and divert the dependency and power asymmetries in traditional North–South aid. As potential adaptive strategy for CSOs, SSDC diversifies the actors involved in aid and the resources exchanged, and produces different development discourses. The article outlines SSDC as an alternative development model and specifically considers the participation of CSOs. It provides a case of CSOs’ participation in SSDC in the region of Latin America. As research on CSOs in SSDC is limited, the article contributes to its further understanding and provides further avenues of research.     

Returns from the South: Effects of return migration of Ghanaian migrants from China on livelihoods and wealth inequalities in Ghana

The sedentary bias that characterizes discourses on migrations from and within the Global South has failed to inform a consistent exploration of international migration from and among global southern countries as normal, desirable and impactful to migrants and their social networks at different spatial levels. Migration-development nexus analyses are predominantly framed around Global South-Global North migration episodes whereby cash and social remittances from the North to the South are expected to trigger development in poorer global southern origin countries. This approach neglects the possibility of similar outcomes accruing from south-south migrations. Drawing on qualitative research methods among Ghanaian migrants to China, our paper addresses the question how does south-south migration affect livelihoods and wealth inequality? We argue that blunt global categorizations such as “Global South” and “Global North” only serve to obfuscate what is a rather heterogenous bunch of countries, with divergent opportunities for migrants. We recommend that greater focus should be on the contextual factors at the origin and destination, the quality of return preparedness and the human capital of the migrants rather than an arbitrary clustering around a binary Global South-Global North trajectory as though they are internally homogenous. We conclude that there is heterogeneity in the effects of south-south migration on household livelihoods and wealth inequalities.     

When what you have is not enough—Acquiring Australian qualifications to overcome non-recognition of overseas skills

Skilled migration is an important strategy in developed economies seeking to address skills shortages and population ageing. Research on the labour market outcomes of skilled migrants tends to focus on employers' devaluation of skills without considering the role of immigration policy in the migration process. Moreover, there is little understanding of whether efforts to meet employer demands for local qualifications improve labour market outcomes. Drawing on a study on skilled migrants sponsored under the State-Specific and Regional Migration Scheme in the regional state of South Australia, we explore the shaping of skills and skills recognition in the migration journey, particularly migrants' strategy of reskilling in response to employer demands for local qualifications. Our logistic regressions on the association between the acquisition of Australian qualifications and labour market outcomes reveal only marginal returns to these efforts. We argue that Australia should consider developing a more coherent skilled migration process to better harness the human capital of skilled migrants.     

Organizational change: The role of climate and job satisfaction in child welfare workers' perception of readiness for change

BackgroundWhen organizations embark on deliberate efforts to increase effectiveness through organizational-level changes, those that demonstrate greater readiness for change tend to have better outcomes. In contrast, when the organization is not ready, a change effort may result in resistance, conflict and, eventually, failure. However, studies addressing how agency climate and job satisfaction influence workers' perception of the organization's readiness for change in child welfare or human service organizations are scarce.MethodsData for this study was obtained from a sample of 356 direct care and clinical child welfare workers employed at eight not-for-profit child welfare agencies under contract to provide a variety of services in a large northeastern state. Workers were surveyed on their agency's readiness for change, organizational climate, and job satisfaction. The Spector Job Satisfaction Survey measured nine subscales and Parker Organizational Climate survey measured four primary domains: role, job, supervision, and organizational dimensions. A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted on nine questions derived from the Organizational Readiness for Change survey that measured workers' perceptions of organizational readiness for change. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was utilized to determine climate and satisfaction influences on voluntary child welfare workers' readiness for change.ResultsThe results of SEM confirmed that the exogenous independent indicators of role ambiguity, supervisor goal emphasis, organizational innovation, satisfaction with communication, and the number of years in current position were predictive of workers' perception of readiness for change with significant positive coefficients.ImplicationsThis study highlights the importance of certain organizational climate and job satisfaction factors that child welfare workers' identify for the success of agency change efforts. Workers perceive that organizations may have a higher level of readiness to implement successful change initiatives when: (1) workers feel their role is clear, supervisors articulate change goals, and job performance is held to a high standard and is measurable; (2) agency leaders establish organizational communication that is explicate, and they encourage workers to develop ideas and try new ways of doing the job; and (3) the greater the number of years workers are in their current position, the more likely change initiatives are perceived to be successful. Most importantly, this study suggests that not all organizational climate or job satisfaction factors are recognized by workers as supporting change equally.     

Local and transnational care relations: relatedness and family practice among au pairs in Denmark

An increasing number of young women from the Global South have become au pairs in the Global North since the turn of the millennium. Through ethnographic analysis of three cases of au pairing in Denmark, involving Filipina and Caribbean women, this article discusses the nature of the local as well as transnational family relations in which these women are embedded as au pairs, and the opportunities and restraints that they present. We use anthropological theory to conceptualize family and kinship in terms of notions and practices of relatedness. This offers a useful framework for elucidating the different moral and contractual obligations and expectations associated with these varying family relations, the power asymmetries with which they are linked, and the agency that the au pairs display as they seek to position themselves in the most favourable way in relation to the multi‐directional ties in which they are involved.     

How to keep Rosie the riveter from contracting VD: A case study of how U.S. social reformers used public relations during World War II

Much of public relations historiography on World War II focuses on the government uses of the function. This study fills a gap in the literature by exploring how a non-governmental organization called the American Social Hygiene Association (ASHA) used persuasion communication efforts to enlist the aid of management, labor, and local communities in the United States in the control of venereal disease (VD) rates. The case study advances a more diverse understanding of how activists have utilized public relations and found that the social reformers’ use of persuasive communications strategies and activities aligned with the view of public relations as the strategic and intentional participation in the social construction of meaning to achieve a planned outcome.     

The professionalism debate in South African public relations

Professionalism is a contentious topic in journals serving a wide range of disciplines, both internationally and in South Africa. However, there is seldom concrete empirical research into professionalism—which limits the usefulness of this debate. In response, the present study empirically investigates the perceptions of South African public relations (PR) practitioners regarding professionalism. The questionnaire-based survey shows that the professionalism problem for PR practitioners in South Africa is twofold. Firstly, the South African PR governing body has not taken ownership of the issues regarding professionalism amongst its members. Secondly, practitioners themselves are making little effort to professionalize their activities. Both parties agree on the importance of professionalization, but claim that the onus is on the other party to promote it. This situation is untenable: professionalization should be actively encouraged so as to maximize the impact of the PR profession in South Africa.     

Ethical tensions of migrants in the informal economy in the Global South

Considering the ongoing, record-setting migration in the Global South, this paper explores the values, principles and ethical tensions of Venezuelan migrants in the informal economy of Colombia. We found that migrants frequently prefer to stay within the informal economy as a way of preserving their identities, values and principles, rather than adopting those of their new country. This choice sets up ethical tensions for the migrants and their host countries. Our analysis challenges the current policy goals of transitioning migrants from informal to formal economies as a mark of success and inclusion. Instead, we attempt to recognize the migrant voice and their agency capacity through our research using focus groups and applied thematic analysis (ATA) of popular music and narratives. Our findings broaden the understanding of why migrants choose to stay in the informal economy and challenge policy goals that focus on inclusion and integration of migrants into formal economy.     

The Jazziness of Local Food Practice Work: Organization‐Level Ingenuity and the Entrepreneurial Formation and Evolution of Local Food Systems

Local food systems (LFSs) are complex and diverse social structures. The processes that influence the formation and evolution of LFSs are obscure, relatively uncoordinated, and somewhat mysterious. This study develops a stronger understanding of such processes through a qualitative exploration of the influence of routine practice work at the organization level on the entrepreneurial development of two distinct LFSs in the Southwest region of the United States: southeastern Arizona and Albuquerque?Santa Fe. We gathered data between August 2014 and September 2017 through semistructured interviews with and direct observations of 53 local food practitioners operating in one of the two LFSs. Theoretical principles of institutional entrepreneurship, embedded agency, and practice work guided the study. The findings reveal three forms of ingenuity (technological, organizational, policy) that regularly emerge through the day‐to‐day organization‐level work of local food practitioners. We argue that the system‐level influence of these forms, whether intentional or not, are indicators of the embedded agency of the practitioners and their capacities to serve as institutional entrepreneurs. We discuss implications for both practice and future research.