Cognitive Coping Strategies of Newlyweds Adjusting to Marriage

The current study focused on the cognitive strategies newlyweds used to cope with distress due to adjustments during the transition to marriage. Forty-two recently married husbands and wives (21 couples) were interviewed, and a qualitative thematic analysis was used in the investigation. Several themes emerged regarding the types of cognitive coping strategies that have potential to add nuanced understanding of some formerly identified cognitive processes, which may have helped maintain satisfying relationships in the midst of unexpected adjustments. The implications for explaining the paradoxical nature of the transition to marriage and for further research and application toward premarital education are discussed.     

The Role of Sampling in Mixed Methods-Research

The purpose of this article is to emphasize the importance of sampling in all mixed methods research studies. Effective meaning making in mixed methods research studies is very much dependent on the quality of inferences that emerge, which, in turn, is dependent on the quality of the underlying sampling design. Further, these inferences are only of a quality nature if interpretive consistency occurs, which represents the justifiableness of the type of generalization made, given the sampling design. In an earlier work, we identified six sampling-based considerations that all mixed methods researchers should make at the four broad stages (i.?e., research conceptualization, research planning, research implementation, and research dissemination stages) of the mixed methods research process: emtic orientation, probabilistic orientation, abductive orientation, intrinsic versus instrumental orientation, particularistic versus universalistic orientation, and philosophical clarity. Building on this six-element framework, we outline how focusing on sampling considerations at the four stages of the mixed methods research process, which includes the dissemination stage of reporting the mixed methods research findings to stakeholders, enhances significantly the process of meaning making. We believe that addressing these sampling considerations at each of these stages will increase the likelihood that the mixed methods researcher will uphold interpretive consistency during the meaning-making process.     

Exploring migration as part of a same-sex relationship in Scotland: An interpretative phenomenological analysis

Migration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer or questioning (LGBTQ) individuals in a relationship is understudied. As motivation can influence the way migration is experienced, the commitment to a partner adds a further component to the equation. Three females were recruited via purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Three themes were identified: “Identity redefinition and sense of agency”; “Emotional response and social support”; and “Coping, meaning-making, and self-realization.” Results are discussed within the aforementioned themes. Limitations are considered for methodology and sample characteristics. Future research warrants to expand its focus on LGBTQ migration across Europe to tailor migration policies to individuals’ needs.     

Articles reporting research on Latin American social movements are only rarely transparent

ABSTRACT

Social movement scholars often want their research to make a difference beyond the academy. Readers will either read reports directly or they will read reviews that aggregate findings across a number of reports. In either case, readers must find reports to be credible before they will take their findings seriously. While it is not possible to predict the indicators of credibility used by individual, direct readers, formal systems of review do explicate indicators that determine whether a report will be recognized as credible for review. One such indicator, also relevant to pre-publication peer review, is methodological transparency: the extent to which readers are able to detect how research was done and why that made sense. This paper tests published primary research articles on and for social movements in Latin America for compliance with a generous interpretation of methodological transparency. We find that, for the most part, articles are not methodologically transparent. If transparency matters to social movement scholars, the research community may wish to formalize discussions of what aspects of research should be reported and how those reports should be structured.     

Postdivorce Adjustment in Singapore: Factors,Themes, and Positive Growth

Although there is a fairly large literature on postdivorce adjustment in the United States, comparatively little research has been conducted on the topic in Singapore. In addition, the majority of research to date has focused on the negative impacts of divorce and has tended to ignore potential positive growth opportunities that might result from the experience. This study seeks to address this gap in the literature through a thematic analysis of interviews with divorcees in Singapore. Specifically, this study identifies factors contributing to positive postdivorce adjustments within the multicultural, multiethnic, and multireligious context found in Singapore. A review of participant responses identified 15 specific factors related to the potential for experiencing a positive postdivorce adjustment. Further review indicates that these factors can be grouped into 6 themes that could specifically inform counselors and other mental health professionals working in Singapore to assist with the adjustment process.     

Childbearing and Marriage: Investigating the Importance of Context for Meaning-Making of First-Time Marriage

Previous research reveals that the temporal ordering of childbearing and marriage can have an impact on the meaning of first-time marriage. This article aims to obtain a deeper understanding of meaning-making of first-time marriage in relation to childbearing. Narrative interviews with 16 brides and grooms in 8 couples in Sweden were conducted. The material was analyzed in relation to the temporal ordering of childbearing and marriage. The study reveals that the construction of meaning of marriage does not only relate to the temporal context. Social factors such as social class or family formation might also be relevant for how meaning is constructed. This article contributes to a deeper understanding of meaning-making as a relational process constructed within particular contexts.     

Role of the Black Grandmother in the Racial Socialization of their Biracial Grandchildren

The current study was conducted with seven Black grandmothers who have a biracial (Black and White) grandchild or grandchildren examining their role in the racial socialization process of their grandchild or grandchildren. Racial socialization is defined as how these grandchildren of biracial parentage came to understand their blackness. The following criteria had to be met; born before 1975 as this would ensure the grandmothers experienced the 70s. Black pride movement and they need to have contact with the identified grandchild. Qualitative methods with a phenomenological lens were used. The results revealed the perspective and methods they exercised in racially socializing their biracial grandchildren fell into eight themes. The themes that emerged were community influence, spirituality, social adjustment, feelings toward “the other,” social perception, cultural indoctrination, grandma’s burden, and the road ahead. Although each grandmother had a different journey and the “why” behind viewpoints varied, their conclusion regarding the proper racial socialization of their biracial grandchildren was to socialize them, as Black was unanimous.     

Putting "Space" on the Agenda of Sociocultural Research

The global rescaling of the world, culture, and education has influenced how people experience their situationality, meaning-making, and learning in relation to the Other. This article explores the implications of spatial analysis for rethinking education in new conditions of cultural complexity. The experience of living and learning with difference is conceptualized as an open journey in which the very act of movement across spatial boundaries unlocks the fixity of meanings and identities and, hence, problematizes the spatial logic of bounded learning places. Explicating the tension between fixity and mobility, boundedness and flows, this article deploys the concepts of cultural-semiotic space, scale, and boundary to theorize locations of learning and meaning-making in new times.     

A Qualitative Exploration of Self-Regulation Behaviors Among Older Drivers

While much of the research on aging and driving has focused on sensory and motor changes, little is known about older drivers and the actual self-regulation adjustments they employ to continue driving safely. This research looks at how older drivers have made changes to driving patterns and behaviors that have allowed them to continue to drive without compromising their perceived safety, independence, and quality of life. Nine focus groups were held with older men and women aged 58 to 89 years. Some of the major themes that emerged were the following: older adults are very aware of age-related changes to driving; they perceive that self-regulation behaviors change with age; and they view transportation alternatives as limited or nonexistent. Policy implications include developing functional transit programs for older adults and car manufacturer training workshops to educate older adults on the safety features of newly purchased automobiles.     

Reflecting on Grantee Evaluation Accountability to Funders: Exploring Power Dynamics with Grassroots Organizations in Communities of Color

Grassroots organizations in communities of color often struggle in their relationships with philanthropic partners, especially as it relates to the issue of accountability. This article focuses on exploring the nature of accountability within the social contract between the philanthropic sector and these grassroots organizations. Drawing on a review of the relevant literature and results of 11 structured interviews with leaders from the philanthropic sector and grassroots organizations in communities of color, key themes are identified. Recommendations are offered on how the hierarchy within the sector can be addressed and how the dialogue between these partners can be improved.     

Constructing the Self in Early, Middle, and Late Adolescent Boys: Narrative Identity, Individuation, and Well-Being

The present study examined aspects of identity development in a sample of adolescent boys from two approaches: individuation and narrative. To extend the more recent research on narrative identity development, we also examined relations between narrative identity, well-being, and age. Narrative meaning making was predicted by themes of individuation in the narratives, specifically the interaction of autonomy and connectedness. Well-being was predicted by different aspects of meaning depending on the kind of meaning and the stage of adolescence. Finally, results showed an age-related increase in meaning-making processes, particularly meaning related to perceiving the self as changing. Results are discussed in terms of the processes of narrative identity development for adolescent boys.     

Supporting the transition of disabled students from university to practice placement

A modified action research project was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of a pre-placement procedure in facilitating eight disabled physiotherapy students’ transitions from university to practice. Feedback was gathered from the students, practice educators, visiting and academic tutors via questionnaire. Thematic analysis identified four main themes: ‘Procedure’; ‘Student in Control’; ‘Communication’; and ‘Disclosure’. The procedure was generally effective in supporting these students. Recommendations were made for: the need for ownership of the procedure from all stakeholders; the development of more effective communication systems; and the need for appropriate disability awareness training for all academic and practice-based staff.     

The United States Economic Crisis: Young Adults’ Reports of Economic Pressures, Financial and Religious Coping and Psychological Well-Being

Using a sample of 222 young adults attending college, the present study examined the relative contribution of young adults’ perceived economic pressures, financial coping and religious meaning-making coping strategies in accounting for variation in their reports of psychological well-being within the context of the United States economic crisis. Results suggest a direct relationship between perceived economic pressure and psychological well-being such that young adults who reported having to make more economic adjustments as a result of economic crisis also reported higher levels of depressed mood and anxiety. Young men and women who reported having to make fewer economic adjustments and being able to meet their material needs reported higher levels of life satisfaction. Regardless of young adults’ self-reported level of economic pressures, the use of education and communication financial coping strategies was related to lower levels of self-reported anxiety and depressed mood and greater life satisfaction. Viewing the financial crisis as a punishment from God was generally associated with young adults’ reports of greater depressed mood and less life satisfaction. Implication of findings for research and practice are discussed.     

Reframing the whistleblower in research: Truth‐tellers as whistleblowers in changing cultural contexts

Whistleblowing is fraught with conceptual dilemmas, including those who may be considered whistleblowers and fundamental concepts associated with the term. Whistleblowing is a dynamic concept, set within and deeply related to culture, yet scholarship has focused primarily on whistleblowing and its ramifications within management and organizational settings, as opposed to engaging with the wrong‐doing disclosed and conceptualizing how we assign meaning to whistleblowers/ing in changing landscapes of societal values and cultural institutions. To grasp the cultural sociological understanding of what constitutes whistleblowing, these themes and how they are shaped need to be drawn out in scholarship. Thus, the purpose of this review is to determine through which disciplines, lenses and discourse whistleblowing has been developed in academia and to identify gaps in disciplines and methods, highlighting how these affect our broader understanding of whistleblowing. This review article offers preliminary insight into how people engage in meaning‐making connected with terms such as whistleblowing, abuse and corruption through the lens of the #MeToo movement. The article encourages further research in disciplines such as sociology, political theory, human rights, socio‐legal studies and particularly, within cultural sociology.     

Negation,Refusal and Co‐Optation: The Frankfurt School and Social Movement Theory

This article outlines how the critical theory of the Frankfurt School has influenced some key debates within social movement studies. The impact of Jürgen Habermas's sociology is widely acknowledged, especially with regards to our understanding of ‘new social movements’. There have however also been several lesser‐known attempts to bring the concerns of Theodor W. Adorno's negative dialectics and Herbert Marcuse's critique of one‐dimensional society to bear onto social movement research. For this reason it makes sense to outline the relevance of the ‘first generation’ members of the Frankfurt School – something that is often missing from the most authoritative overviews and textbooks on social movement theory. Presenting a body of literature that often appears as fragmented or only on the periphery of social movement theory in this way reveals a number of common themes, such as negation, refusal and co‐optation. To this end, the article provides a comprehensive theoretical overview of the multiple ways of how critical theory has made sense of social movements and argues that its concerns can be brought into a rewarding dialogue with contemporary social movement studies.     

Middle‐Class Parents and Urban Public Schools: Current Research and Future Directions

Middle‐class flight from urban public schools to suburban districts or private schools is a key source of educational inequality. Recently, however, a number of studies have focused on middle‐class and upper‐middle‐class families who have made a different choice, opting to remain in the city and send their children to neighborhood public schools. While the movement of advantaged families into urban public schools has received positive attention in the media, this growing body of research tells a more complicated story. Middle‐class families – with their economic, cultural, and social capital – can bring important resources to schools, resulting in widespread benefits. However, their engagement in urban public schools can also lead to marginalization and exclusion. We review the emergent literature on this topic, highlighting four themes: (i) parent preferences, identities, and values; (ii) the role of marketing campaigns and informal networks in attracting the middle class; (iii) the nature and consequences of middle‐class parent engagement in urban schooling; and (iv) the relationship between neighborhood change and school change. We conclude by outlining a research agenda aimed at deepening our understanding of the mechanisms by which middle‐class parent engagement in urban schooling may serve to mitigate, reproduce, or exacerbate educational inequalities.     

Sexual Intimacy Constructions of Heterosexual Couples Living in a Low-Income, “Colored,” Farmworker Community in South Africa

This study has been motivated by the scarcity of research that adopts an unproblematic focus on sexuality in South African Black and Colored low-income communities. We explored the sexual intimacy constructions of 15 Colored married/cohabiting couples who live in a low-income, historical South African farmworker community. Using a social constructionist thematic analysis method, we identified four themes: (a) metaphoric and indirect sexual language; (b) the use of a romantic discourse to talk about sexual experiences; (c) male-centered sexual relationships; and (d) lack of privacy brings both restriction and pleasure. We consider how these themes may be linked to the participants’ community context and colonial and apartheid history. Finally, we emphasize the need for research that also explores positive sex functions and experiences rather than focuses narrowly on problematic sexual behavior.     

Strategies of Stigma Resistance Among Canadian Gay-Identified Sex Workers

Abstract

The purpose of the current study was to explore how sex workers (specifically, gay-identified Canadian men working primarily, though not exclusively, as independent escorts) combat the pervasive negativity that surrounds their profession. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 9 men, a majority of whom were targeted through escort review boards. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed for themes of “stigma resistance.” Four themes were identified: (1) escorting is volitional (i.e., one isn't forced to work as an escort, rather it is a choice one makes); (2) escorting is a profession (i.e., the client is a customer and the escort a service provider); (3) the escort is in control during client/escort interchanges; and (4) escorting is distinct from, and better than, street prostitution. Directions for future research and limitations of the current study are outlined.     

Contemporary Research on Social Movements and Protest in Latin America: Promoting Democracy, Resisting Neoliberalism, and Many Themes in between

This essay outlines how research on Latin American social movements has evolved since the late 1980s. Emphasis is given to two topics. First, the essay examines how Latin American social movement research has historically been oriented toward social movement theories that emerged out of the study of European movements and, to a lesser extent, movements in the United States. At the same time, it discusses how the unique historical and contextual factors of Latin American societies have repeatedly been found to defy adequate explanation by these theories. Second, the essay outlines five major themes that characterize the Latin American social movement literature: the dynamics of movements in relation to transitions to democracy, and to neo-liberal economic reforms, as well as transnational movement dynamics, indigenous movements, and women's movements.