Small organization mergers in arts and humanities

This chapter discusses a case study of the merger between two relatively small organizations: a local nonprofit arts council and a public county‐level humanities commission. As this case deviates from other merger analyses that tend to focus on larger health and social service agencies, the chapter examines how well key findings of the nonprofit merger literature apply to mergers of organizations of smaller size and in other fields. Generally, we find that the merger literature so far provides sufficient guidance for nonprofit managers in fields such as the arts, where merger pressures have only now begun to mount.     

Digital publishing: tools and products

Summary Electronic publications are not accessible without technical aids and need constant, time consuming attention; a look back at the data media and data formats utilized in the past 25 years illustrates this. Recently, an increasing number of conferences and studies address the problem. Use of standard data formats, media and platform independence of data, as well as data centering instead of process centering are requirements for long-term availability. For the humanities, texts are not only the sources of information but also objects of scholarly investigation. Therefore publication in a presentation format only is not sufficient. In addition to more sophisticated tools for analysis, search and navigation, a form of publication is required which does not focus on layout but gives easy access to the content and structure of the published document. Both for the creation and the scholarly evaluation of such documents, tools are required which offer additional functions compared to those provided by commercial publication and access tools. The necessary flexibility is guaranteed by the provision of basic functions of text data processing which do not anticipate or preclude any particular questions. This is illustrated by examples for the evaluation and preparation of digital texts.

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Zusammenfassung Elektronische Publikationen sind nicht ohne technische Hilfsmittel zug?nglich und bedürfen st?ndiger aufw?ndiger Pflege; ein Rückblick auf in den letzten 25 Jahren verbreitete Datentr?ger und Datenformate veranschaulicht dies. In jüngster Zeit ist das Problem vermehrt Gegenstand von Kongressen und Studien. Verwendung von Standard-Datenformaten, Medienneutralit?t und Plattformunabh?ngigkeit der Daten sowie Daten-Zentrierung statt Prozess-Zentrierung sind Voraussetzungen für l?ngerfristige Verfügbarkeit. Für die Geisteswissenschaften sind Texte nicht nur Informationsquellen, sondern selbst Gegenstand wissenschaftlicher Untersuchungen. Deshalb reicht die Publikation in einem Pr?sentationsformat nicht aus. Neben ausgefeilteren Erschlie?ungs-, Such- und Navigationsinstrumenten wird eine Form der Publikation gefordert, bei der nicht das Layout in Vordergrund steht, sondern auch Inhalt und Struktur der publizierten Dokumente zug?nglich sind. Sowohl für die Erstellung als auch für die wissenschaftliche Auswertung solcher Dokumente werden Werkzeuge ben?tigt, deren Funktionsumfang über den kommerzieller Publikations- und Zugriffswerkzeuge hinausgeht. Die notwendige Flexibilit?t wird durch die Bereitstellung von Grundfunktionen der Textdatenverarbeitung gew?hrleistet, die keine bestimmte Fragestellung vorwegnimmt oder ausschlie?t. Dies wird an zwei Beispielen zur Auswertung und zur Vorbereitung elektronisch verfügbarer Texte aufgezeigt.

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Résumé Les publications électroniques ne sont pas accessibles sans auxiliaires techniques et nécessitent un entretien minutieux et constant ; un regard sur les supports et formats de données des 25 dernières années en témoigne. Plus récemment, le problème est l’objet de congrès et d’études. L’utilisation de formats de données standard, la neutralité des médias et des données indépendantes de plates-formes, de même que le centrage sur les données au lieu du centrage sur les processus sont les conditions d’une disponibilité à long terme. Pour les sciences humaines, les textes ne sont pas seulement source d’information, mais font eux-mêmes l’objet d’études scientifiques. C’est pourquoi leur publication dans un seul format de présentation ne suffit pas. Outre les instruments d’étude, de recherche et de navigation, il est nécessaire de disposer d’une forme de publication qui ne mette pas la présentation au premier plan, mais qui donne également accès au contenu et à la structure des documents publiés. Tant l’élaboration que l’analyse scientifique de tels documents requièrent des outils dont l’étendue excède ce que proposent les outils de publication et d’accès commerciaux. La flexibilité indispensable doit être garantie par la présence de fonctions de base dans le traitement de texte qui n’impliquent ni n’excluent aucun questionnement donné. Ceci est démontré par deux exemples d’analyse et de préparation de textes disponibles sous forme électronique.

     

Heteronomy in the arts field: state funding and British arts organizations

For Bourdieu, the field of cultural production is comprised of an autonomous and a heteronomous sector. A heteronomous sector is one that is interpenetrated by the commercial field. I discuss an arena that, until recently, was part of the relatively autonomous sector in the field of cultural production – the supported arts sector in the United Kingdom – and argue that it became more heteronomous, due to the penetration by the state. Heteronomy due to the commercial field is present but secondary to, and driven by, the actions of the state. Political parties’ attempts to diffuse and legitimate a particular economic ideology have led to state demands that arts institutions adopt neoliberal business practices in exchange for funding. Government giving to the arts, previously at arm's length, proved to be a Faustian bargain that demanded significant repayment in the form of lost autonomy. Coercive pressures from the state, enacted over time, show how the domination of one field over another can occur, even when the domination is resisted.     

Digital crime,trauma, and abuse: Internet safety and cyber risks for adolescents and emerging adults in the 21st century

ABSTRACT

The shift in the technology landscape has altered the technology ecosystem of adolescents and emerging adults in the 21^st century. Yet, with greater use of digital gadgets comes greater mental health risks that technological advancement brings. This study provides a narrative review of contemporary cyber risks faced by adolescents and emerging adults. In particular, this review will cover dangers and effects of cyber-bullying, social media, cyber-dating violence, sextortion, sexting, revenge porn, online dating, catfishing, and scammers, with an emphasis to raise awareness and encourage proactive efforts dedicated to address these social concerns as the digital era continues to evolve.     

Cause-related marketing,philanthropy, and the arts

Joint fundraising and promotional programs between businesses and nonprofits, often referred to as cause-related marketing, have been on the rise. During the 1980s, many large corporations initiated cause-related marketing programs. Less is known, however, about how widespread cause-related marketing has become among medium-size companies. In the study of 478 medium-size businesses reported here, one-fifth made contributions to nonprofits as part of cause-related marketing programs, and more were becoming interested, but many of the businesses were dissatisfied with the effect of their contributions to nonprofits. Satisfied business participants actively recommended nonprofits to other business owners and intended to increase their own contributions. The authors provide additional insights on business donor motivation through their application of the Seven Faces framework.     

Choices and life chances: feminism and the politics of generational change

The perception that young women are disengaged from feminist politics has provoked a great deal of tension between feminist generations. Recent feminist research into generational change has largely avoided this tension by focusing on the shifting meanings of feminism and the discrepancy between young women's reluctance to identify as “feminists” and their general acceptance of feminist attitudes toward gender issues. Nevertheless, in an era when gender equity goals seem to be if not slipping backwards then lacking urgency, young women are less likely to identify with a collective feminist politics than are older women. Underpinned by the findings of a major study of the attitudes toward work, family, and retirement of three generations of Australian women, this paper develops an approach that helps explain this reluctance. Drawing on the work of Karl Mannheim, the paper suggests that the cultural currents shaping the consciousness of different generations of women impact significantly on gender identity. The implications of this cultural shift are considered in the context of feminist politics and the contemporary “culture wars.”     

Subalterns ‘speak’: migrant bodies,and the performativity of the arts

ABSTRACT

The contemporary globalizing world has unleashed new flows of migrant labour, among which are young women working in homes. As is well known, many find themselves in a situation of virtual slavery, having no juridical protections against both physical and emotional abuse, and against being held in servitude against their wills. While the situation of migrant domestic workers is increasingly well known, there has been little analysis of how their precarious lives look from their points of view and the complex set of affects and relations that make their lives meaningful. The following investigation treats the way their precarity can become political critique. It focuses on a critical locus of enunciation supplied by the conditions of migrant female domestic workers as it is articulated not in ethnographic work that solicits their actual voices, but through a focus on literary and cinematic texts in which the female protagonists compare domestic servitude to colonialism (in the case of Ousmane Sembene’s film Black Girl) and to war crimes (in the case of Zadie Smith’s story, The embassy of Cambodia). Mediated with some thoughts from Gayatri Spivak’s Can the subaltern speak and Mahasweta Devi’s short story The breast-giver, we also reflect on the ethical significance of aesthetic interruptions through other genres as illustrated by our reading of images from Ramiro Gomez’s Happy Hills painting and cardboard cutting series. In effect, the artistic texts we analyse raise an important ethico-political question regarding the effect of capitalist modernization on ethical life while provoking us to recognize the ethical weight of proximate and distant others.     

Prospective ergonomics: origin, goal, and prospects

So far ergonomics has been concerned with two categories of activities: correction and design. We propose to add a third category: prospection, and by so doing, we introduce a new series of activities that opens up the future of ergonomics. Corrective ergonomics relates to the past and comes with a demand and a client. It is turned towards the correction of existing situations and aims to reduce or eliminate problems. Here, after delimiting and defining the problem, the challenge is to find the best solution. Ergonomics for design relates to the present and also comes with a demand and a client. It is turned towards the design of new artefacts that have already been identified by a client, and that will allow users to do some activity and attain their goals. Here, after defining the scope of the project and the functional requirements, the challenge is to do the best design. Finally, prospective ergonomics relates to the future and does not come with a demand and a client. It is turned towards the creation of future things that have not been identified yet. Here the challenge is to detect existing user needs or anticipate future ones, and imagine solutions. These three categories of activities overlap and are not exclusive of each other. In this paper we define prospective ergonomics and compare it with corrective ergonomics and ergonomics for design. We describe its origin, goal, and prospects, we analyze its impacts on education and practice, and we emphasize the need of new collaboration between ergonomics and other disciplines.     

Skill deficiencies: Problems,policies, and prospects

What evidence points to a shortage of skills, a condition that keeps the U.S. economy off its “optimum” path? First, the literacy of job seekers, as surveyed by the Educational Testing Service, is inconsistent with acceptable alternative growth paths as projected inWorkforce 2000. Second, data on specific jobs show skill requirements increasing. Third, employers are paying more for higher education and workers with less education are being paid less. Integrating school and work, by applying the findings of the Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS), is a way to lessen the shortage, an opportunity likely to be favored by the new administration.     

Classical theory,postmodernism, and the sociology liberal arts curriculum

This article presents classical theory as a modernist endeavor to apprehend the phenomenon of “unity of disunity.” It presents the three ways that classical theory comes to grips with the problem of wholes and parts: the holism of Durkheim, the dialectical materialism of Marx, and the pluralism of Weber. It argues that postmodernism liquidates, rather than solves, the unity of disunity problem by treating “wholes” as mere appearances. The article contends that postmodernism needs to be taken more seriously than it has been by sociologists but that, ultimately, the challenge presented by postmodernism validates the relevancy of classical theory. The article concludes that the postmodernist influence has diminished sociology’s relevance to real-world problems and, as a result, made the discipline less relevant for undergraduates. It calls for a revitalized sociology of sociology with the capacity to think through the trap formed by neoconservatism on the one side and the micro politics of postmodernism on the other.     

Rural empowerment through the arts: The role of the arts in civic and social participation in the Mid West region of Western Australia

To combat social and economic inequity in rural Australia, governments, communities, and policy makers are seeking ways to empower local residents to find local solutions to local problems. Through an exploratory review of the literature and semi-structured interviews conducted in the Mid West of Western Australia, this research examined the role of the arts as a vehicle for increased social and civic participation to build resilience to inequity. For those interviewed, the arts were observed to strengthen sense of place and community identity. The arts were utilised as a means for encouraging and enabling civic participation, as well as providing opportunities for social interaction and networking, which are essential for the health and wellbeing of rural and remote residents. While providing a context for civic and social participation, the arts were viewed by several of those interviewed as a means for facilitating understanding between divisive and disparate groups. Yet, it was noted that the execution and drive for arts activities and events was dependent on the availability of human capital, but also on support from governance and funding authorities to build capacity to sustain these activities. If, as suggested by this exploratory review, the arts are a vehicle for building resilience in rural Australia, then further research is needed to support these claims to enable continued and future support for not just the arts, but the capacity of communities to engage in the arts.     

Images for change: community development, community arts and photography

This article explores how community development objectives canbe achieved through critical photographic practice. It summarizesthe literature relating to community arts practice and its potentialfor social regeneration. Photography is then located withinthis context and explored as a critical practice, with particularattention being given to photo-elicitation, photo-novella andphotovoice methods. The literature is discussed and analysedto explore how far critical photographic practice can meet theobjectives of community development.     

Labour migration in the Arab Gulf states: patterns,trends and prospects

This paper presents an analysis of recent changes in the scale and characteristics of non-national migration to, and employment in, the 6 Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states. In 1985, the size of the workforce in the Gulf States was 7.1 million. Non-nationals comprised 68% (in Saudi Arabia) to almost 91% (in United Arab Emirates) of the workforce. 63% of the non-nationals were from Asia. Non-national Arab workers represented 30% of the total. In 1985, 36% of all migrant workers came from India and Pakistan. Almost 30% of the non-nationals were employed in services (financial, personal, and community), and almost 29% were in construction. Non-nationals dominate 3 sectors: construction, manufacturing, and utilities. Non-nationals account for a relatively low 55% of the oil sector. The phenomenal rate of growth in non-national workforces during the mid 1970s began to slow in the 1980s. Labor permit issues peaked in the late 1970s and again in 1983-84. The timing and scale of the decline varies by sending country and by destination, reflecting variations in the rate and extent of the economic slowdown in different GCC states, as well as relative wage rates, occupational composition, and organization of the various labor flows. For example, Indian case worker placements fell by 49% between 1983 and 1986, while the number of Filipinos placed fell by 15%. During the 1980s, most Gulf states have increased efforts to enforce labor and residence regulations, but the number of illegal workers has continued to grow. During the 1st half of the 1980s, demand for non-national labor increasingly turned towards new supplies in South and Southeast Asia, notably Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines. Meanwhile, an increasing share of Arab and South Asian workers were renewing their work permits, often on less favorable terms. The construction sector has had the greatest decline in new labor inflows; however, the service sector is still growing. Wage rates have fallen an average of 20-30%, and up to 45% since 1983. Since 1985, about 615,000 non-national workers have left. Southeast Asian labor has been most acutely affected by the sharp downturn in economic activity. By 1990, the non-national workforce should decline to 4.36 million, but then it will increase slowly. The number and share of Southeast Asians will rise.     

Hospital social work in Sweden and the UK: Access to chances of physical health and well-being

In Swedish and UK practice, interest is developing in social work's contribution to tackling service users' unequal chances and experience of physical health. This is through alleviating disadvantaged social conditions such as relative poverty which service users face and which are associated with health inequalities. Ready access to social work services is an essential preliminary if service users are to gain the material and social resources services can provide, to alleviate their adverse social circumstances and thereby improve their health prospects. However, despite hospital social work's well-established position, its significance as an access point for services has tended to be marginalized. Drawing on a comparative account of Swedish and UK practice featuring two action research projects, we explore how hospital social work is a key point of access to services for service users experiencing profound disadvantage. We analyse major barriers to such access, notably the underfunded nature of hospital social work, discriminatory procedures, and unequal professional service user power relations. Nevertheless, the action research projects show how these barriers may be breached to some degree, enabling service users as patients and carers to access resources which contribute to more equal chances of health and well-being in ill-health.