Interpersonal distance and personal space: A conceptual and methodological note

Forty male and forty female subjects were led to anticipate an interaction in which they were to take control, or were to avoid being controlled by another. Both interpersonal distances and personal spaces were greater when subjects were avoiding another's control attempts. Thus, both distance and space expand reactively in response to a threat to control. In contrast to earlier research (Edney, Walker, & Jordan, 1976), we obtained no relationship between interpersonal distance and size of personal space. The pattern of results suggests that the curvilinear relationship obtained by Edney et al. was due largely to the instructions they gave subjects regarding distance and space.     

Remittances and well-being among rural-to-urban migrants in China

The main objective of this paper is to propose a systematic approach to empirically analyse the relationship between sending remittances and the utility of migrants, as proxied by their subjective well-being (SWB). Using data from a new survey on China, we estimate models in which a SWB measure is regressed on the level of remittances, finding a sizeable positive correlation. The estimates vary with the socio-economic characteristics of migrants, migration experience and the diversity of family arrangements. As a complementary objective, we use SWB measures to elicit the motivations behind remittances, finding evidence that both altruistic and contractual motivations are at work among rural-to-urban migrants in China.     

Subjective well-being and reference-dependence: Insights from Mexico

Data from Mexico are used to examine whether two indicators of subjective well-being??income satisfaction and income adequacy??correlate not only with the respondent??s absolute level of income, but also with their assessment of how their income compares relative to the income of a reference group, the level of income they hoped to have achieved by that stage of their life, and the income they had three years earlier. Both subjective well-being indicators correlate positively with the ranking relative to all three reference points. Some of the findings differ across segments of the income distribution. Subjective well-being assessments of the poor are influenced more by the inability to achieve income aspirations, while differences with respect to others is a more prominent factor among non-poor respondents.     

Existential social work and the quest for existential meaning and well-being: A conceptual framework

ABSTRACT

The aim of this article is to conceptualize “existential social work.” A greater understanding of what existential social work means may enable social workers and those studying social work to see how its practice can reveal “the truth” about human existence and how they, as professionals, can enhance existential meaning and existential well-being among their clients. In such work, existential social workers have at their disposal tools such as the Frankl therapeutic approach to existential analysis (i.e., logotherapy) as well as spiritual-sensitive modalities (prayer and mindfulness). To interpret and understand apparent phenomena in the therapy is the ultimate goal with existential social work practices, thus providing clients with the opportunity to discover the meaning that exists in themselves. In addition, these practices pave the way for existential well-being.     

Pursuit of happiness: Subjective well-being of immigrants and natives

Recent studies establish that subjective well-being plays a significant part in the adjustment of immigrants in the host country and that after facing the initial costs of migration, immigrants experience levels of well-being similar to natives across generations. Using two surveys, including the World Values Survey as well as the joint World Values Survey and European Value Survey, we, however, find that variations in subjective well-being of immigrants and natives persist across generations, with second-generation immigrants experiencing higher differences. This finding can be attributed to an increase in the aspirations of second-generation immigrants. In developed regions, both first-generation and second-generation immigrants have a higher probability of reporting greater subjective well-being than natives, which can be attributed to an improved standard of living among immigrants. Additionally, we look at the association between holding immigration-friendly attitudes and the subjective well-being of natives. Our study provides important policy insights.     

Transnational activities and aspirations of irregular migrants in Belgium and the Netherlands

The literature on immigrant transnationalism and on irregular immigration suggests irregular migrants engage relatively little in transnational activities because of the obstacles associated with their legal and economic statuses. Drawing on participant observation and in‐depth interviews with a diverse population of irregular migrants in Belgium and the Netherlands, however, I shall demonstrate in this article that irregular migrants do indeed engage in various transnational activities. Moreover, I argue that a focus on aspirations helps to understand why irregular migrants either do or do not engage in specific transnational activities. Distinguishing between investment, settlement and legalization aspirations, I analyse whether and for what reasons irregular migrants carry out economic, social and political transnational activities. I conclude that future research on transnationalism and on the incorporation of irregular and regular migrants alike could benefit from contextualizing the agency of migrants by taking their aspirations into account.     

Observational practice in virtual worlds: revisiting and expanding the methodological discussion

Virtual worlds, such as World of Warcraft and Second Life, have seen remarkable mainstream uptake in the last decade. Such environments have grown from hosting niche interest groups to providing sites for leisure, business and education for tens of millions of Internet users. Concurrently, a multi-disciplinary research field exploring the application of such spaces has emerged. This article examines in detail one data collection practice – observation in virtual worlds – that has been applied extensively, but without extensive methodological discussion. By revisiting and extending earlier work on this topic, the article presents four key considerations for those conducting observational research in virtual worlds: defining and delimiting field sites, discerning attention, charting actions and attributing intention. It is concluded that researchers must both ward against flawed assumptions about virtual world observation and consider multi-method strategies to overcome limitations in observational data.     

Subjective well-being and exercise in the second half of life: a critical review of theoretical approaches

Research has shown repeatedly that the ??feeling better?? effect of exercise is far more moderate than generally claimed. Examinations of subgroups in secondary analyses also indicate that numerous further variables influence this relationship. One reason for inconsistencies in this research field is the lack of adequate theoretical analyses. Well-being output variables frequently possess no construct definition, and little attention is paid to moderating and mediating variables. This article integrates the main models in an overview and analyzes how secondary analyses define well-being and which areas of the construct they focus on. It then applies a moderator and/or mediator framework to examine which person and environmental variables can be found in the existing explanatory approaches in sport science and how they specify the influence of these moderating and mediating variables. Results show that the broad understanding of well-being in many secondary analyses makes findings difficult to interpret. Moreover, physiological explanatory approaches focus more on affective changes in well-being, whereas psychological approaches also include cognitive changes. The approaches focus mostly on either physical or psychological person variables and rarely combine the two, as in, for example, the dual-mode model. Whereas environmental variables specifying the treatment more closely (e.g., its intensity) are comparatively frequent, only the social support model formulates variables such as the framework in which exercise is presented. The majority of explanatory approaches use simple moderator and/or mediator models such as the basic mediated (e.g., distraction hypothesis) or multiple mediated (e.g., monoamine hypotheses) model. The discussion draws conclusions for future research.     

Intervention with abused older males: conceptual and clinical perspectives

Men and women experience abuse in different ways and older men have particular treatment needs that must be addressed by clinicians. The current design and configuration of clinical services may create barriers to abused older men receiving treatment fully suited to their needs. In this article, the unique experiential dynamics and help seeking behaviors of older men who experience abuse are delineated and recommendations are given for structuring services to better meet their needs. Gender-sensitive clinical techniques and modalities are described and suggestions for interventions that could prove particularly efficacious in the treatment of older men are offered.     

Bringing nations in: Some methodological and conceptual issues in connecting feminisms with nationhood and nationalisms

The recent explosion of case studies about women's involvements in national projects reveals considerable diversity ranging from hostility and alienation, to affiliation or participation. Feminist analysis is just starting to explore the causes and effects of such diversity, however, since a single, common relationship usually was theorized between ‘gender’ and ‘nation’. This article addresses some methodological and conceptual issues concerning the systematic comparison of these diverse relationships. It is argued that comparison is required to explain ‘linkages between ideologies, religions and conflicts’ from a gendered perspective and to incorporate the wide variety of women's experiences regarding national projects.

Especially significant in this diversity is that, while national projects in ‘the West’ are rarely a site for women's liberation and most ‘western’ feminists are alienated from nationalism, globally women are more often mobilized by national projects than any other form of politics (Bystydzienski 1992). Moreover, some women's movements affiliate with national projects with positive outcomes. To understand how women's diverse involvements in national projects affect domestic and international conflicts, we need to identify factors producing this diversity in gender/nation relationships. The article reports on a ‘test’ of six hypotheses concerning three modal cases drawn from a larger project eventually concerning thirty countries.     

The use of body-mapping in interpretative phenomenological analyses: a methodological discussion

The increasing popularity of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) in social research brings an increasing criticism about its validity, robustness and, more recently, its lack of expressive features. Recently, the novel arts-based research approach called body-mapping was recognized as enhancing social science research in creative and nuanced ways. Body-mapping allows for unique insights into participants’ lived experiences, the meaning thereof, and into how meaning is impacted by their socio-cultural contexts. This article provides new understandings about the potential use of body-mapping as part of an IPA framework by drawing upon existing literature to critically discuss their philosophical and methodological congruence. The following discussion demonstrates how particular strengths of body-mapping align with weaknesses of IPA and that, when merged, they may be especially useful for research with vulnerable and hard-to-reach populations. Limitations of this discussion and implications for future research are provided.     

A comparison of widowhood and well-being among older Greek and British-Australian migrant women

The impact of widowhood on well-being has been well-documented, but to date has not focused extensively on the experience of older migrants who have aged in a foreign land. This study aimed to examine the well-being of older migrant widows from two groups in South Australia: British-born (n = 61) and Greek-born (n = 60) Australian migrants, who had been widowed, on average, 13 years. All participants completed a self-report questionnaire in their preferred language. Three indicators of current well-being (self-rated health, depression and loneliness) as well as variables expected to differ cross-culturally, and potentially influence well-being (mourning rituals; continuing bonds to one's spouse; religiosity; social support) were measured. Greek-born widows displayed higher levels of mourning rituals, continuing bonds and religiosity than the British. Both groups perceived similarly high levels of familial social support. Greek widows also reported worse self-rated health, and increased symptoms of depression and loneliness compared to the British. This paper suggests that the detrimental impact of widowhood on well-being may be greater for non-English speaking migrants who are ageing outside of their country of origin, and who, despite residing in an English-speaking host country for several decades, have retained the linguistic, cultural and religious practices and traditions of their home country.     

Subjective well-being and perceptions of safety among Jewish and Arab children in Israel

As research has shown, safety is also a subjective phenomenon. Contemporary scholarship has also underscored the importance of subjective well-being among children as a vital component of overall well-being. Our paper explores the potential relationship between reported levels of safety in different settings and the subjective well-being of children. We conducted our study on 2238 children ages 10 and 12 with varying sociodemographic characteristics. Our findings support our hypothesis that safety in different settings is positively inter-correlated and that safety perceptions are positively correlated with subjective well-being. Furthermore, the correlations exist among different sociodemographic groups and in different settings.     

Community mobilization, organizing, and media advocacy. A discussion of methodological issues

Community Mobilization refers to those activities that prepare communities to accept, receive, and support prevention interventions designed to reduce alcohol-involved trauma. Media advocacy refers to the strategic use of media by those seeking to advance a social or public policy initiative. Within the Community Prevention Trial, both of these activities were critical elements. This article presents the evaluation design for community mobilization and media advocacy implemented for the project. Here the authors argue for the need to include both structured and unstructured community monitoring instruments, coding of local alcohol-related news coverage, and surveying community members about the exposure to alcohol-related problems, and support for project interventions. This article also presents an audience segmentation analysis and discusses the implications of this analysis for media advocacy efforts.     

Social embeddedness in a harmonized Europe: the social networks of European migrants with a native partner in Belgium and the Netherlands

Although intra‐European migration is often considered relatively easy to realize given European citizens' right to freedom of movement, settlement in another European country can still be experienced as socially disruptive. Insights in the insertion processes of European migrants, nevertheless, remain rather scarce. In this study, we analyse the social networks of European nationals with a native partner in Belgium and the Netherlands. The analysis is based on survey data from the EUMARR project (n = 576). First, we study the size and composition of European migrants' local family and friendship networks, and the frequency of contact with these networks. Second, we connect intra‐EU movers' insertion routes to investments in transnational networks in their home country. The results reveal how size, composition and contact with the local and transnational network change over time. Children help to maintain contact with both the local and transnational family network and form a bridge for parents to meet own friends in the host country. Moreover, having own friends and own family around matters for contact frequency with the local networks.     

Evaluating heterogeneous brokerage: New conceptual and methodological approaches and their application to multi-level environmental governance networks

We present two new approaches for assessing the relative contributions of different types of actors to heterogeneous brokerage in networks. These approaches distinguish between the tendency of certain types of actors to (1) mediate between dissimilar actors (heterogeneous brokerage “activity”), and (2) be the sole mediators between dissimilar actors (“exclusivity”). We present methods for implementing these approaches, using baseline models of tie formation and node removal, respectively. To illustrate the value of both approaches, independently and in combination, we apply them to evaluate horizontal and vertical heterogeneous brokerage in two environmental governance networks. Our analysis reveals certain types of actors with high heterogeneous brokerage activity but low exclusivity (and vice versa), which has important implications for governance processes and outcomes. Likewise, results show many similarities across the evaluated networks, but also some notable differences, suggesting that the incentives and constraints for heterogeneous brokerage vary not only by actor type, but also by network-level contextual differences.     

Aging and well-being in French older adults regularly practicing physical activity: a self-determination perspective

The purpose of this study was to identify the motivational profiles of physically active older adults and to achieve a better understanding of their perceived motives to explain their regular physical activity behavior in relation to self-determination theory (SDT). To address these aims, this study used quantitative and qualitative approaches. Older adults (n = 92; M = 74.95, SD = 4.6) completed the French version of the Sport Motivational Scale. A cluster analysis showed two motivational profiles with differential motivational patterns. The first was named the high combined profile, with high scores on intrinsic motivation and introjected regulation and low levels of external regulation. The second profile was the low to moderate motivational profile, with low scores on intrinsic motivation and moderate scores on introjected regulation. The qualitative study's results demonstrate the usefulness of SDT in explaining the relationship between these motivational profiles and the intertwining of the three basic psychological needs.