“How We Stay Together Without Going Crazy:” Reconstruction of Reality Among Women of Mixed-Orientation Relationships

Until recently, the literature that addressed the phenomenon of mixed-orientation relationships, in which the female partner is straight and the male partner is non-straight, has focused mainly on the men’s perspective. Most of the studies have employed a pessimistic tone, underscoring the obstacles faced by each of the partners. This study was designed to understand how women of mixed-orientation relationships construct their reality within such a relationship, focusing on elements that assist them in maintaining those relationships. Based on the phenomenological paradigm, in-depth interviews with eight women in mixed-orientation relationships were conducted. The findings indicate that in order to adapt to their newly constructed reality, women reframe various individual, marital, and social aspects in their lives. Those reframing processes constituted a point of departure to developing a conceptual model, which outlines the journey to reality reconstruction among women in mixed-orientation relationships.     

The Myth of Openness and Secrecy in Intimate Relationships: The Case of Spouses of Mixed-Orientation Marriage

The phenomenon of mixed-orientation marriages, in which one of the partners is straight and the other is non-straight, is invisible, yet not insignificant. Focusing on gay and bisexual men who are married to straight women, this article was designed to explore one of the essential themes in their relationship: the dynamics between secrecy and openness regarding the men’s sexual orientation and gay practices. Based on the phenomenological paradigm, 38 men and eight women of mixed-orientation marriages in Israel were interviewed and shared their subjective life reality. Six patterns of secrecy and openness were identified, including complete secrecy, conspiracy of silence, initiated concealment (of the husband and wife), disloyalty/violation of the agreement, selective sharing, and complete openness. The findings challenge the idea that secrecy is detrimental and openness is beneficial in the context of mixed-orientation marriages. Findings are discussed within the framework of the dialectical approach.     

Child‐free and unmarried: Changes in the life planning of young east German women

Using evidence from demographic and survey data, this research examines how one decade of postsocialism has changed the life planning of young East German women. Aggregate data reflect marriage and fertility postponement and increased nonmarital birth rates and cohabitation. The analysis shows East German women's “stubbornness” ( Dölling, 2003 ) in adhering to life perspectives in line with the German Democratic Republic (GDR) standard biography (high nonmarital childbearing, high work orientation, rejection of the homemaker status, desire to combine work and family). The most important findings are that (a) motherhood is postponed to increase child‐free time, (b) cohabitation is increasingly becoming an alternative to marriage, (c) marriage (but not partnership) is increasingly optional for childbearing, and (d) employment is prioritized over family formation.     

Antiracism,difference and xenologica

Abstract

This essay attempts to confront one of the major problems associated with multiculturalism, namely the hostile divisiveness stemming from newly articulated constructs of difference. Synthesizing hermeneutic concepts derived from Gadamer and Rorty, I develop an approach called xenologica which, unlike the problematic universalism associated with the Enlightenment, values difference but, at the same time, promotes mutual recognition, tolerance and solidarity. Xenologica, for illustrative purposes, is applied to one of the most contentious domains of difference, race, with the aim of overcoming some of the theoretical and practical limitations of classic antiracism.     

3 Critical Management Studies

Abstract

Critical management studies (CMS) offers a range of alternatives to mainstream management theory with a view to radically transforming management practice. The common core is deep skepticism regarding the moral defensibility and the social and ecological sustainability of prevailing conceptions and forms of management and organization. CMS's motivating concern is neither the personal failures of individual managers nor the poor management of specific firms, but the social injustice and environmental destructiveness of the broader social and economic systems that these managers and firms serve and reproduce. This chapter reviews CMS's progress, main themes, theoretical and epistemological premises, and main projects; we also identify some problems and make some proposals. Our aim is to provide an accessible overview of a growing movement in management studies.     

Gender and poverty: Self-esteem among elementary school children

Studies of children's perceptions have shown that self-esteem is an important factor in their social and school performance and that over time low self-esteem is at the root of much problematic behavior among adolescents. This study focuses on children in poverty, adding a home domain dimension absent in most self-esteem scales and examining gender differences. The study findings show that a process of discounting exists between home and school domains and self-worth gender comparisons show a significant deficit for girls. These results contradict previous research that place the onset of deterioration of girls' self-esteem at an older age. The praxis implications of this exploratory research on the intersection of poverty, age and gender are discussed.     

Information technology and transformations in social security policy and administration: A review

In this paper we analyse the interactive relationship between technology, administration and policy in social security. Focusing on new and emerging information and computing technologies, we show how they have been shaped and adopted by social security institutions in different countries, and explore their differential impact on recipients and staff, on organizational structures, and on policy and practice. We conclude that similar technologies have been adopted in a variety of ways to address different economic, social, political and organizational objectives and that, although these differences are becoming more blurred, different patterns have been associated with different welfare state regimes.     

“Daddy Come Home Soon!” Intermittent Father Absence and the Family*

Little has been written about the impact on children and families of the intermittent absence, through work, of one or other parent. This article explores some aspects of the interaction between the family and the workplace, using the experiences of the family of an offshore oil rig worker to illustrate some of the problems. Some modes of adaptation are discussed.