Reconceptualizing Social Movement Abeyance: The Role of Internal Processes and Culture in Cycles of Movement Abeyance and Resurgence

Abstract

Questions of social movement emergence and decline have long been of interest to social movement analysts, but discussions related to social movement endurance are relatively new to the field. In this work, we explicitly adapt Verta Taylor's concept of abeyance to a local grassroots social movement organization (SMO), Solutions to Issues of Concern to Knoxvillians (SICK), that has endured for 18 years and achieved success in multiple campaign issues. Arguing that an unfavorable external political climate is not the only reason for an SMO to decline in mass membership and mass-based challenges, we use the concept of abeyance to explain the SMO's continuity as a product of internal SMO processes and organizational culture. Our findings indicate that the grassroots organization emerged, won considerable victories, and then continued to survive rather than disbanding. The SMO subsequently underwent two cycles of abeyance-and-resurgence, which we assess using Taylor's set of five characteristics of movement abeyance structures. We conclude that some of the abeyance structures are applicable to a grassroots movement while others are not.     

THE GLOBALIZATION OF A MINOR SPORT: THE DIFFUSION AND COMMODIFICATION OF MASTERS SWIMMING

ABSTRACT

We examine the global spread of Masters Swimming (MS) focusing on the economic, social, and demographic conditions associated with its initiation in the United States and its international growth. We characterize MS as a modern sport and look at its subcultural form, organizational structure, practices, and early pattern of organizational growth from bottom to top. Then we describe the top down role of La Federation Internationale de Natation Amateur (FINA) in supplying legitimacy, resources, organizational coherence, and corporate sponsors to spread the sport among FINA members. By establishing mutually beneficial relations with corporate sponsors, MS rapidly commodified and diffused to countries and territories with middle to high socio-economic development.     

Treating Older Persons with Severe Mental Illness in the Community: Impact of an Interdisciplinary Geriatric Mental Health Team

Little information is available concerning community-based interventions to treat the growing number older persons with severe mental illness. This study examined treatment efficacy of a specialized interdisciplinary geriatric mental health team (mental health geriatric interdisciplinary teams or MHGITs) for 69 older clients with severe mental disorders. Depression, life satisfaction, health, and psychiatric and medical hospitalization data were gathered. A decrease in depressive symptoms and in psychiatric hospitalizations, and an increase in life satisfaction at 6 months were found. No change in health nor medical hospitalizations were reported. This study provides preliminary support for the feasibility and efficacy of a MGHIT approach in treating older community-dwelling adults with severe mental illnesses. Implications for social workers are discussed.     

Aging With a Severe Mental Illness: Challenges and Treatments

Severe mental illness (SMI) impacts many different facets of individuals' lives. As they age, those with SMI experience increased physical illnesses, functional impairment, cognitive deficits, and social disability. To promote more effective social work practice with this population, this article highlights the major biopsychosocial and family issues of aging with a psychiatric diagnosis. In addition, intervention approaches that have demonstrated efficacy are summarized along with ways to coordinate services across multiple service delivery sectors. Finally, future directions in practice and research are presented to develop additional methods of support for older adults with SMI and their families.     

Systematic review of the physical home environment and the relationship to psychological well-being among community-dwelling older adults

ABSTRACT

Older adults with functional impairments are at risk of being excluded from participation in day-to-day life. This exclusion can have detrimental effects on psychological well-being. The physical home environment is a potential force for both enhancing and limiting participation for this population. This systematic review of literature examined relationships between the physical home environment, functional impairment, and psychological well-being among older adults who live in community settings. The Ecological Model of Aging served as the guiding framework for this review. Results suggest that knowledge of the relationships between these constructs is still in the early stages. While associational relationships are established, the nature of these relationships is clouded by the inconsistency of measurement across studies, as well as design challenges. Objective and subjective features of the physical home environment are linked to psychological well-being throughout the literature. A growing body of evidence demonstrates that personal competence serves as a moderator of those relationships.     

Multi-ethnic public sphere and accessible ethnic media: mapping online English-language ethnic media

The multi-ethnic public sphere requires a functioning media system that facilitates intercultural dialogue across communities. As producers of multi-ethnic voices, the role of ethnic media is important in this debate. However, studies so far have focused on ethnic media’s role within their respective communities rather than their role within broader society. Equally, theoretical debates on ethnic media as independent spheres focus on speaking by and listening to minority voices without consideration of the necessary conditions that need to be in place in order to enable these voices to be heard. This study advances Charles Husband’s notion of the ‘multi-ethnic public sphere’ by using a notion of an ‘intercultural media system’ that considers both availability and accessibility of ethnic media for a broader audience as a necessary condition to enable listening. Drawn from New America Media’s NAM National Ethnic Media Directory, the study provides a case study on the ethnic media sector in the U.S. by mapping accessible ethnic media, that is, ethnic media that produce content in English or bilingually online. The findings suggest the existence of a substantial base of accessible ethnic media with a growing interest in serving audiences beyond their respective communities.     

Alcohol’s Effects on Video Lottery Terminal (VLT) Play Among Probable Pathological and Non-Pathological Gamblers

This study tested whether alcohol increases behaviors associated with video lottery terminal (VLT) play, particularly among probable pathological gamblers. Forty-four regular VLT players were designated either probable pathological gamblers or non-pathological gamblers on the basis of scores on the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS); [Lesieur & Blume (1997). American Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 1184–1188] Gamblers from each SOGS category were randomly assigned to either a moderately intoxicating alcohol dose or a control beverage condition (n = 11 per cell in the 2 × 2 between-subjects design). Following beverage consumption and absorption, participants played a video poker VLT game for up to 30 minutes. Four behaviors were measured: “power-bets” (doubling bet after viewing only two cards of the five-card poker hand); total money spent; mean bet magnitude; and number of minutes played. Alcohol increased time spent playing and rate of power-bets, particular among the probable pathological gamblers. Post hoc analyses revealed that alcohol also influenced the proportion of losing hands played––increasing them among the probable pathological gamblers while decreasing them among the non-pathological gamblers. Clinical and policy implications of the findings are discussed.     

Posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology and comorbid depressive symptoms among abused women referred from emergency department care

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is common among victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) as is comorbid depression. Comorbid depression may exacerbate PTSD severity and chronicity. This study sampled female IPV victims from an urban emergency department to assess the relationship between PTSD symptomatology in the previous 12 months and current depressive symptomatology and to evaluate independent predictors of PTSD symptomatology. Half of respondents had symptoms consistent with PTSD. Those with PTSD symptomatology had significantly higher mean total depression scores and mean scores on 3 of 4 depression subscales than those without PTSD. Depressive symptomatology, being married, sexual IPV, severity of physical IPV, and partner's consumption of 5 or more alcoholic drinks per occasion at least once a month independently predicted PTSD symptomatology. Our findings underscore the important roles these factors play in IPV-related PTSD and the need for prompt identification and intervention of those at risk.     

The Culture of Poverty and Learned Helplessness: A Social Psychological Perspective*

This paper links the sociological work of Ball on the analgesic subculture-a subculture of Appalachian poverty-with the sociological research of Merton on adaptation, the social psychological research of Seeman on alienation, and the psychological research of Seligman on learned helplessness. We suggest that (1) Ball's cultural explanation work has not been pursued because it has not been integrated with relevant structural and relevant psychological theory and (2) the analgesic subculture of Appalachia is an extreme intensification of the consequences of alienation resulting in a psychology of learned helplessness.     

Facilitated communication,Anna Stubblefield and disability studies

This article discusses the case of Anna Stubblefield, a US disability studies scholar and Professor of Ethics at Rutgers University who was sentenced to 12 years in prison for sexually assaulting a disabled man. Stubblefield claimed that he consented, using facilitated communication. The article argues that facilitated communication is unscientific and unreliable, and that the support for Stubblefield from some disability studies scholars raises serious ethical concerns.