Toward a unified theory of ethnic antagonism: A preliminary synthesis of three macro models

This study analyzes and compares the Marxist-class, prejudice-discrimination, and middleman minority theories of ethnic antagonism by extracting the key endogenous variables in each and presenting them in abstract models. Then, a composite model is developed in a preliminary effort to combine the essential elements of the theories. In turn, this composite model is used to develop five abstract propositions on the underlying dynamics of all ethnic antagonism. These propositions argue that competition, perceptions of threat, discrimination, identifiability, and stigmatization are the basic dynamics in all ethnic antagonism. The composite model and abstract propositions are viewed as a starting point for the analysis of the common processes inhering in diverse historical/empirical cases.     

A DIAGNOSIS FOR OUR TIMES:

This paper explores two submerged networks in the Pittsburgh area alternative health movement through the use of thirty two intensive interviews and ethnographic research. Utilizing Jürgen Habermas's colonization theory as well as Alberto Melucci's emphasis on the process of collective identity formation, the paper describes a "conservative Christian' and a culturally progressive network demonstrating how these networks differ and what they have in common. The paper examines how new oppositional identities and meanings emerge from face to face interactions between alternative practitioners, patients and activists in a variety of settings. Overall, the paper argues that resistance to the "medical industrial complex,' one leading instrument of "colonization,' is coming from the Christian right as well as elements of the cultural left.     

Classical Statements on Geopolitics and the Aftermath of War

The relationship among geopolitical position, political legitimacy, and internal conflict has been rejuvenated as a topic of theoretical interest. This revival of interest has, to a degree, borrowed from earlier theories, but the implications of these earlier theories have not been fully explored. In this article the classical geopolitical statements of Herbert Spencer and Max Weber are modeled to highlight their continued relevance to sociological theories that address the relationship between geopolitics and internal societal processes.     

Doctoral Theses 1954-1996

The present article centres on a group of Indonesians and Australians who are members of a gamelan ensemble based at the Consulate of the Republic of Indonesia in Perth, Western Australia. By examining why Australians and Indonesians choose to participate in this musical community, the article investigates how these individuals negotiate and construct musical identities to give local meaning to gamelan in the West Australian context.     

A Grasp for Aircraft Routing in Response to Groundings and Delays

This paper presents a greedy randomized adaptive search procedure (GRASP) to reconstruct aircraft routings in response to groundings and delays experienced over the course of the day. Whenever the schedule is disrupted, the immediate objective of the airlines is to minimize the cost of reassigning aircraft to flights taking into account available resources and other system constraints. Associated costs are measured by flight delays and cancellations.In the procedure, the neighbors of an incumbent solution are generated and evaluated, and the most desirable are placed on a restricted candidate list. One is selected randomly and becomes the incumbent. The heuristic is polynomial with respect to the number of flights and aircraft. This is reflected in our computational experience with data provided by Continental Airlines. Empirical results demonstrate the ability of the GRASP to quickly explore a wide range of scenarios and, in most cases, to produce an optimal or near-optimal solution.