Commentary: Perverse Incentives or Rotten Apples?

Around 2% of the investigators admit to have falsified or fabricated data at least once. Also, 34% report to have been guilty to one or more questionable research practices, such as doing many statistical analyses and to publish only what fits their theoretical framework. Prevention of questionable research practices is very important. Universities should ensure that the training is in order and the research culture is adequate, and they should critically look at perverse incentives, such as a too high publication pressure, but also by ensuring proper guidelines, and by having a fair and transparent procedure for suspected violations of scientific integrity.     

Taiwan and ROC: A critical analysis of President Chen Shui-bien's construction of Taiwan identity in national speeches

Names used to address Taiwan – such as taiwan and zhonghuamingguo (Republic of China [ROC]) – are symbols defining Taiwan's political realities, each with their own unique historical significance. Since his election in 2000, Taiwan's president Chen Shui-bien has had to alternate between taiwan and ROC to strike a balance among conflicting ideas about Taiwan's national identity. The act is grounded in complex political discourse dictating that Taiwan must not be seen as separate from the sinic world and simultaneously to respond to steadily rising Taiwanese consciousness. Facing intercessions by the United States and China, as well as ever-present domestic clashes, rhetorical exigency requires the president to fashion unique political discourse concerning what Taiwan is and ought to be. This study explores how these names and related expressions are used in Chen's public addresses to the nation during his two-term tenure from 2000 to 2008, and how their development reflects the struggle over Taiwan's national identity.     

Repetitive Visiting as a Pre‐return Transnational Strategy among Youthful Trinidadian Returnees

Abstract

This paper will develop and illustrate a concept of institutional viscosity to balance the more agentive concept of motility with a theoretical account of structural conditions. The argument articulates with two bodies of work: broad social theory of reflexivity as negotiating agency and social structures; and sociology of mobility and mobility systems . It then illustrates the concept of viscosity as a variable (low to high viscosity) through two empirical studies conducted in the sociology of education that help demonstrate how degrees of viscosity interact with degrees of motility, and how this interaction can impact on motility over time. The first study explored how Australian Defence Force families cope with their children’s disrupted education given frequent forced relocations. The other study explored how middle class professionals relate to career and educational opportunities in rural and remote Queensland. These two life conditions have produced very different institutional practices to make relocations thinkable and doable, by variously constraining or enabling mobility. In turn, the degrees of viscosity mobile individuals meet with over time can erode or elevate their motility.     

The Movement Beyond (Lifestyle) Migration: Mobile Practices and the Constitution of a Better Way of Life

Abstract

This article revisits my ethnography of the British in rural France to question how mobility in post‐migration life was deemed intrinsic to the better way of life that they sought through their migration. Through the exploration of the migrants’ everyday lives, I reveal that the migrants’ mobile practices and their expectations of mobility contributed towards the perceived success of their new lives and were thus significant to the ongoing process getting to a better way of life. Beyond this example, the article also demonstrates how the findings of mobilities researchers may be mobilized in traditional anthropological fieldwork.     

Work and rest in the long-distance road transport industry in Australia

Abstract

To date management of fatigue in professional drivers has largely focused on strategies that limit the amount of time spent on the job. These approaches have, however, not taken into account the well-documented effect of time of day. Consequently, the likely impact of the pattern and timing of work and rest has received little attention. The results revealed that the group of drivers who did the shortest trips and worked the shortest weekly hours were the lowest reporters of fatigue, although longer hours were not always associated with the highest reporting of fatigue. In contrast, the shortest working hours were associated with earliest onset of fatigue. For all drivers, the influence of circadian rhythms was evident in the occurrence of fatigue, with better management of the problem evident among drivers who were able to arrange the timing of rest to more closely coincide with periods of fatigue. Thus, time of day appeared to be a more important influence in determining effective rest than did period of work. These findings raise questions about the validity of the assumption underlying work hour regulations for long-distance drivers which, currently, are universally based on duration of work.     

Knowledge transfer practices in multinational corporations in China's information technology industry

Abstract

The goals of this study were to explore existing practices used to facilitate knowledge transfer in MNCs in the information technology industry in China, and to investigate the frequency of use and the influence of each practice on knowledge transfer. In addition, this study examined which types of knowledge could be transferred by a given practice. The study used a two-stage method that included two surveys. The first survey was designed to develop an inclusive list of knowledge transfer practices. Thirty-three practices were identified in the first survey. The second survey found: 1) the frequency of use and the influence on knowledge transfer varied from one practice to another; 2) MNCs frequently used those practices with higher influence on knowledge transfer; 3) certain practices are better suited in transferring certain types of knowledge.     

Factors impacting the knowing-doing gap in sexual harassment training

We examined the gaps between research-based sexual harassment training practices human resource (HR) managers believe their organization should use and the practices their organizations actually use (knowing-doing gaps). We studied individual (attitudes about academics) and organizational predictors (senior management support, managerial rewards, and organizational resources) of gaps at the pre-training, training design and delivery, and post-training stages. Organizational factors generally reduced gaps at the pre-training and post-training stages, while the individual factor marginally increased the gap at the pre-training stage. The knowing-doing gap for training design and delivery practices was not predicted by any of the individual or organizational variables.     

竹枝词之社会史意义——以江南为例

竹枝词出于古巴蜀人祭祀仪式歌,经中唐著名诗人刘禹锡整饰传扬而来。这种民间歌谣,特别是长江流域的民谣,包括长江下游的"吴音",无论是口传情状采录,还是生活访谈实录,抑或是附具的文献征考,绝大部分竹枝词有如地方史志,来源相当可靠。不难看出,竹枝词与江南社会生活的密切关系。追踪竹枝词的创作动因,导入乡贤们的观念世界以及独特的民众化育方式,不难理解,竹枝词也是社会史素材,这样的素材在国家—社会框架中彰显出特殊的思想意义。在内容上,竹枝词厕身于具象社群,以平民俗众做基本记录对象,津津乐道其日常琐细,以浓郁的风土本色构成对传统史料的补充,给社会史以认识论的启迪。因此,以诗词身份出现的竹枝词,具有独特的社会史意义。     

西方法律人类学论纲:历史、理论与启示

西方法律人类学自萌芽至今已有200多年的历史。法律是一种相对的文化现象、法律的进化论逻辑、法律是一种地方性知识等理论及参与观察、社会情境、案例分析、扩展案例分析等方法是其演进进程中的主要知识表达。西方法律人类学中的比较法律文化、法律多元、法律是一种地方性知识等理论及扩展案例分析、参与观察、社会情境分析等方法对于中国法律人类学的发展有着重要的启示,中国法律人类学的发展应在此基础上更加关注中国场域、中国实践的具体特质。