The Nature of the Political Reconsidered

I present an immanent, and explanatory, critique of reflections on the nature of politics and of power within political science. I argue that these reflections are problematic, to the extent that they presuppose an actualist conception of the political, and that this is generated by an empiricist way of thinking on the one hand and a constructivist way of thinking on the other. I show how re‐defining politics, power, and the political on the basis of a dialectical critical realist ontology resolves these problems and, thereby, allows us to understand the conditions for social change and the relationship between the political and the economic. My argument has two, important implications: first, that the proposal that those who study politics professionally should celebrate philosophical diversity is dangerous–at least if it makes it difficult to sustain a distinct, emancipatory form of political inquiry; and, second, that the nature of social reality justifies the need both for specialized forms of inquiry, such as politics and economics, and integrative forms of inquiry, such as political economy.     

Variations in the Life Histories of Incarcerated Parents by Race and Ethnicity: Implications for Service Provision

ABSTRACT

Incarcerated parents have complex life histories that often remain unresolved during incarceration, can continue to create barriers to prosocial success on release, and present similar intergenerational challenges for their children. This study examines the life histories of incarcerated fathers and mothers from the Pacific Northwest and how their experiences vary based on race and ethnicity. Five areas examined were exposure to trauma, child welfare involvement, mental health and substance abuse problems, juvenile justice and adult criminal justice involvement, and intergenerational criminal justice involvement. The sample comprised 359 incarcerated parents, and their racial/ethnic composition was 59% White, 14% African American, 11% multiracial, 8% Native American, and 7% Latino. Few differences were found across racial and ethnic groups. Mothers appeared more similar to each other across groups than fathers. Results illustrated similarities yet some surprising differences with national trends on key study variables. Implications for future research and intervention and prevention are discussed.     

“艺术化”与“社会化”的批评价值观辨析

建国以来的文学批评价值观从总体上可划分为＂艺术化＂和＂社会化＂两种。＂艺术化＂的批评价值观坚持文学的审美价值取向,＂社会化＂的批评价值观坚持文学的社会功利价值取向。文学价值是一个多元价值系统,相应的文学批评的价值取向无疑也是多元的。＂文学化＂批评和＂泛文学化＂批评各有其合理性和局限性。     

马克思主义的本质与从整体上把握马克思主义——浅析《马克思主义基本原理概论》教材

科学理解马克思主义的本质是从整体上理解和把握马克思主义的前提。马克思主义是关于无产阶级和人类解放的科学。研究无产阶级和全人类的解放是整个马克思主义的主题和核心,是贯穿马克思主义基本内容的主线。马克思主义哲学、马克思主义政治经济学和科学社会主义作为马克思主义理论的主要内容,体现和贯穿了马克思主义的本质,服务于马克思主义的本质。马克思主义的理论特征、政治立场、理论品质和社会理想既体现了马克思主义的本质,又体现了马克思主义的基本立场、基本观点和基本方法。     

Becoming a Race-Conscious Social Studies Teacher: The Influence of Personal and Professional Experiences

In this interpretive case study the researchers examined the beliefs of 13 self-identifying race-conscious secondary social studies teachers from diverse racial or ethnic, gender, and school-context backgrounds. The researchers found that the teachers' beliefs and views of practice were generally aligned with the main assertions of critical race theory. The teachers described their personal and professional experiences as a major influence on their race-conscious beliefs and views of practice. Moreover, teachers in diverse contexts described having to learn how to navigate the different racial experiences of the students in their classrooms, while teachers in racially segregated contexts (predominately White, Black, or Latino) emphasized the importance of teaching their students about others. Finally, despite the teachers' regular integration of race-related issues into their required and elective courses, they expressed a desire to have more opportunities to teach about race.     

Complexity: Some Remarks about a Classical Aesthetic Concept

The connection between autonomous art and complexity has been extensively and deeply studied in literary theories in the 20th century. The rise of aesthetic autonomy implies the complexity of literary work as the concept of a sealed container arises from the relationship between the parts that make it up. In this model, the interpretation subject works to directly face literary texts. Instead of pursuing the author’s intention, it aims to reproduce the richness and subtlety of the aesthetic state, and consider the richness and subtlety revealed in the maximum amount of text details in literary works, even if procedurally deviating from the way of mainstream understanding. There is increasing skepticism about the consequences of the autonomous aesthetics, which has been coerced by the development of contemporary capitalism, and it is necessary to develop new forms of aesthetics to reflect the changing social situation.     

“异域”之异表现在哪里?——解析萨伏伊《异域》

萨伏伊在《异域》里把美国南方视为一个不同于美国北方的“异域”,从系统力量之异、种族关系之异和种族心理之异的角度展现“异域”之异,揭露黑人的悲剧人生和白人种族主义制度的非人性和非理性.政治之异、司法之异和大众媒体之异显示了美国社会系统力量的冲突和内耗,抨击了不合理社会制度的反人类性和反文明性.种族情结、种族疏离和信用危机引发的种族关系之异严重威胁着社会稳定和人身安全,恶化了美国的种族关系;身份焦虑、歧视焦虑和越界焦虑通常会深化美国社会的种族心理之异,加剧黑人的双重意识危机,妨碍美国多元化社会的建立和发展.     

Emancipatory engagement: An urban womanist social work pedagogy

ABSTRACT

Standing on the hope of the initial social work course from 1914 at Morgan College, this article provides insight into the significant learning outcomes of contemporary students in advanced social work practice with urban African American families. This research introduces the conceptual framework of urban womanist social work pedagogy as an inclusive practice-informed knowledge produced through the rituals, traditions, values, culture, and resilience of historically disenfranchised communities. Urban womanist social work teaching methods honor truth telling from the ones who have lived there. Urban womanist social work affirms transformative-centered research, teaching, and scholarship produced through institutions such as historically black colleges and universities (HBCU’s). The students’ reflective narratives reveal a process of transformation, centered in the freedom standpoint, which includes recognizing the location and context of their individual and collective identity as African Americans in the profession of social work. Urban womanist social work pedagogy cumulatively equips our students with intergenerational knowledge that inform their assessment of critical issues in Baltimore’s African American communities.     

‘Can I borrow your glasses?’: a prescription for learning to see the cultural roots of identity terms and implicit categories through others’ lenses

Why is there so much confusion and conflict around common identity labels, a problem that extends well beyond any stereotypes that they may evoke? How do we escape the seeming paradox that we reject racism but still speak frequently of black and white? Who claims the power to determine or name others’ identities? The confusion and conflict about identity that play out on a surface level are often caused by starkly different but implicit understandings that operate beneath the surface. For example, terms like black, Jewish and Muslim may invoke several of our deeper conceptions or categories like race, culture, religion and ethnicity, and to varying degrees in different places. Critically, these categories themselves are culturally rooted. This article shows how our implicit categories can lead to both cross-cultural confusion and problematic misunderstandings in course content. Helping students to recognise and to understand the cultural roots of our implicit categories should be a deliberate learning outcome. This type of cultural understanding can be advanced significantly through guided reflection on experience and explicit instruction; in addition, some subjects and approaches – intercultural education, study abroad and Holocaust education among them – show particular promise for achieving this aim.     

Impact of Race on the Implementation of Empirically Supported Treatments in Substance Abuse Treatment

The effort to address the gap between research and practice in substance abuse treatment has largely neglected the role of local resources and political trends. This study seeks to clarify the role of the local environment in implementing empirically supported treatments (ESTs). The study consisted of secondary data analysis of substance abuse treatment centers (N = 13,079) and U.S. Census data to determine the likelihood of using EST by substance abuse treatment centers in counties with 50% or more Black residents. Bivariate and multivariate models were employed. After controlling for various factors, results indicate that substance use disorder treatment agencies that accept federal funding are less likely to use ESTs if they are located in counties with predominantly (> 50%) Black residents. Implementation of ESTs could be influenced by community racial distribution (% Black), but environmental constraints and events might shift implementation patterns.