Understanding the relationship between social change and its impacts: The experience of rural land use change in south-eastern Australia

This study investigated socio-economic impacts of land use change, giving explicit attention to the relationships between independently observed land use change and associated socio-economic changes, perceived land use change and socio-economic change, attributed cause of change, and experienced impacts of change. Using a case study region in south-east Australia, we examined the impacts of growth in use of land for dairy farming, cropping, blue gum plantations and rural residential development on (i) rural population trends, and (ii) the amount and nature of employment available in the study region. Perceptions and impacts of change were assessed using multiple qualitative and quantitative methods. Results demonstrate that local residents were not always aware of the extent and nature of land use change, and had difficulty attributing social changes and their impacts to the land use changes that underlie them. Furthermore, the felt impacts of land use change appeared dependent on a person's awareness of that change, and on their beliefs about the causes of social change. These findings highlight avenues for theoretical development to better specify the processes by which social change processes are experienced as human impacts. The findings also have implications for land use policy and social impact assessment, illustrating the importance of understanding both perceived and actual social change.     

Conducting Large‐Scale Surveys in Secondary Schools: The Case of the Youth On Religion (YOR) Project

There are few published articles on conducting large‐scale surveys in secondary schools, and this paper seeks to fill this gap. Drawing on the experiences of the Youth On Religion project, it discusses the politics of gaining access to these schools and the considerations leading to the adoption and administration of an online survey. It is concluded that successful research in schools has to be planned carefully in collaboration with key members of staff, and justified as an educational activity. Providing speedy feedback was helpful to ensure schools benefited from the research and to keep them engaged with the project. © 2011 The Author(s). Children & Society © 2011 National Children’s Bureau and Blackwell Publishing Limited     

Twitter publics: how online political communities signaled electoral outcomes in the 2010 US house election

Online social networks are an important setting for understanding the intersection of online communities and offline political processes. This paper analyzes the different ways that people discuss elections on Twitter. Using data from a random sample totaling 113,985 tweets and 30,995 users, we examine the differences between users who employ various strategies to talk about US 2010 Congressional candidates. We show that users who simply include the text of a candidate's name in a message exhibit different behaviors than those who use platform-specific mechanisms. Users who employ free-text tend to have younger accounts, are less likely to be ‘verified’, and generate fewer messages about candidates. Furthermore, candidates’ share of the free-text Twitter public has a larger correlation with their vote tallies than @mentions or hashtags. This research has methodological implications for studying the dynamics between online discourse and offline behavior. Overall, our findings support the view that forms of communication that are more accessible are more indicative of broader social trends.     

中国城市“居住分异”模式的问题与对策

当前,我国城市化进程逐渐加快,导致城市发展出现一系列城市病问题,城市居住区呈现出越来越明显的"居住分异"现象,整个城市形成一种居住空间分化甚至相互隔离的状况,给社会健康发展带来一系列负面影响。混合居住是目前解决居住分异的一种重要途径。混合居住模式以消除居民的社会差异为住宅建设的社会意义和目标,是解决不同社会阶层隔离、促进不同居民交往的有效方法,有利于营造和谐的居住模式。     

思想史视野中的质性研究:以方法意涵的构建为例

本文尝试从思想史视角反思质性研究方法,以揭示被结构视角遮蔽的研究过程,从而探讨一种直面内心的反思性社会科学研究方式。思想史视角强调回到文本去阐释书写者赋予研究方法以意涵的思想过程。本文以“推论”“充分必要性”与“意义”等三种方法论立场中的方法意涵构建过程为例展现这样的思想过程：方法论如何引导了对特定研究方法的选择;当方法论与现实情况存在差距时,书写者如何在原有方法论立场中发展对质性方法新的理解以捍卫方法论的合理性;书写者如何在强调与其他立场的区分中发展对方法的理解。本文由此揭示了看似相同的方法背后所蕴含的巨大意涵和实践差异。一种围绕“意涵”展开的方法知识系统将有可能被建立起来。思想史视角为反思性的质性方法知识构建提供了可以付诸实践的路径。     

Evolution of product quality in European,Japanese and US automotive firms: An exploratory longitudinal analysis

For years we have been hearing that US automobile manufacturers have been losing market share to their Japanese rivals who are reputed to make better quality vehicles. Most such reports are based on the initial quality surveys on new automobiles. In this paper we address two exploratory questions: (1) how does the quality of an automobile change with its age, and, (2) can firm level variables help explain differences quality. To answer these questions, we collected Consumer Reports’ reliability ratings on approximately 300 automobile models made by European, Japanese and US automotive firms during the 1998–2007; and approximately 240 models made by these firms over period of 2008–2015. For both periods we found that not only do automobiles made by Japanese firms have higher initial quality, but, as automobiles get older the difference in the product quality between Japanese versus European and US firms increases. We also found that the more generalist a European or US automobile firm, i.e., the wider is the firm׳s product offering in the marketplace, the lower its overall automobile quality during the 1998–2007 period. Conversely, Japanese generalist firms were found to have higher quality than specialist firms over the same period. The result is partly explained by the fact that Japanese firms have taken a different path to broadening their product variety – they have ensured a high level of quality of their initial offerings before entering newer market segments. The rate of reliability decline was found to be slower for all firms, and the differences in reliability across the 3 groups of firms were much less pronounced during the 2008–2015 period. This improvement may be as result of restructuring done by US automobile firms.     

基于网络视角的中小企业国际化研究方法评述与展望

近年来中小企业逐渐成为国际化的一支生力军,对于中小企业国际化的研究已成为企业国际化领域重要的研究课题。不同于大型跨国企业,中小企业较多地受制于自身资源和规模的限制,因此企业网络在中小企业国际化过程中尤其发挥着重大作用,越来越多的学者开始从网络视角研究中小企业的国际化问题。本研究就“基于网络视角的中小企业国际化问题”相关文献为研究对象,对其研究方法进行了系统阐述,以期对进一步研究商业网络对中小企业国际化的影响提供借鉴和指导。     

外语教学法及其在大学公共俄语教学中的应用

外语教学法流派众多,各教学法各有所长,也各有弊端。我们要依据大学公共俄语教学阶段和课型来选用主体教学方法,博采众长,综合运用外语教学法,同时兼顾其他影响因素,将极大地提高外语教学效果,达到大学公共俄语教学人才培养的目标。     

复杂科学对教育研究的方法论意义

传统的思维方式日益显露出缺陷和有限性的弊端。复杂科学的引进,要求我们超越传统思维方式,把教育看作一个复杂的、稳定的而又动态、自我发展的系统,为我们进行教育研究提供了新的视角和思维方式。教育研究本身的复杂性,也要求我们以一种复杂的思维方式来进行。     

方法论更新与当代文学批评的出路

文学批评环境的恶化以及批评者自身能力的弱化,都使当代文学批评陷入新的一轮危机。所谓的“纯文学”、“文学性”等批评标准,面对20世纪90年代以来尤其是新世纪以来的文学新生态,不再具有理论说服力和阐释的有效性。一方面,“纯文学”文学作品或文学姿态不再受宠,以“纯文学”、“文学性”批评标准所经典化了的“经典”遭到了不同程度的解构;另一方面,通俗文学、民间写作、打工文学、80后新性情写作、欲望叙事和身体写作。却有被重新“经典化”的可能。如何有效地阐释当代的文学新现实,强化批评的能力,这成为当代文学批评者和文学理论界面临的重要课题。对于当代文学批评,必须更新论述方法,放弃狭隘的“文学性”批评标准。采用“文化人类学”视野、“理解接受”理论、“交流对话”理论、中国传统文论中的“情本体论”观察视角来对待和阐释当代文学文化新生态。或许能给当代文学批评注入新的活力和生机。