Contingent constellations: African urban complexity seen through the workings of a Ghanaian bus station

In this article, I explore the intricate relationship between regulation and contingency in processes of urban economic organisation by focusing on the workings of a central bus station in Accra, Ghana. After introducing the position of the station in Ghana’s urban economy and transport infrastructure, I set out its internal regulative arrangements in relation to larger socio-economic and political constellations the practices of the station workers are contingent upon. Next, I turn the analysis around and describe the ways in which people accommodate themselves within, exploit and thereby co-produce emergent contingencies. The focus on the station, I suggest, offers a window into the complex constituents of niche economic practices that prevail in many spheres of African cities and allows a nuanced reflection on the incongruous and undetermined dynamics of everyday urban ‘becomings.’     

Penny for Your Thoughts: Beggars and the Exercise of Morality in Daily Life1

Urban sociology has tended to study interactions between passersby and “street persons” with an emphasis on the ways street persons become bothersome, harassing, or dangerous. This article moves away from the focus on the ways interactions in public go awry and focuses on how individuals account for the mundane, everyday exchanges they have with strangers who seek their help. Based on interview data (N = 31) and qualitative analysis of data from an Internet survey (N = 110), this article suggests that the presence of beggars does not inherently symbolize urban decay to passersby and does not necessarily elicit anxiety, but instead provides a valuable texture of urban life. Further, the article argues that individuals, when justifying their responses to requests for help from needy persons (beggars) in urban spaces, use a variety of cultural strategies to maintain their perception of themselves as moral persons, both when they choose to help and when they refuse. Drawing from these findings, the article suggests that urban sociology and the sociology of risk would benefit from sensitizing their studies of public interactions to the diverse meanings individuals assign to them, rather than presupposing annoyance, anxiety, or fear as their predominant characteristic.     

Asset Accumulation: An Alternative Approach to Achieving the Millennium Development Goals

The United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are unlikely to be achieved by 2015, owing to conceptual flaws in their design as well as the structural and political constraints faced during implementation at the country level. While criticism of the MDGs is widespread, innovative ideas on addressing these operational challenges are still scanty. By reviewing a number of experiences, including those of the Foundation for the Promotion of Local Development (PRODEL) in Nicaragua and the Ministry of Cities in Brazil, this article highlights the importance of incorporating an asset‐accumulation perspective into MDG‐related policies and programmes as a way of generating an enabling environment that opens up new opportunities for poverty reduction in the cities of low‐ and middle‐low‐income countries.     

建构一个新的城乡一体化分析框架：机会平等视角

对城乡一体化的现有研究或采用经济学视角,或采用制度学视角,而很少采用机会平等视角。研究认为:不论是经济资源配置还是制度和政策制定,都要视对城乡机会平等的影响如何,来判断其是否促进城乡一体化进程。机会平等是城乡一体化的本质属性。当然,机会是复杂、多样的,可以划分为基本生存机会、中层机会和高层机会,与此同时,平等也可以划分为形式平等和实质平等。在推进不同类型机会平等上,城乡一体化表现出不同的进度。该分析框架可以更好地分析我国城乡一体化进程(包括地区城乡一体化进程)。     

基于模糊理论的城市快速路交通状态检测算法

通过分析流量、速度、占有率与城市快速路交通状态的关系,提出了一种基于模糊理论的城市快速路交通状态检测算法。通过在深圳市某快速路上的实际验证表明,该算法在能保证一定的检测率情况下,具有较低的误报率和较少的检测时间,表明此方法在实际应用中是切实可行的。     

关于建立城乡统一的社会保障体系的浅见

建立城乡统一的社会保障体系不仅是学术界争论的焦点，也是实践部门讨论的热点。各种主张众说纷纭。然而，建立统一的社会保障体系不能凭空设想，应立足于实际，坚持具体问题具体分析。当务之急是根据农村的情况，分地方、分人群、分层次建立安全有效的农村社会保障体系。     

Black men teaching: toward a theory of social isolation in organizations

ABSTRACT

While there continues to be increasing research about Black male teachers’ school-based experiences, there is less empirical evidence on the variation in these experiences for this subgroup. Drawing on Kanter’s Theory of Numbers and Group Composition, the researcher used the qualitative method to compare the perceptions of Black male teachers in schools that employ just one Black male teacher versus schools with larger numbers of Black male teachers. A theory of social isolation in organizations is proposed to explain differences in the variation of school-based experiences for Black male teachers. When compared to Black men in schools with larger percentages of Black male teachers on the faculty, those Black men who were the only Black male teachers on their faculty were more likely to describe feeling socially isolated and disconnected from their colleagues.     

漂泊的洞察——我的学术研究之路

本文作者作为中国恢复高考制度后的第一届大学生,以亲身经历讲述了其学术成长之路。其学术研究从五个方面概括:一是都市人类学,包括乡村都市化、城市少数民族以及传统乡村研究主题在城市的延续;二是农民工研究,从发起农民工研究,到散工研究,从"二元社区"研究到"打工经济"研究等;三是乡村研究,以凤凰村为起点,研究了岭南、中部以及西部的乡村社会;四是族群研究,以澳门族群研究为起点,对中国族群认同与关系作研究;五是应用研究。     

应用型城市管理专业人才培养模式的探索与思考

在我国新型城镇化发展的新阶段,对于具有先进城市管理理念、掌握现代城市管理理论与方法、具有较强综合协调能力的高素质城市管理人才需求迫切,城市管理人才培养存在严重的供求缺口.本文结合城市管理专业发展趋势,试图从课程体系、教学内容、教学方式和实践教学四个层面,构建契合社会需求的应用型城市管理专业人才培养模式,并提出切实可行的对策建议.     

基于PRECEDE-PROCEED模式的城市新弱势社区老年人健康行为研究

城市新弱势社区伴随着日益加速的城市化进程而出现,包括集中安置被征地农民及城市低保群体?本研究依据健康促进生态学的PRECEDE-PROCEED模式,针对该类社区老年人健康需求的特异性,探索影响老年群体健康行为的倾向因素?促成因素和强化因素,提出城市新弱势社区老年人的健康干预策略,以期在健康的知?信?行改变过程中达成健康干预的目标?