Search

Power dynamics influence every aspect of scientific collaboration. Team power dynamics can be measured by team power level and team power hierarchy. Team power level is conceptualized as the average level of the possession of resources, expertise, or decision‐making authorities of a team. Team power hierarchy represents the vertical differences of the possessions of resources in a team. In Science of Science, few studies have looked at scientific collaboration from the perspective of team power dynamics. This research examines how team power dynamics affect team impact to fill the research gap. In this research, all coauthors of one publication are treated as one team. Team power level and team power hierarchy of one team are measured by the mean and Gini index of career age of coauthors in this team. Team impact is quantified by citations of a paper authored by this team. By analyzing over 7.7 million teams from Science (e.g., Computer Science, Physics), Social Sciences (e.g., Sociology, Library & Information Science), and Arts & Humanities (e.g., Art), we find that flat team structure is associated with higher team impact, especially when teams have high team power level. These findings have been repeated in all five disciplines except Art, and are consistent in various types of teams from Computer Science including teams from industry or academia, teams with different gender groups, teams with geographical contrast, and teams with distinct size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accompanying the ageing of contemporary ageing societies is an increase in age associated morbidity, with dementia having an important impact. Mental frailty in later life is a source of fear for many and a major policy concern to all those concerned with health and welfare services. This introduction to the special issue on 'Ageing, dementia and the social mind' situates the selected papers within the context of debates about dementia and its social relations. In particular it draws attention to the importance of the social imaginary of the fourth age and what this means for the issue of personhood, care, social representations of dementia and its social contextualisation. The papers illuminating these themes draw on a variety of disciplines and approaches; from the social sciences to the humanities and from the theoretical to the empirical in order to help orientate future researchers to the complexities of dementia and the social and cultural matrix in which it exists. This paper provides an introduction to the potential for a more extended sociology of dementia; one which could combine the insights from medical sociology with the concerns of social gerontology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rationale, aims & objective Tools for the assessment of the quality of research studies tend to be specific to a particular research design (e.g. randomized controlled trials, or qualitative interviews). This makes it difficult to assess the quality of a body of research that addresses the same or a similar research question but using different approaches. The aim of this paper is to describe the development and preliminary evaluation of a quality assessment tool that can be applied to a methodologically diverse set of research articles. Methods The 16-item quality assessment tool (QATSDD) was assessed to determine its reliability and validity when used by health services researchers in the disciplines of psychology, sociology and nursing. Qualitative feedback was also gathered from mixed-methods health researchers regarding the comprehension, content, perceived value and usability of the tool. Results Reference to existing widely used quality assessment tools and experts in systematic review confirmed that the components of the tool represented the construct of 'good research technique' being assessed. Face validity was subsequently established through feedback from a sample of nine health researchers. Inter-rater reliability was established through substantial agreement between three reviewers when applying the tool to a set of three research papers (κ = 71.5%), and good to substantial agreement between their scores at time 1 and after a 6-week interval at time 2 confirmed test-retest reliability. Conclusions The QATSDD shows good reliability and validity for use in the quality assessment of a diversity of studies, and may be an extremely useful tool for reviewers to standardize and increase the rigour of their assessments in reviews of the published papers which include qualitative and quantitative work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this journal is to provide a medium for the publication of original papers covering the entire span of sociological thought and research. The editor is particularly keen to publish work on current developments in research and analysis. All contributions, correspondence and books for review should be addressed to The British Journal of Sociology, London School of Economics, Houghton Street, London. Papers submitted for publication are normally read by at least two assessors as well as by one of the editors. The editor's decision will be final. A decision of an article will usually be sent to authors within four months of submission, however, whilst every effort will be made to follow this practice, it should be understood that there may be circumstances where this will be difficult to guarantee. Articles submitted to the journal should be an original piece of work, not been published before and not being considered for publication elsewhere in its final form either in printed or electronic form.

The paper discusses a survey of British academic human geographers enquiring about change and diversification within personal research activities, their nature, motivations and impacts. It argues that this is widespread and a significant aspect of the production of contemporary geographical knowledge. The findings highlight the range of motivations underpinning research change, its impacts and mediation through the institutional context of British human geography. It concludes that despite a more prescriptive institutional context geographers have a degree of autonomy, albeit somewhat fettered, to shape their own research trajectories to some extent. This provides some important capacity with which to engage with imminent challenges facing the discipline in the UK). The paper complements recent critical histories of geography and sociological accounts of the discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bourdieu is an important thinker within the sociological tradition and has a philosophically sophisticated approach to theoretical knowledge and research practice. In this paper, we examine the implication of his work for nursing and the health sciences more broadly. We argue that his work is best described as a reflexive realist who provides a space for a nonpositivist approach to knowledge that does not fall into the trap of idealism or relativism. We emphasize that Bourdieu was not an abstract theorist, but only utilized theories to understand and explain the social world in all its empirical complexity. Theory is emphasized over method without denying the importance of method. We then provide a brief overview of some of his key concepts: habitus, field and capital. His work is a scientifically astute practice that has an emancipatory purpose, with particular resonance to the problems of nursing as a social practice. Some have criticized Bourdieu for undermining agency and we briefly address this issue, but argue that his conceptual framework helps us to understand what endures in social practice and why change is often problematic. In short, this paper argues that Bourdieu's work is a fruitful resource for critiquing existing nursing approaches that are preoccupied with agency over structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that current child and childhood research is problematical in as much as there is a discrepancy between theory and research practice. Although in theory, children are conceptualised as active agents in the social world, the type of research that children are typically involved in implies that children are competent, knowledgeable and affective only in terms of their own lives, their own spaces, their own childhoods. The implications of this discrepancy are discussed. The paper concludes that although research that contributes to a greater understanding of childhood experiences is important, it is equally important to involve children in research that goes beyond ‘childhood’. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To provide rigour when preparing a research design, the researcher needs to carefully consider not only the methodology but also the philosophical intent of the study. This, however, is often absent from reported research and provides the reader with little evidence by which to judge the merits of the chosen methodology and its influence on the study. The purpose of this paper is to set out the case for critical realism as a framework to guide appropriate action in practice development and realistic evaluation for understanding the consequences of those actions. It is evident that critical realism and critical social science share common ground. Emancipatory practice development (ePD) is based on the philosophy of critical social science and therefore by virtue is linked to the tenets of critical realism. Until now, the evaluation of ePD programme has been well served by 4th-generation evaluation. However, this paper outlines the need for a different approach to evaluation, one that is based on critical realism, that is concerned with emancipation, and that can be used in the ever-changing environment of clinical practice. Realistic evaluation not only links strongly to ePD programmes, but also serves as the basis for effective research questions that will test the outcomes of the research and inform the transferability of ePD mechanisms into differing contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses spatial inequality as an emerging specialty area in sociology. Rural sociologists have long attended to spatial inequalities. The authors tend to view their work as uniquely centered on the rural experience, as opposed to occupying the forefront of spatializing stratification theory and of sociology as a whole. First the development of sociological interest in spatial inequality is discussed, providing an overview of factors that have contributed to a spatial trend in the study of stratification. Then, the implications for rural sociology are discussed, describing how rural sociologists contribute to research on spatial inequality, and distinguishes the approach of rural sociology from those of other subfields and disciplines. Finally, some examples of research in this emerging specialty area are highlighted by drawing from papers included in this issue. The authors call for the development of research based on qualitative approaches to provide deeper insights into the processes linking space with stratification, both from the perspective of people who are disadvantaged and from the standpoint of those who enjoy an advantage because of such a connection. They encourage the development of international and cross-national research on spatial inequality to broaden the understanding of the links between space and inequality.

This paper is based on a qualitative research study, Children, Parents and Risk. This study looks at the ways in which risks to children are understood and managed by children and parents. The paper focuses on two areas of the research—gaining access and interviewing—in order to show how the research process itself has constituted an important source of data on childhood and risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper attempts to provide an overview of ethical issues related to social research with children. It sets the discussion in the context of current debates about researching children in the UK, and explores the extent to which children should be regarded as similar to, or different from, adults in social research, focusing on how children are positioned as vulnerable, incompetent and relatively powerless in society in general, and how this conceptualisation of children needs to be taken into account in social research. The paper concludes with some practical and methodological suggestions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Census of Agriculture is an important source of data for persons interested in studying the structure of agriculture. The census has been used to study agriculture and quality of life in Kansas recently and aggregated state level data was used to describe the relationship between farm size, agriculture and energy consumption. As sociological interest in agriculture, grows, it is likely that the Census of Agriculture will become the source of many more studies. Unfortunately, the units of analysis reported in the Census of Agriculture like-aggregate national, state and county statistics-create problems for those who use them for sociological purposes. This short article will illustrate some of the problems inherent in the use of census materials by reexamining some of the data used on recent papers on energy and agriculture. A serious difficulty posed by the use of census material for sociological research stems from the fact that census data are aggregated on the bases of political units like states and counties.

Discusses the objectives of the periodical "British Journal of Social Psychology." Ground rules guiding any methodology; Capacity of the periodical to juxtapose papers using contrasting, even conflicting methods and epistemologies; Commitment of researchers to a paradigm or mode of investigation.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including the innovative ways to address gaps in research concerning young people and disabled children, impact of disability studies on disabled children research, and policy concerning the rights of young people and disabled children.

The paper tells of the social constructs surrounding young children with learning difficulties in their home, 'special' early education setting and 'inclusive' or mainstream early education setting in England. The exploratory study focused on how three- to four-year-old children made sense of their environments and how their identities were constructed by different parties in the different contexts. Ethnographic case studies were conducted using semi-structured and informal interviews with parents and practitioners, documentary analysis, fieldnotes, and live and video observations. Shared constructions across the contexts for each child were common, with constructions of them being happy and making progress pervasive across the children and settings. Differences in constructions across settings indicated that qualities could shine or negative constructions be tempered, thus showing the role of the environment and the culture of inclusion in socially constructing children with special needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to provide a reflective - and selective - review of key developments in media and crime research and theory from the vantage point of the new century. Writing primarily as a criminologist, though with a background in sociological theory and research, information studies, and cultural analysis, I will seek to identify some of the turning points and questions that emerge from what is a recently rejuvenated and expanding field. For the last decade media/crime research has been able to draw on an exciting array of multi-disciplinary sources of inspiration in a way that has not happened before, and suggests new - intellectually complex - challenges for future work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper makes a case for academic research and writing that looks beyond the learning potential of technology and, instead, seeks to develop social scientific accounts of the often compromised and constrained realities of education technology use ‘on the ground’. The paper discusses how this ‘critical’ approach differs from the ways that educational technology scholarship has tended to be pursued to date. These differences include viewing technology as being socially constructed and negotiated rather than imbued with pre-determined characteristics; developing objective and realistic accounts of technology use in situ; and producing ‘context rich’ analyses of the social conflicts and politics that underpin the use of technology in educational settings. The paper concludes by encouraging academic researchers and writers to show greater interest in the issues of democracy and social justice that surround educational technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A social choice function satisfies the tops-only property if the chosen alternative only depends on each person's report of his most-preferred alternatives on the range of this function. On many domains, strategy-proofness implies the tops-only property provided that the range of the social choice function satisfies some regularity condition. The existing proofs of this result are model specific. In this paper, a general proof strategy is proposed for showing that a strategy-proof social choice function satisfies the tops-only property when everyone has the same set of admissible preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Management academics have tended to rely on ethics codes developed by social researchers in related fields to inform their research practice. The point of this paper is to question whether this remains a viable approach in the current climate that is characterized by a significant increase in ethical regulation across the social sciences. We suggest that management researchers face ethical issues of a different nature to those most frequently confronted by other social science researchers, and argue for more explicit acknowledgement of contextual factors involved in management research. An exploratory analysis of the content of ethics codes formulated by nine social scientific associations is undertaken to identify the main ethical principles they cover and to analyse their underlying ethical tone. Drawing attention to the principle of reciprocity, which is found in very few codes, we suggest that an ethics code could be used to formulate new ways of thinking about management research relationships. Despite the risk that ethics codes may encourage instrumental compliance with minimal ethical obligations, we suggest they also have the potential to reflect a more aspirational agenda. The development of an ethics code for management research should therefore be seen as a potentially worthwhile project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the international research on young people leaving care. Set in the context of a social exclusion framework, it explores young people’s accelerated and compressed transitions to adulthood, and discusses the development and classification of leaving care services in responding to their needs. It then considers the evidence from outcome studies and argues that adopting a resilience framework suggests that young people leaving care may fall into three groups: young people ‘moving on’, ‘survivors’ and ‘victims’. In concluding, it argues that these three pathways are associated with the quality of care young people receive, their transitions from care and the support they receive after care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT:In order to delimit the realm of social phenomena, sociologists refer implicitly or explicitly to a distinction between living human beings and other entities, that is, sociologists equate the social world with the world of living humans. This consensus has been questioned by only a few authors, such as Luckmann, and some scholars of science studies. According to these approaches, it would be ethnocentric to treat as self-evident the premise that only living human beings can be social actors. The methodological consequence of such critique is a radical deanthropologization of sociological research. It must be considered an open question whether or not only living human can be social actors. The paper starts with a discussion of the methodological problems posed by such an analysis of the borders of the social world, and presents the results of an empirical analysis of these borders in the fields of intensive care and neurological rehabilitation. Within these fields it must be determined whether a body is a living human body or a symbol using human body. The analysis of these elementary border phenomena challenges basic sociological concepts. The relevant contemporary sociological theories refer to a dyadic constellation as the systematic starting point of their concept of sociality. The complex relationship between at least two entities is understood as the basis of the development of a novel order that functions as a mediating structure between the involved parties. Based upon empirical data, I argue that it is necessary to change this foundational assumption. Not the dyad but the triad must be understood as the foundational constellation. This implies a new understanding of the third actor, which is distinct from the concepts developed by Simmel and Berger and Luckmann. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper comments on that article "Sociology and political arithmetic: some principles of a new policy science," by Hugh Lauder, Phillip Brown and A.H Halsey in this issue of "The British Journal of Sociology." Two key issues are addressed in a selective way. First, what is and what should be the role of social science, and sociology in particular, in informing policy making. Second, what is the wider role of social science in facilitating the democratic debate, and in holding policymakers to account. Too little social science research is directed at important issues Incentives in academia are not well aligned to achieving socially optimal goals, whether that be for inter-disciplinary working or policy influencing behavior.

The section presents the abstracts of articles featured in the International Social Science Journal.

Identifying, locating and interpreting both what is present and what is not present in theory and data lies at the core of scientific practice. Most experienced researchers know that social reality and psychological phenomena cannot always be apprehended directly, and that the forces that shape them must often be inferred rather than positively demonstrated. Yet, the important analytical problems raised by "absence" have rarely occupied the centre stage in professional journals. The aim of this paper is to sensitise researchers to the problem of absence. It considers the various guises in which absences may appear, their repercussions in the research process, and the solutions that researchers have used to render absences visible. The paper focuses on the issue of absence as it appears in theory and research on social representations. A typology of absence, structured in terms of the research process, is proposed. The typology is intended purely as a heuristic tool. It identifies and discusses forms of theoretical, methodological, empirical and analytical/interpretive absences. This typology is used to explore forms of absence and their interrelationships throughout the research process in three studies on social representations. The discussion as a whole contributes to reaffirming the radical character of the theory of social representations by stressing how the latter locates the space of explanation at the interface between individual and collective representations, between social and cognitive processes, between intentional and non-conscious dynamics, and between material and symbolic realities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Private cord blood (CB) banking is more widespread than public banking in Jordan, contributing to misinformation and unequal access to resources. This study elucidates unique perspectives of women in Jordan toward CB banking for the purpose of national and international policymaking, ethics, and education.Study Design and Methods: The authors developed and disseminated a questionnaire to women in maternity outpatient clinic waiting rooms in five different hospitals in Jordan. A total of 899 surveys were collected with 100% return rate: 464 surveys from private hospitals and 435 from public ones. Data were reported as frequency distributions, chi-square and Fisher's exact test statistics, and odds ratios.Results: Patient demographics, self-reported knowledge, and opinions about CB banking differed significantly between women at private versus public hospitals. Women at private hospitals had higher levels of awareness and communication with a health care professional about CB banking, which is associated with more positive viewpoints on CB banking and a self-reported higher likelihood of participating in CB banking in the future. Furthermore, religious approval and father-only consent for CB banking must be considered as unique factors in CB storage in Jordan.Conclusion: This analysis aids in identifying discrepancies in knowledge, resources, and communication, as well as unique population preferences. Comprehensive culturally attuned educational campaigns for patients and physicians should be a national priority to ensure ethical practice, informed decision making, and sustainable programs before the opening of Jordan's first public CB bank in 2017. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accomplished sciences are distinguished by an active orientation to data. Rather than explaining passive observations or even laboratory results, these sciences put a premium on creating effects or objects never before observed. Theories provide a basic for denying the data, in showing how nature can be better organized to produce some new effect or object. In this paper, a method for constructing these theories is developed A sociological application is carried out to the point where an accomplishment is claimed. A very peculiar object is discovered - a relationship. Though it does not resemble anything we may have ever observed it offers to groping actors a guide to something that works and hence could become something that is commonly observed. Likely scruples are addressed that might block the pursuit of such accomplishments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reader is taken on a journey spanning some 25 years devoted to the author's involvement in stress research as a sociologist of health. The starting point is work on life stressors, moving to the distinction between tension and stress and the concept of generalized resistance resources. In the course of the story, consideration is given to the difference between the study of diseases and of dis-ease. The next step taken is the formulation of the salutogenic problem and its implications for health research, in contrast to the traditional study of pathogenesis. Finally, the meaning of the sense of coherence, an orientation to the world as comprehensible, manageable and meaningful, and hypothesized to be a core variable in shaping coping with stressors and thereby influencing health status, is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The appropriateness and desirability of researching children have been issues of some debate. Children may be perceived as non-competent or vulnerable, and proxies have been used as children's representatives. Increasingly researchers are speaking to children directly. Why is this so and what are the methodological and ethical implications of researching children's views? In this paper the authors draw on their own experiences of researching children in the fields of child carers and the impact of the Child Support Act 1991. A number of social, political and legal trends are identified which form a background to the growing interest in children as potential and actual participants in the research process. The theoretical, methodological, ethical and practical issues involved are then identified and described, using examples from two separate studies conducted by the authors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The title of a collection on `ethics and methodology of research with children' implies that research with children necessarily raises unique questions about ethics and methods. Our paper questions whether this is so, what the unique questions might be and how they arise. We consider that any extra complications in research with children are common to research with other `minority' groups. The main complications do not arise from children's inabilities or misperceptions, but from the positions ascribed to children in late twentieth-century Western societies. Clarity about the social origins of any complications in research with children is crucial if these complications are to be addressed. Ethics, methods, theories, data and policy conclusions are inextricably interwoven, and it is important to acknowledge how initial theories inevitably shape policies. Reasons are given fir preferring rights-based to child-centred ethics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes patterns of scientific growth that emerge in response to major research accomplishments in instrumentation and the discovery of new matter. Using two Nobel Prize-winning contributions, the scanning tunneling microscope ( STM) and the discovery of Buckminsterfullerenes ( BUF), we examine the growth of follow-up research via citation networks at the author and subdiscipline level. A longitudinal network analysis suggests that structure, cohesiveness, and interdisciplinarity vary considerably with the type of breakthrough and over time. Scientific progress appears to be multifaceted, including not only theoretical advances but also the discovery of new instrumentation and new matter. In addition, we argue that scientific growth does not necessarily lead to the formation of new specialties or new subdisciplines. Rather, we observe the emergence of a research community formed at the intersection of subdisciplinary boundaries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The goal of this exploratory study was to identify and describe notable cases of consumer involvement in Australian health research to generate insights and concepts, and assist others to develop and build capacity in this area. Methods: In-depth interviews were conducted with nine organisations known to be active in this area. The interviews were supplemented with content analysis of relevant documentation to further examine involvement strategies. Results: Key attributes that aid consumer involvement competence and contribute to success in this area are identified, including the availability of time, resources and supporting policies, principles and attitudes that securely back opportunities for consumers to be involved in meaningful ways. Conclusion: This study provides an important contribution to our knowledge and understanding of consumer involvement practice in Australian health research. The examples do not offer definitive approaches but rather highlights and lessons drawn from experiences in consumer involvement across a diverse range of organisations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author discusses the importance of incorporating a sociological perspective into dietetic education, research and practice. Topics include dietetic programmes accredited by the Dietitians Association of Australia; need of effective and evidence-based interventions to deal with nutrition-related problems in Australia and need for dietetic profession to understand social drivers of behaviour and qualitative research methodology.

Until quite recently, questionnaire surveys, semi-structured interviews and the gathering and interpreting of various documents have been the main kinds of empirical research to be found in French sociology. Observation plays a leading role in none of them, even in the latter. The researchers who use it do not seem convinced of its legitimacy, because what can be expected from systematic observation does not fit the prevailing purpose of developing abstract, general theories. After having sketched out the institutional and intellectual background, this paper examines a few examples of French studies using observation. Most of them fail to clearly distinguish between indirect evidence and direct observation, between meaning as construed by the observer and that experienced by the people observed; they rarely report dated and situated facts (even more seldom behaviors than settings), and they replace the expected analyses of these messing facts with the interpretation of would-be typical or usual facts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The methodological adequacy of research reported in Rural Sociology since 1965 is examined. In addition, trends in areas of interest during the decade are compared with earlier periods In general, the quality of reported research improved over the decade. The increase in use of multivariate techniques, the projection of dynamic models, and the consideration of nonlinear forms of relationships all point toward an increasing sophistication of rural sociological research. Problems with sampling, measurement, and analysis stand out as areas in need of substantial improvement. Suggestions are made for improving both the quality of research and the reporting of research findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generational analysis has developed rapidly in recent years. Three progressive stages of theory and research can be traced: (a) a "classic" period during which competing perspectives were developed regarding the impact of youth groups on social structure (Mannheim, Parsons and Eisenstadt, Davis and others); (b) a phase focused on interpretations of the youth protest movement or on processes in old age, and characterized by the development of new conceptual and methodological tools to examine change over time; (c) a period of consolidation and reformulation, with more precise specification of competing theoretical frameworks and the analysis of a growing body of empirical data. From this effort five issues emerge which summarize the perspective of generational analysis: (a) definition and dimensions of "generation" as a construct; (b) assessment of continuity or discontinuity between age groups; (c) exploration of the persistence of generation units over time; (d) analysis of within-generation solidarity; (e) articulation between generations and other dimensions of social structure. A feedback model appears useful in assessing the relationship between generations and social stability or change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an in-depth analysis of the implications of an emerging field such as Family Studies adopting the conceptualizations and methods originating in other disciplines, for often markedly different purposes. While acknowledging the debts we owe to sociology, psychology, economics, anthropology and biology for important theories and methods which have opened new doors for family research, the author argues that our field faces a serious deficit in the instrumentation necessary to bring innovative theoretical methodology and sophisticated analytic techniques into a clear and usable scientific focus. The author takes a hard and critical look at the consequences of this for advancement in our field. In addition, a working model for "doing" family science is presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The background and history of the three major studies that have been made of Middletown (Muncie, Indiana) are traced. The findings of these studies are summarized, their contributions evaluated, and their receptions described. The problems inherent in trying to replicate results over a lengthy span of years in community research are analyzed, concluding with some thoughts on the future of community studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this essay it is argued that the dualism between pure inductive and deductive research processes can be overcome by introducing retroduction. Retroduction makes possible a research process that is characterized by the linking of evidence (induction) and social theory (deduction) in a continually evolving, dynamic process. It will be argued that research processes characterized by retroduction have a potential that can be utilized within research on the greening of industry. This research is typically carried out as case studies, with some links to theory. These links can be made more explicit through retroduction and in turn increase our understanding of the contradicting relations between industry and the social and environmental context it is operating within. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This study investigated how student participation in an authentic scientific investigation may shape underrepresented students' views of science and support students in learning science. The research centered on the instructional approach used in a fifth-grade classroom to engage English language learning students from Latino backgrounds in a geological investigation using Devonian fossils. The teacher combined the use of inquiry with multicultural education strategies and explicit instruction in nature of science. The unique combination of these instructional strategies, which we refer to as 'multicultural inquiry,' provided students with opportunities for experiencing scientific activities and negotiating their understandings about scientific culture. Through this instructional approach, students demonstrated science learning and also came to view science as (1) more than just a subject at school, (2) different from media-based depictions, and (3) aligned with the actual disciplines of geology and paleontology. Students also demonstrated self-identification with scientists and interest in pursuing scientific careers. These changes highlight the value of bringing actual scientific practices into classroom settings as related to student views of science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the Mulford and Mulford article, which was based on research project in rural sociology in Greene County in Iowa. This analysis is a complete enumeration of the instances of cooperation or conflict in closely related incorporated centers. Specific causes of the relationships presented were not investigated but opinions regarding causes were expressed by the interviewees on general patterns of community concern. Data supports the conclusion that the small towns were overorganized and that competition for members was active enough to result in conflict for group survival. Sociograms were used to picture relationships between groups as social units.

ABSTRACT Although considerable work has been done to develop new educational innovations, few have found widespread acceptance in the classroom. To improve the likelihood of adoption of educational innovations, researchers need to understand why some innovations are adopted and routinely used, while others are not. An initial aspect of the diffusion of innovations, as defined in the classical sociological literature, involves the communication of ideas and concepts related to innovations between individuals. This article presents an expert panel's answer to the following question: 'What are the most important characteristics that relate to the dissemination of educational innovations?' As dissemination is a critical facet of the diffusion of an innovation, 45 researchers who received technology and engineering grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) participated in a Delphi study designed to address this research question. In three rounds, the experts identified and ranked 11 characteristics of educational innovations, 6 characteristics of students, 13 characteristics of faculty members, and 5 characteristics of administrators that can relate to the successful dissemination of educational innovations. The results of this study led to the formation of a Characteristics of Dissemination Success (CODS) framework. This framework offers useful guidance for educational innovators seeking a better understanding of the influences on the dissemination of educational innovations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Childhood studies have argued for the social construction of childhood, respecting children and childhood in the present, and recognising children's agency and rights. Such perspectives have parallels to, and challenges for, disability studies. This article considers such parallels and challenges, leading to a (re)consideration of research claims to represent children's 'voices' and the current promotion of children's participation as researchers. It concludes how research with disabled children encourages due account of multiple communication methods to access, analyse and present research, and being more reflexive about assumptions of competency, expertise and agency in the roles of researcher and research participant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children are increasingly described as agents and agency is important to arguments for children's rights and participation. Yet agency is rarely defined or theorised in childhood studies. This article reviews common uses and meanings of agency and argues that critical, social conceptualisations have yet to be extensively taken up in childhood studies but offer much to the field. Based on the work of Giddens, his critics and feminist theory, I propose a model of agency that is more ambivalent than that usually presented in childhood studies. Given the conventional emphasis of agency on articulation, rationality and strategy, a failure to incorporate a critical, embodied, engendered, material account of agency into childhood studies risks reinscribing a model in which privileged children will be accorded more agency than those who do not display rationality and choice in conventional ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fifty years ago, Robin M. Williams Jr. described eight notable changes in U.S. sociology, one of which was the “widespread diffusion of a relatively clear and sophisticated conception of the place of values in sociological study, as an object of research, as a factor in behavior, and as an element to be controlled in the prosecution of research” (Williams, 1958:621). In this essay, I ask what has become of that rising interest in the sociological study of values? I follow three distinct trajectories of sociological research on values, briefly describing the contributions of each, and identifying several lines of inquiry that strike me as particularly important and promising for the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The definitions of individualism/collectivism and the content of scale items used to assess them could explain the lack of cross-cultural differences reported in some research. Specifically, existing scales may not adequately assess expected cultural differences. In study 1 , a new scale was given in Japan and the USA. Three factors were identified in both cultures. Japanese scored higher on the others focus factor but scored lower on the helping others factor than the US Americans. In study 2 , a forced choice version replicated results in study 1 . In studies 3 and 4 , the factor structure and cultural differences were replicated and the convergent and the divergent validities of the scale were examined. Results indicate that Japanese may be more others oriented depending on the item content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research should be judged by the questions asked and the critiques offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the implications of ethnography to the human-subjects research through the network of local institutional review boards in the U.S. It focuses on informal fieldwork at home that exaggerates the qualities that make ethnographic research in anthropology and sociology in the institutional review board context or the human-subjects committees.

The article reports on developments related to the International Social Science Council (ISC) as of December 2005. ISSC president Lourdes Arizpe has addressed the 33rd Unesco General Conference. Four organizations have been accepted to membership in the council which includes the Economic Social and Research Council, German Research Foundation, Research Council of Norway and the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research. Two task forces were set up in pursuit of the Strategic Planning Advisory Committee recommendations. The International Global Social Change Programme was successfully held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on September 7-8, 2005.