Search

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss the challenges the author had encountered and the counter-strategies she had adopted to overcome them while conducting ethnography for the first time during her doctoral research. In this paper, the author hopes to provide guidance for future researchers by discussing the role she played in her research, the experiences she gained as a result of it, the difficulties she faced and the strategies she employed to overcome these difficulties. Design/methodology/approach: Following the social constructionist perspective, this paper analyses the experience that the author had gained during her field study. As a novice researcher, the author entered the field to study the relationship between caste and occupational mobility. The caste that she had selected was the Kansari caste to which the author belongs. Therefore, her position as a researcher while conducting ethnography became a crucial part of the methodological challenges the author faced. While insider ethnography has its advantages and disadvantages, this paper does not discuss these aspects of the methodology. Instead, it discusses how, as a novice researcher, the author had to negotiate her position as an insider and outsider. Findings: While analysing her experience as a novice researcher, the author found that her journey of conducting insider ethnography was of rediscovering herself as a Kansari as well as a researcher. Through this research, the author found that as an insider ethnographer, certain strategies had to be adopted in the field by the researcher to be objective and unbiased throughout the research process. For example, whenever the author conducted an interview, she tried to try to say less, listen more and be as objective as possible, without allowing her preconceptions to influence the information she gathered from the field. Originality/value: This is an original paper based on the primary data collected by the author.

In the context of the distinction between normative and descriptive approaches to the relationship between science and religion, this article discusses the recent work of the sociologist Elaine Ecklund. It reviews four of her published outputs, summarising her data concerning the views of religious people and professional scientists, including their positions on the relationship between science and religion and on cognate issues, and discusses her attempt to show the relevance of these data in a particular formational context. It seeks to evaluate and extend her work from a multidisciplinary perspective.

This article introduces a collection of papers comprising the special issue, "Competing interests: Parents, Schools and Nation States." Drawing on the seven papers in the collection, and situating them in recent developments in the sociological field, the article discusses globally shifting relations between families, schools and the state across a range of nations in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries (Australia, Germany, India, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, USA). The article proposes that the school is a crucial site for relations between family and state, and argues that a significant focus of the material and occupational investment of contemporary parents is the formal education of their children, re-shaping not only the relationship between parents and schools but also the nature of parenthood itself. In the contemporary context of global neoliberal education reform, parents are analysed both as local actors in schools and as subjects of national and international policy regimes.

The broad question that interests this article is how does one read and compare the negotiations public and private universities are making with the neo-liberal paradigm of knowledge production with reference to their social science curricula. Michael Apple's (1993, "Teachers College Records," 95(2), 222-241; 2001, "Currículo Sem Fronteiras," 1(1), i-xxvi) argument that curriculum is not a 'neutral assemblage of knowledge' but a crafted vision of 'legitimate knowledge' produced by hegemonic powers within society forms the theoretical foundation for this article. To understand the changes within a university's academic practice, this article analyses and compares the undergraduate and postgraduate sociology curricula of two public universities (Delhi University and Ambedkar University), an international university (South Asian University) and one private university (Shiv Nadar University), as well as engages with its practitioners to assess the everyday within these universities. The undergraduate and postgraduate sociology curricula across public and private universities indicate certain convergences in their academic approaches. The universities in question encouraged foreign university collaborations, reframed the course structure to strengthen the university-industry linkages and increased the employability of the students. Interdisciplinary and contemporary papers are offered through new modes of pedagogy. The mode of assessment also focus on writing research papers/dissertations and frequent visits to the field to develop an application-based approach to learning. The neoliberal paradigm of knowledge production affected the convergence of academic practices of public and private universities despite difference in governance structure. This convergence problematises the meaning of 'public' in a liberalised, privatised and globalised society.

The papers making up this Special Section reveal important findings and begin to fill gaps in existing literature about children's and young people's understanding and developing beliefs about socio-economic inequality and poverty. We draw on our research experience with children growing up in poverty in Ethiopia, India, Peru, and Vietnam (Young Lives) from the perspective of sociology of childhood and social anthropology. The commentary discusses the papers in the Special Section and calls for policies and practices that argue for social justice for children and young people in political and economic terms and emphasizes the importance of including children's views and descriptions of their experiences in research about poverty and inequality.

The Pakistani Hindu community inhabiting a camp in the city of New Delhi presents the most recent case of South-to-South migration. Migration into India for this community has been undertaken with an aim to achieve a better life, especially one characterized by better education for their children. Education for the families from this community is associated with progress, improvement, development of intellect, and a means to put an end to the families' endless roaming. However, the visions and aspirations for the future meet with difficulties stemming from the nature of their migration and the absence of any transactional relationship with the Indian state due to their lack of citizenship.

This article introduces a number of methods that can be useful for examining the emergence of large-scale structures in collaboration networks. The study contributes to sociological research by investigating how clusters of research collaborators evolve and sometimes percolate in a collaboration network. Typically, we find that in our networks, one cluster among the leading ones eventually wins the growth race by percolating through the network, spanning it and rapidly filling up a significant volume of it. We show how this process is governed by the dynamics of cluster growth in the network. When operating in a percolating regime, this class of networks possesses many useful functional properties, which have important sociological implications. We first develop the methodological tools to perform a study of the intrinsic clustering process. Then, to understand the actual large-scale structure formation process in the network, we apply the theoretical methods to simulate a number of realistic scenarios, including one based on actual data on the collaboration behavior of a sample of researchers. From the perspective of social science research, our methods can be adapted to suit the application domains of many other types of real social processes.

Examines the impact of the state on the institutionalization of modern science and technology in non-Western societies. Conditions for the degree of development of science are explained. The institutionalization of modern science and technology in Japan and India are also compared and contrasted. (ML)

Describes India's recent development of science and technology in terms of social change, economic progress and national power. Explores the causal links between science and technology and the role public policy has had in the attainment of technological autonomy. Examines myths of science associated with Third World countries like India. (ML)

Explores the concept of good teaching in universities worldwide by interviewing professors and exchange students from USSR, England, Spain, Yugoslavia, the Soviet Union, Turkey, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan. Finds that teaching receives low priority in elite institutions while universities with open access consider good teaching important. (KO)

To identify and compare prominent symbols of social relationships used in children's reading materials, a sociological analysis was made of literary materials used for developing children's reading in grades four, five, and six in India and Canada. (HOD)

Western‐trained doctors in India struggled to establish themselves as a medical 'profession' in the 1920s and 1930s and these struggles continued into the post‐colonial period. The direction of travel is, however, no longer clear. Increasing evidence of a crisis in doctors' collective ability to provide a form of self‐regulation since 2000 is highlighted. India's Supreme Court suspended the operations of their country's medical councils in the face of a proliferation of poorly regulated private medical colleges. Practitioners of alternative systems of medicine and unqualified medical practice continue, while new 'short‐course' doctors take over tasks previously restricted to fully fledged MBBS doctors. The diversification of the social origins of medical students, with rising numbers of doctors from a wider range of social backgrounds, threatens their aspirations to high status. There is little diminution of the earnings of elite doctors, yet their conditions of work are increasingly constrained by financial targets. Young doctors face uncertain futures. This article analyses the increasingly diverse occupational positions of doctors in India using a Bourdieusian lens and asks whether an alternative, stable form of institutional arrangements is emerging, as some have claimed, or if fragmentation is a more apt description. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in India, due to strict lockdown, the family members of the victims of COVID-19 had to witness the dying and death of their relatives in solitude, improper funerals, and the absence of death rituals. After in-depth interviews with twelve relatives of seven deceased patients conducted more than a year after experiencing those deaths of loved ones, it was found that most of them had been struggling with long-term complicated grief without a sense of resolution. As funerals and death rituals, following the work of Van Gennep in his 'Rites of Passage', ensure the transition of grievers from a preliminal state by preparing for the imminent loss to a postliminal renovated stable state by reabsorbing them into the collective social and cultural conditions, the absence of that compels the mourners to get stuck in a liminal state, or limbo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The framing of the Indian Constitution (1946-50) was a pivotal moment in the history of indigenous communities (colloquially adivasis, officially scheduled tribes) and their relationship with the state. This essay makes three interventions. First, I contest the prevailing emphasis in Indian history and sociology on seeing indigenous politics as primarily in opposition to state institutions and laws. Instead, drawing on representations from indigenous organisations to the Constituent Assembly (CA), I highlight an earlier trajectory of engagement with law-making and state institutions. Second, I show how tribes saw the making of the constitution as an opportunity to be recognised as both equal citizens and distinct communities and offered real alternatives in constitutional design and ideas of democracy. What is particularly interesting is how, despite the different constitutional histories of countries with indigenous populations, there is common core to the demand for 'constitutional recognition' involving cultural, political and resource autonomy. Third, through a close reading of CA and committee deliberations, I show how personalities, processes and contingencies and not abstract rational deliberations alone shaped constitutional design. Here, I add to the literature locating the 'force of law' in the procedural movement of files. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The trajectory of the academic discipline of sociology is an attestation to the quest for civility and sociability. We believe that the promise of public sociology will rejuvenate scholars to commit to better engagement with one another and with the public. We situate and draw from the scholarly contributions of Michael Burawoy to reflect on sociology's longstanding critical imagination, hoping that the world could be different. We place ourselves on the continuum of what is and what ought to be for better lived experiences and a sustainable planet. We draw from the work of sociologists in India, which continues to guide us to amplify the voices of the unheard and the issues of public concern. To be inclusive, sustainable, democratic, and humane, we need to move beyond structurally ingrained processes within academia and make bridges that are open to all. The deliberation furthered in this paper will encourage young scholars to be more concerned for engaging multiple publics and, thereby, help the discipline of sociology itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

No nation is untouched by domestic violence, and it is well-known that it seriously impacts women's health and well-being. The present study aims to assess the prevalence and characteristics of domestic violence during the COVID-19 pandemic, as compared to the years before, using National Family Health Survey (NFHS) data from 2015-16 and 2019-21. The NFHS collects data nationally through surveys covering various topics, including domestic violence. For this study, graphical representations were created of physical, sexual, and spousal violence and marital control to compare data. Analysis showed that the prevalence of domestic violence has increased during the COVID-19 lockdown, and there has been no significant improvement in domestic violence rates, despite the disparity in the age of respondents between the two surveys. This indicates that more social and governmental programs and policies must be implemented to improve the prevalence of domestic violence in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We estimate the returns (measured by hourly earnings) to education, experience, and social networking in India using individual-level panel data from the India Human Development Surveys. We combined the two latest waves of this survey using individual-level identifiers to generate a balanced panel and merged it with various household characteristics. We provide estimates of private returns for an additional year of education and experience by consumption quintiles, gender, caste, and religion in a fixed-effects Heckman model that controls for selection bias. This methodology improves upon estimates of all earlier studies on earnings in India, as most of the literature has relied on cross-section data or pseudo-panel data. We also examine the impact of social networking on earnings, which is under-explored in nationwide studies in India. We find that education significantly and positively affects earnings for all consumption quintiles, gender, caste (except schedule castes), and religious groups. Among economic groups, the highest returns are observed for the third quintile above the poverty line. Returns to females for an additional year of education are nearly double that of males but the difference in starting earnings keeps earnings of males higher for long periods. Among the castes, scheduled castes have the highest returns to education and other minorities among religious groups. Social networking positively impacts males, Hindus, and the quintile just above the poverty line. Experience positively impacts women's earnings, general caste and scheduled caste, Hindus and Other minorities and two consumption quintiles (two and five) above the poverty line. Plain Language Summary: Impact of Education, Experience, and Social Networks Impact Earnings in India by Class, Gender, Caste and Religion Purpose: Enhancing human capital is critical for India's development. It would help overcome existing labor market hierarchies based on economic class, gender, religion, and caste. We study the impact on private earnings of (a) an additional year of education and experience, and (b) social networking. Methods: We use an individual level panel dataset assembled from the two latest rounds of the Indian Human Development Survey (I&II). Our Heckman type earnings equation controls for selection bias. Results: An additional year of education increased earnings between (a) 2.4% and 8.8% among different consumption quintiles (b) 3.7% for males to 5.2% for females, (c) 1.5% (STs), to 5.9% (SCs), and (d) 2.3% (Muslims), to 9.9% (Other Minorities). Experience increased earnings of two economic groups, females, the General and Scheduled castes, and of Hindus and Other Minorities. Social networking increased earnings of males, Hindus, and one economic quintile. Conclusions: Higher marginal returns to education for females justifies greater investment in women's education. Lower returns on education among STs and Muslims indicate the need for affirmative action for these groups. The positive returns to education for the poor suggests that anti-poverty programs in combination with educational opportunities for the less privileged would meet the goals of social justice. Implications Better education (SDG4) would help achieve gender equality (SDG5), and social justice for marginalized (economic, caste and religious) groups (SDG1, SDG10). Limitations: We were unable to account for ability bias. Stratification by state and sector would provide better estimates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the contradictions of neoliberal urbanism in the context of Indian cities. Focusing on gated neighborhoods as a quintessential feature of neoliberal urbanism, it unpacks the changing meaning and significance of gated neighborhoods (GNs) and their representative organizations, the Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs), in mediating the relationship between the propertied middle classes and the urban poor. A few decades into the making, I argue that neoliberal urbanism is beginning to produce contradictory outcomes through its specific elements such as the GNs. Using the case of domestic workers, I show that domestic workers are performing collective actions and targeting GNs as a whole. Domestic workers' actions are subverting the purpose of physical features and institutional features of GNs to their advantage as workers. How can middle-class residents' tools of control and exclusion become the new means of power and resistance for a section of the urban poor—domestic workers? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sociology of culture is an important field that examines how societies create, maintain, and transform their cultural practices and beliefs. In the context of Bangladesh and India, this field is particularly relevant due to their rich and diverse cultural heritage. This paper explores the sociology of culture in these countries, focusing on cultural similarities and differences. Through a literature review of research from anthropology, sociology, history, and related fields, we will examine the historical background of cultural development in both countries, considering the impact of colonialism, nationalism, globalization, language, ethnicity, and religion. We will then present a comparative analysis of cultural practices, beliefs, and values, drawing on empirical data and case studies. This paper aims to contribute to our understanding of the sociology of culture in Bangladesh and India by shedding light on their diverse cultural heritage and exploring the ways in which cultural practices and values are shaped by historical, social, and political factors. By comparing the cultural similarities and differences between these nations, we hope to deepen our understanding of how culture is influenced by the broader social and political context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unanticipated outbreak of Coronavirus had proven detrimental to human existence. It had created waves of panic, anxiety, and fear among people hence facilitating stigmatization toward an infected person. This stigmatization further influences patients health-seeking behaviour due to the trust deficit in the public health system. The virus had placed the world in an impotent situation as people helplessly watched their loved ones pass away in the absence of effective treatment. Dead bodies are denied a dignified death due to mandatory guidelines prescribed by countries to control the pandemic. This article attempts to understand the process of stigmatization of Coronavirus and its mechanism of influencing the health-seeking behaviour of people. Moreover, the way this stigmatization, accompanied by fear and anxiety, led to the denial of having a dignified death in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sportification of kabaddi, a traditional Indian game, is manifested through the organization of certain rules and establishment of institutions that have enhanced its appeal as a global sport for both men's and women's teams in three forms of the game: the standard style, beach kabaddi, and circle-style kabaddi. The theory of sportification assumes that all sports tend to develop along similar patterns toward increased specialization, standardization, and rationalization. However, the sportification and internationalization of kabaddi can be conceived as a hybridization of both Western and non-Western ideologies through processes aimed at replacing old forms of discourse with new ones. The focus of this article, therefore, is to situate kabaddi's sportification and internationalization, from a sociological perspective, within key conceptions of codification, rationalization, and institutionalization. The article significantly draws on the works of Weber, Marx, and Elias, and ends with a call for expansion of sociological inquiry in the study of traditional games which has, until now, largely been informed by discourses from sports science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through its colonial, class‐ and caste‐based history, English in India has come to be seen as a powerful resource that opens doors for those who 'have' it and holds back those who do not. For women, English ostensibly offers various promises in addition to employment: progressiveness and 'empowerment'; and the potential for upward mobility through marriage. Yet, the conversion of English capital for English‐speaking Indian women proves to be intensely complex in practice, as many find themselves forced to navigate between shifting moral regimes attached to 'tradition' and 'modernity'. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork in an NGO in Delhi that offers free English training to 'disadvantaged youth', this paper explores how English capital is managed by young women striving to attain middle classness through English, and how their class, caste and gender positionings are negotiated across particular time‐space configurations as they seek to become English speakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper rekindles a three-decade-old debate in the annals of Indian anthropology / sociology which became dormant after no significant headway was made. The debate which goes by the name of "crisis in sociology" in India provides the backdrop against which the paper makes sense of current regimes of knowledge production that a doctoral candidate in India must navigate. By doing so, the paper reflects on the limitations of epistemological critiques wherein an epistemic critique stops at the corridors of an academic workplace. The paper argues that doctoral candidates in India today are cognitive workers engaged in exploitative relations of knowledge production. However, these exploitative relations are obfuscated by the postcolonial epistemological critiques that indulge in foregrounding the hegemony of the North / West. The paper proposes an infrastructural critique of knowledge that does not respond with despair to perceived transformations and crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper traces the history of sociology in India to colonial anthropology and Indology. I argue that the compulsions of post-colonial society have also made specific demands on the discursive terrain of sociology. Fundamental to the pursuit of sociological knowledge in India, I believe, was a core debate about its mode of discursive practice – specifically, a debate between particularistic and universalistic orientations. From this point of view, I re-read the history of sociology in India. In doing so, I argue that close attention to the history of sociology helps us see the extent to which foundational western approaches to historical and comparative sociology have affected the historical development of sociology in India. Ironically, this has meant that the degree of historical self-awareness in Indian sociology has been limited. Hence, I discuss the grounds for the weak historical self-awareness in terms of historical sociology in India. I conclude by discussing how a strengthened tradition of historical sociology can be a tool to revitalize the discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In India, where around 19,500 dialects are spoken, there is a great abundance of fiction quite rich in varied descriptions of old age and aging. While scholars like Pramod K. Nayar and Ira Raja have recently begun studying Indian literary texts written in English from the perspective of literary gerontology, those literary experiences of aging (which are originally in languages like Bengali, Tamil, Hindi, Oriya, etc.) are yet to be analyzed from a gerontological point of view. The present paper aims at studying the experiences of old age in 2 Indian short stories (one from Bengali Literature and another from Tamil Literature)—Bibhutibhusan Bandyopadhyay's "Drabomoyee Goes to Kashi" ("Drabomoyeer Kashibash" in Bengali) and T. Janakiraman's "The Puppet" ("Vilayattu Bommai" in Tamil). Regarding "Drabomoyee Goes to Kashi," the paper interrogates the problems in the emplacement of Hindu older widows to Kashi and explores the possibilities in Drabomoyee from ecofeminist and creatural perspectives. The discussions on "The Puppet" chiefly reflect on the social exclusion of the aging bodies of people living with dementia. Through the story of Venu, the paper shows that what the society or family generally expects from the older persons suffering from dementia may not do any good to them, and may instead lead to their institutionalization and other forms of exclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There appears to be a globally unifying discourse that suggests Muslim communities are not supportive of girls' education12. This paper aims to destabilize such a discourse by inserting the narratives of Muslim parents pursuing girls' education in Assam's Nagaon district. By paying attention to the concepts of bhal suwali (good girlhood) and bhal ghor (good family) articulated by parents in my study, this paper connects the performances of certain types of gender practices with the pursuit of class aspirations. It shows that good girlhood works as symbolic capital that helps Muslim parents to culturally authorize their daughters as legitimate actors in the field of education, while legitimizing themselves as good family. This paper draws attention to three practices of respectable femininity through which good girlhoods are enacted in the field of education, namely: negotiating poverty respectably, prioritizing gendered discipline, and merging career aspirations with marital prospects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay looks at three books on the histories of anti-colonialism: Desai's the United States of India, Getachew's Worldmaking after Empire, and Gopal's Insurgent Empire. I argue that despite it not being the authors' primary focus, these books collectively push forward the sociology of race. In particular, each of these books shows the importance for contemporary race and racism scholarship to adopt a transnational, temporally connected approach which is able to both study and forge global anti-colonial solidarities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the work of two Indian sociologists who defined the contours of sociology in India in the immediate post-independence decades, M. N. Srinivas and A. R. Desai. It argues that their scholarship can be linked to sociology's legacy as anthropology in India and its embeddedness in the episteme of colonial modernity. It contends that Srinivas's methodology, the field view, attempted to make a break with earlier methods, such as book view. However, his three concepts, that of dominant caste, Sanskritization and Westernization were perceived as civilizational attributes and which had organized social change in India. A. R. Desai, a Marxist historical sociologist, made an incisive critique of capitalist exploitation and elaborated the material conditions that led to peasant and working-class revolts. However, his sociology could not unravel the caste-class linkages that organized the Indian 'social' which was embedded in Indian nationalism. This paper suggests that a definitive understanding of modernity emerges in Indian sociology in the late 70s when the feminist, dalit and tribal movements interrogated the material basis of contemporary India's developmentalism and its capitalist and exploitative character. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elder abuse impacts one in six older persons globally. Most studies of elder abuse have focused on risk factors rather than protective factors, individual-level factors rather than structural factors, and developed countries rather than developing countries where resources are scarce. The current study addressed these gaps by examining whether neighborhood social cohesion and physical order could be such structural-level protective factors for older persons in India. Our cohort consisted of 541 participants aged 60 and over in the pilot wave of the Longitudinal Aging Study in India. We found that older persons with high neighborhood social cohesion were 38% less likely to experience abuse compared to older persons with low cohesion (OR = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.39–0.99). Similarly, participants with high neighborhood physical order were 48% less likely to experience abuse compared to older persons with low physical order (OR = 0.52, 95% CI = 0.32–0.83). Both models adjusted for relevant covariates. Policies supporting greater cohesion and order in communities could reap significant health benefits for older persons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India is one of the largest countries in the world in terms of area and population as well as possession of material and human potential, it is one of the oldest civilizations known to humanity and is characterized by the ancient civilization and diversity of cultures, religions and classes in addition to the diversity of its surface and its climate and the flowering of the blessings and natural resources, so the country was vulnerable to colonial domination, particularly the British colonial which makes its history passes, a lot of revolutions and uprisings against colonization. India has known a great diversity in the composition of the society of its various races, in addition to a clear contrast in its surface and climate, its prosperity and good things made it vulnerable to invasion over the ages, and India's position in terms of the geosynthetic location, the physiological structure and the political situation in India. India, like other developing countries that rely on agricultural production as an essential means to progress and achieve its sufficiency, even if it reaches a reasonable stage of growth in this field, it could turn to the development of its industries, so that they contribute with agriculture in advancing the economic development of the country, strong in the field of rapid economic growth, and cultural advancement which is its ultimate goal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although effective communication has been the most important attribute of success in the workplace, poor communication has hindered employees from performing well. This outcome worsens when communication occurs between cross-generational groups in an organization. Literature review: Prior research suggests that Millennials, who make up a large cohort of the population in workplaces, are technologically savvy, multitasking, and result-oriented but considered to be deficient in their communication skills. There exists a divergence between Millennials and previous generations in terms of their attitude, behavior, and value system. Research questions: 1. Is there a significant difference in the communication styles of Millennials and their predecessors in India? 2. Are Millennials communication deficient? 3. Do their Gen X predecessors lack the skills to recognize different generational preferences in order to effectively lead a multigenerational workforce? Research methodology: For this investigation, a 36-item questionnaire measured 12 interpersonal styles through three items each on a Likert-type scale. Results: The results presented in this study are not limited to generational stereotyping but rather claim to be accurate and context-sensitive. Millennials defied general stereotypes in several ways. The findings confirmed that although Millennials are different, they are not necessarily communication deficient. Conclusion: To flourish, Millennials and their predecessor and successor generations should strive to adapt to each other by avoiding stereotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: India poses a novel tobacco problem with majority of the tobacco users consuming smokeless form of tobacco (21.4%). Gul is one such Smokeless Tobacco (ST) product that is manufactured commercially as a dentifrice to be applied to the teeth and then to gums many times during the day, making it a cheap and easy tobacco source. Hence, the aim of the present study was to estimate the usage of Gul and its social determinants among adults in the capital city of India, Delhi.Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted among 1300 adults across 27 Delhi government dispensaries across 3 districts of Delhi through multistage stratified random sampling. A structured, close-ended, validated questionnaire inquiring about the tobacco practices was used for all the participants and a specially constructed, structured, close-ended, validated proforma was used for Gul users to assess practice and pattern of use.Results: The overall prevalence of Gul users was found to be 4.9% with a mean usage duration of 6.28 ± 6.75 years. The usage was found to be more among males (67.7%) and unskilled workers (45.2%). 74.9% started using Gul to treat dental pain with 93.47% of them reporting pain relief.Conclusion: Gul usage is an emerging menace in Delhi. Awareness programs and initiatives are the need of the hour to bring this tobacco product under the tobacco control policy radar and at the same time educate people about the actual contents and ill effects of Gul usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Malnutrition among children is one of the most pressing health concerns middle- and low-income countries face today, particularly those in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Early-life malnutrition has been shown to affect long-term health and income. One hypothesized channel linking early-life malnutrition and long-term outcomes is cognitive development. However, there is limited empirical evidence on the relationship between nutritional status and cognitive achievement in middle childhood. Study design: As part of the South India Community Health Study (SICHS), we collected educational attainment and anthropometric data from 1,194 children in rural Vellore district of Tamil Nadu, India, and assessed their math and reading skills. We analyzed the relationship between continuous and binary anthropometric measures of nutritional status and three measures of cognitive achievement (reading, math, and grade level), adjusting for potential confounders, using a regression framework. Results: Lower height-for-age and weight-for-age and their corresponding binary measures (stunting, underweight) were associated with lower reading scores, lower math scores, and lower grade level, with the exception of the association between weight-for-age and reading, which was marginally significant. A stunted child had one-third of a grade disadvantage compared to a non-stunted counterpart, whereas an underweight child had one-fourth of a grade disadvantage compared to a non-underweight counterpart. Lower BMI-for-age was associated with grade level and marginally associated with lower math scores, and its binary measure (thinness) was marginally associated with lower math scores. Conclusions: Acute and chronic malnutrition in middle childhood were negatively associated with math scores, reading scores, and educational attainment. Our study provides new evidence that cognitive achievement during middle childhood could be an important mechanism underlying the association between early-life malnutrition and long-term wellbeing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The evidence on the factors associated with childhood bloody diarrhea in developing countries in general and India, in particular, is somewhat limited. Our study, therefore, examines—the prevalence of bloody diarrhea; the magnitude of treatment of bloody diarrhea (use of both oral rehydration and antibiotics (pills, syrups, and injections)); and several other associated factors with bloody diarrhea in the youngest children under five years in the Indian context. Methods: We used data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)—4 conducted in 2015–16. We used a multivariable binary logistic regression model to identify the factors associated with bloody diarrhea. We also applied a multinomial logistic regression model to identify associated factors with the treatment of bloody diarrhea amongst the youngest children below five years. Findings: The overall prevalence of bloody diarrhea in the youngest children was about 9 percent in the last two weeks preceding the survey. There was a significant difference in the mean age of those children having bloody diarrhea and watery diarrhea during the same period. Children whose stools were disposed of unsafely and those who belonged to households with neither a place nor water for washing hands were more likely to suffer from bloody diarrhea compared to their counterparts with these facilities. About a little less than one-fifth of the youngest children (16%) received adequate treatment of bloody diarrhea. The treatment of bloody diarrhea was associated with the health facility and maternal and children’s socioeconomic and demographic characteristics. Conclusion: The study shows that household environmental risk factors are important predictors of bloody diarrhea amongst the youngest children. Still, 28% of those children did not receive any treatment of bloody diarrhea in India. There is also a clear need to promote the practice of safe disposal of children’s stools and handwashing among mothers and children. Mothers need to be sensitized about the necessity of an immediate visit to a health facility/center in case of bloody diarrhea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been growing recognition of menstrual hygiene management (MHM) as a significant public health issue. However, research has predominately focused on the experiences of adolescent girls in school settings. The purpose of this research is to examine detailed accounts of menstruation for women in rural Odisha, India at various life stages with a view toward improving international monitoring of MHM. Focus group discussions and in-depth interviews were conducted to understand women’s experiences of menstruation across four life stages (unmarried women, recently married women, married women, and older women). Thematic analysis was used to identify menstruation-related challenges and needs. We found women voiced needs that aligned with those captured by the WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (JMP) definition for MHM: access to clean materials, privacy for changing materials, soap and water for bathing, and disposal facilities for materials. However, we also found women require materials that are not only clean but comfortable and reliable; soap and water for more than bathing; privacy for the full spectrum of menstruation-related practices, not just when changing; and disposal facilities that are private and safe, not just accessible. Additionally, we identified needs that extend beyond the existing definition: pain management, social support, and an enabling sociocultural environment. Overall, women representing all life stages discussed menstruation challenges, including bathing, pain, and washing, drying, and storing cloth materials. Cloth management challenges were most acute for unmarried and recently married women, who were concerned that practices could reveal their menstrual status and harm their reputations, thus informing their preference for disposable materials, if attainable. We propose a revised definition of adequate MHM for this population that more comprehensively captures their needs. This definition may also prove useful for other populations, future research, creating measures of assessment, and guiding interventions and program priorities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) was launched in India in 2005 to address the health needs of under-served populations in rural areas, and to support universal access to care. Despite this initiative, unaccredited informal providers (IPs) often remain patients’ first point of contact, which has led to inconsistencies in treatment, and has compromised the quality of care. Aim: To explore the factors that influence patients’ decisions about healthcare providers in rural areas of central India. Methods: Nine focus group discussions (FGDs) were held in nine villages in central India. Framework analysis using an inductive approach was used to analyse the data. Results: The crosscutting theme across the discussions was not choice but need—the need for affordable and accessible health care regardless of the provider’s qualification. Results highlighted that IPs play a pivotal role in villagers’ lives. Formal healthcare services were accessed infrequently, and mainly when a condition was judged severe or possibly even fatal. Even then, affordability was carefully weighed. Villagers’ distance from formal providers contributed to high cost and low preference of formal providers. When opting for IPs, familiarity and trust were more important to villagers than qualifications. IPs have operated in rural communities in India for a long time and have adapted their services to meet the needs, preferences, social norms, and economic conditions of villagers. Conclusion: IPs have captured a niche and are often the first contact point in rural settings even when patients ultimately are diagnosed and treated by trained doctors. Merely tackling the undersupply of qualified doctors is not effective or sufficient to impact on the rural healthcare system: the strong and prevalent influence of IPs needs to be addressed also. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As population health and well-being are influenced by multiple factors that cut across sectoral boundaries, an intersectoral approach that acknowledges and leverages the multiple determinants, actors and sectors at play is increasingly seen as critical for achieving meaningful and lasting improvements. In this study, we utilize social network analysis (SNA) to characterize the intersectoral collaboration between the organizations working on maternal & child health (MCH) and water & sanitation (WASH) before and immediately after the implementation of HCL Foundation (HCLF)-funded HCL Samuday Project (2015–2017) in a rural block of Uttar Pradesh state, India. While SNA has been used to examine public health issues, few have used it monitor stakeholder relationships, intervene, improve and facilitate project implementation involving intersectoral partnerships, particularly in the context of a low-and middle-income countries. Method: An organization-level SNA was conducted with 31 key informants from 24 organizations working on MCH and/or WASH in Kachhauna, Uttar Pradesh, India. Data were collected using face-to-face, semi-structured interviews between June and September 2017. Density, centrality and homophily were calculated to describe the network and a qualitative analysis was also conducted to identify the strengths and weaknesses of collaboration between organizations working on MCH and WASH. Results: Overall, our findings showed that the network of organizations working on MCH and WASH in Kachhauna grew in number since the implementation of Samuday. HCLF rapidly achieved centrality, thus positioning the organization to serve as a gatekeeper of information and enabling it to play a coordinator role within the network. Direct collaboration between other organizations working on MCH and WASH was low at both time points. Interviews with key informants indicated widespread interest in increasing interorganizational interactions and engagement throughout the network. Conclusion: This study demonstrates the feasibility and practical application of SNA for projects like Samuday that involve intersectoral collaboration. It also provides lessons about the use of SNA with organizations as the unit of analysis and in the context of rural India, including challenges, practical considerations, and limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Although most Indians live in rural settings, data on cardiovascular disease risk factors in these groups are limited. We describe the association between socioeconomic position and cardiovascular disease risk factors in a large rural population in north India. Methods: We performed representative, community-based sampling from 2013 to 2014 of Solan district in Himachal Pradesh. We used education, occupation, household income, and household assets as indicators of socioeconomic position. We used tobacco use, alcohol use, low physical activity, obesity, hypertension, and diabetes as risk factors for cardiovascular disease. We performed hierarchical multivariable logistic regression, adjusting for age, sex and clustering of the health sub-centers, to evaluate the cross-sectional association of socioeconomic position indicators and cardiovascular disease risk factors. Results: Among 38,457 participants, mean (SD) age was 42.7 (15.9) years, and 57% were women. The odds of tobacco use was lowest in participants with graduate school and above education (adjusted OR 0.11, 95% CI 0.09, 0.13), household income >15,000 INR (adjusted OR 0.35, 95% CI 0.29, 0.43), and highest quartile of assets (adjusted OR 0.28, 95% CI 0.24, 0.34) compared with other groups but not occupation (skilled worker adjusted OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.74, 1.16). Alcohol use was lower among individuals in the higher quartile of income (adjusted OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.64, 0.88) and assets (adjusted OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.59, 0.82). The odds of obesity was highest in participants with graduate school and above education (adjusted OR 2.33, 95% CI 1.85, 2.94), household income > 15,000 Indian rupees (adjusted OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.63, 2.19), and highest quartile of household assets (adjusted OR 2.87, 95% CI 2.39, 3.45). The odds of prevalent hypertension and diabetes were also generally higher among individuals with higher socioeconomic position. Conclusions: Individuals with lower socioeconomic position in Himachal Pradesh were more likely to have abnormal behavioral risk factors, and individuals with higher socioeconomic position were more likely to have abnormal clinical risk factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Women in developing countries continue to face barriers to accessing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, with marginalized women facing increased challenges to accessing care. The Diagonal Interventions to Fast-Forward Enhanced Reproductive Health (DIFFER) project implemented a package of interventions for female sex workers and women from the general population which integrated horizontal health services for the general population with existing vertical targeted interventions aimed at sex workers with an aim to improve SRH and HIV services. We present an outcome evaluation of the DIFFER project in terms of uptake rates for SRH services among sex workers in Mysore, India. Methods: Ashodaya Samithi, a sex worker-led organization, implemented the DIFFER strategy through their community-based clinic and a Well Women Clinic (WWC), established at a partner private hospital that provided SRH services for women living with HIV. Mixed methods were used to evaluate the intervention that included a baseline (2012–13) and end of project (2015–16) cross sectional surveys (CSS), focus group discussions (FGDs), key informant interviews, and analysis of service statistics from 2013–2016. Results: The CSS found that condom use, STI testing, and treatment were high before, and throughout the intervention; cervical cancer screening and treatment increased significantly, from 11.5% to 56% (aOR 9.85, p<0.001) and HIV testing in the last 3 months increased from 26.3% to 73.3% (aOR 7.25, p<0.001). The proportion of sex workers using any SRH service in the past year doubled from 25.7% to 51.4% (aOR 2.91, p<0.001). Service statistics showed similar trends. The FGDs and key informant interviews showed that women and stakeholders held high levels of satisfaction with the strategy, and affirmed potential for scale up. Conclusion: The DIFFER strategy demonstrated that SRH service uptake can occur in conjuction with HIV services offered to sex workers. This model of integrated service delivery has been accepted by policy makers and needs further analysis for scaling up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the efforts of community health workers to increase access to healthcare among ethnic minority groups in low- and -middle income countries, members of ethnic minorities are less likely than women from other ethnic groups to use maternal and child healthcare services. However, much less is known about the factors that limit access of ethnic minorities to healthcare services, including the services of community health workers in Nepal, who are known as Female Community Health Volunteers (FCHVs). To address this issue, we conducted a qualitative study to explore perceived barriers to accessing maternal and child healthcare services among ethnic minority groups in two different geographical locations (the hill and Terai regions- flatland bordering south India) with varying degrees of access to local healthcare centres. Between April 2014 and September 2014, semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty FCHVs, 26 women service users and 11 paid local health workers. In addition, 15 FCHVs participated in four focus group discussions. A thematic analysis of the data identified five major themes underlying barriers to accessing available maternal and child healthcare services by ethnic minority groups such as Dalits, Madhesi, Muslim, Chepang and Tamang. These themes include: a) lack of knowledge among service users; b) lack of trust in volunteers; c) traditional beliefs and healthcare practices; d) low decision-making power of women; and e) perceived indignities experienced when using health centres. We conclude that community health programmes should focus on increasing awareness of healthcare services among ethnic minority groups, and the programmes should involve family members (husband and mothers-in-law) and traditional health practitioners. Both the FCHVs and local healthcare providers should be trained to communicate effectively in order to deliver respectful care among ethnic minorities if we want to achieve universal healthcare coverage for maternal and child health in low- and -middle income countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Evidence highlights a global shortage of wheelchair service provision education and training that results in inappropriate wheelchair provision with associated health and economic consequences. Two learning methodologies, a hybrid and an in-person course, based on the World Health Organization Wheelchair Service Training Package Basic Level, currently are available to train wheelchair service providers worldwide. The effectiveness of the in-person methodology, used as the standard of practice, has never been tested. Meanwhile, the Hybrid Course, which combines online and in-person training, was developed to reduce training costs and to scale training interventions and has shown potential effectiveness in increasing basic level wheelchair service provision knowledge. The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of both learning methodologies based on knowledge and satisfaction among a group of wheelchair service providers in India and Mexico. Methods: We conducted a controlled quasi-experimental study to evaluate changes in basic wheelchair knowledge and levels of satisfaction between Hybrid and In-person course learners in India and Mexico. A convenience sampling method guided by local stakeholders’ input was used to recruit participants. Outcomes were assessed using self-administered online surveys, the International Society of Wheelchair Professionals Wheelchair Service Provision Basic Test (primary outcome) completed pre- and post- the learning intervention and an anonymous Satisfaction Survey (secondary outcome) completed post- intervention. Baseline characteristics were compared among groups using hypothesis tests based on their assumptions. The primary analysis was intention-to-treat. To address missing values and lost to follow-up, multiple chained imputations were conducted. The primary outcome was analyzed using linear mixed models. The secondary outcome was analyzed using a two-tailed two independent samples t-test. Results: A total of 81 participants, 43 (53.1%) in the In-person group and 38 (46.9%) in the Hybrid group, participated in the study. Mean baseline knowledge scores were below the passing cutoff of the test (53 points) in both groups. Both study groups experienced statistically significant improvements in the primary outcome when comparing pre- and post-test scores (p<0.0001) with total mean scores above the passing cutoff of the test. The in-person group experienced, on average, larger effects on the primary outcome. The difference in mean change from post-test to pre-tests between In-person groups and Hybrid was 3.6 (95% Confidence Interval: 1.7;5.4), Cohen’s d = 0.36, with a small effect size favoring the In-person training. With regards to satisfaction, the difference between the two interventions was 0.23±0.07 in favor of the In-person group (p = 0.0021). Conclusions: Both learning methodologies had a statistically significant effect in increasing wheelchair service knowledge with overall high levels of satisfaction. However, the In-person group reported overall larger effects when compared with the Hybrid methodology. This study provided recommendations on how organizations can improve blended learning interventions to enhance participants’ learning experiences and reduce potential barriers and limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Evidence on where in the hypertension care process individuals are lost to care, and how this varies among states and population groups in a country as large as India, is essential for the design of targeted interventions and to monitor progress. Yet, to our knowledge, there has not yet been a nationally representative analysis of the proportion of adults who reach each step of the hypertension care process in India. This study aimed to determine (i) the proportion of adults with hypertension who have been screened, are aware of their diagnosis, take antihypertensive treatment, and have achieved control and (ii) the variation of these care indicators among states and sociodemographic groups.Methods and Findings: We used data from a nationally representative household survey carried out from 20 January 2015 to 4 December 2016 among individuals aged 15-49 years in all states and union territories (hereafter "states") of the country. The stages of the care process-computed among those with hypertension at the time of the survey-were (i) having ever had one's blood pressure (BP) measured before the survey ("screened"), (ii) having been diagnosed ("aware"), (iii) currently taking BP-lowering medication ("treated"), and (iv) reporting being treated and not having a raised BP ("controlled"). We disaggregated these stages by state, rural-urban residence, sex, age group, body mass index, tobacco consumption, household wealth quintile, education, and marital status. In total, 731,864 participants were included in the analysis. Hypertension prevalence was 18.1% (95% CI 17.8%-18.4%). Among those with hypertension, 76.1% (95% CI 75.3%-76.8%) had ever received a BP measurement, 44.7% (95% CI 43.6%-45.8%) were aware of their diagnosis, 13.3% (95% CI 12.9%-13.8%) were treated, and 7.9% (95% CI 7.6%-8.3%) had achieved control. Male sex, rural location, lower household wealth, and not being married were associated with greater losses at each step of the care process. Between states, control among individuals with hypertension varied from 2.4% (95% CI 1.7%-3.3%) in Nagaland to 21.0% (95% CI 9.8%-39.6%) in Daman and Diu. At 38.0% (95% CI 36.3%-39.0%), 28.8% (95% CI 28.5%-29.2%), 28.4% (95% CI 27.7%-29.0%), and 28.4% (95% CI 27.8%-29.0%), respectively, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, and Haryana had the highest proportion of all adults (irrespective of hypertension status) in the sampled age range who had hypertension but did not achieve control. The main limitation of this study is that its results cannot be generalized to adults aged 50 years and older-the population group in which hypertension is most common.Conclusions: Hypertension prevalence in India is high, but the proportion of adults with hypertension who are aware of their diagnosis, are treated, and achieve control is low. Even after adjusting for states' economic development, there is large variation among states in health system performance in the management of hypertension. Improvements in access to hypertension diagnosis and treatment are especially important among men, in rural areas, and in populations with lower household wealth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]