Search results

In this paper, the author advocates recognizing, developing, and promoting “critical interactionism” as a legitimate and pragmatically useful scholarly project. The author argues that critical interactionism includes different interactionist traditions, critical approaches, methodological styles, and sensitizing concepts – as long as they tell us something about how power and inequality operate. I review two fundamental elements of this project that constitute its past and likely future: (1) theoretical interventions that excavate critical insights, diversify founders, integrate critical theories, and promote interactionism's usefulness for critical inquiry and (2) empirically grounded conceptual interventions that shed light on generic processes of inequality reproduction. Although the larger discipline of sociology continues to marginalize interactionism yet selectively adopt its principles, critical interactionism has the potential to break through what David Maines called the fault line of consciousness. The promise of critical interactionism is that it can simultaneously make interactionism more relevant to our discipline and make our discipline more relevant to the social world.

In this chapter, we review the historical development of elite theory, and then we propose a way forward beyond it. Elite theory emerged as a critique of democracy in the late 19th century. Although it used historical materials illustratively, it tended to be ahistorical theoretically because its primary aim was to demonstrate the perdurance of elites even in conditions of mass suffrage. Lachmann was the first scholar to develop elite theory as a truly historical and explanatory framework by combining it with elements of Marxism. Even Lachmann's theory, however, remained inadequate because it did not rest on a fully articulated theory of power. In this introduction, we suggest a “relational power theory” as a remedy to this situation, and we use it to formulate a general heuristic for the study of elites, nonelites, and their interrelationships. To illustrate its utility, we show how it can illuminate the chapters in this volume (though they were not necessarily written for these purposes).

This study investigates the diverse career experiences of gig workers by looking at a sample of gig workers that are living a calling through online labor platforms (OLPs). Drawing from the systems informed positive psychology (SIPP) framework we examine the experiences and dynamics through which individuals can enact their calling through OLPs.

We conducted 34 semi-structured interviews with gig workers who are able to live their calling through OLPs. The interviews were analyzed by using a grounded theory approach.

Our findings reveal that gig workers sense of living a calling is rooted in the experience of being and feeling independent. Furthermore, we identify three dynamics of calling enactment through OLPs which are: (1) engaging in personal development, (2) constructing social fit and (3) stabilizing finances.

While many studies document the precarious nature of the gig economy, our paper offers rich insight into positive career experiences of gig workers. Through taking a systemic view on individuals’ ability to live a calling, we illustrate how individuals interact with different features of OLPs to enact their calling. Finally, we suggest that besides direct dynamics of calling enactment there are also indirect dynamics of calling enactment that play an important role in individuals’ ability to live a calling in the gig economy.

While it has been argued that sport organizations are a socially integrative factor in societies, research on sport and social inclusion is short on the role of leadership. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the degree to which inclusive leadership enables social mobility for participants in a social inclusion program through sport.

This study is based on a fieldwork study composed of focused, multi-sited and collaborative ethnography principles. It draws upon data from four sport clubs that are members of the Norwegian Equestrian Federation (NEF) and associated with a social inclusion program for people with a history of substance abuse disorders (SUD).

Through the enabling of participants’ agency capabilities through prototypicality, shared leadership and cognitive efforts, incentives for utilizing inclusive leadership are presented. The study also presents perspectives on social mobility that are less prone to inflexible categorization and more attuned to people’s sense of belonging and identities.

By coupling unique fieldwork data with theories on subjective social mobility, leadership and meaningfulness, the study presents novel insights into how inclusive leadership play a pivotal role in empowering people with SUD to enhance their social mobility capabilities.

This paper aims to respond to the need for “socially sustainable settlements for all” and the need for successful integration within the settlements through building strong social constructs among the settlers.

Mixed methods were used in this study. A sample size of 332 households in Pagirinya Refugee Settlement was used. The settlement is divided into six blocks, each block is subdivided into clusters. Each cluster comprises of 100 households. Due to variations in the number of households in each settlement block, the authors used a proportional sampling approach to determine the number of respondent households in each settlement block. Data was collected through questionnaires, interviews and focus group discussions. Chi-square and an interdependent multivariate statistical analysis were performed to establish the relationship between housing and social sustainability.

The study finds a significant relationship between housing and social sustainability when considered jointly on the variables of roofs of buildings and how often the refugee respondents meet with neighbours (p = 0.018) and when considered jointly on the variables of the width of access roads and how knowledgeable the refugee respondents are about their neighbours (p = 0.018). The study also finds a significant relationship between housing and social sustainability when considered jointly on the variables of the number of direct access roads to the households and the number of friends of the refugee respondents (p = 0.019).

With limited literature, this is a novel approach. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous studies focused on the specifics of a building and analysed its relationship with the social dynamics, especially in settlement studies.

This study examines how executive directors of family business centers deploy sensemaking to create psychologically safe environments while engaging members in peer group activities.

A qualitative case study approach was employed, involving semi-structured interviews with five executive directors from four different family business centers in the USA. The study also draws on document analysis.

The findings reveal that these directors navigate a complex and uncertain environment where the need for member engagement and the need for a safe environment sometimes contradict each other. Their sensemaking draws on both cognitive and social processes to accomplish meaning-making, often involving a cyclical process of noticing, discernment and enactment. This effort is, at times, constrained by the directors’ inability to gather cues due to their commitment to maintaining confidentiality and privacy within peer groups, limiting their ability to directly observe discussions. Despite this constraint, sensemaking enhances the directors’ capability to foster safe and engaging environments, though the challenge of balancing members’ needs for confidentiality with a safe and productive engagement environment remains a continuous reality.

This study highlights the crucial role of sensemaking leadership in family business networks, requiring directors to balance individual and group needs. Leadership development should focus on enhancing this sensemaking ability. Family business centers must be designed with flexibility and adaptability to accommodate evolving needs. This involves attentive observation, balanced programs, psychological safety and continuous learning. These findings extend to any peer group requiring high trust, emphasizing the leader’s role in creating a safe and engaging environment that balances individual needs with collective goals.

This study makes several original contributions to the literature. First, it extends existing knowledge on sensemaking by exploring its application in a previously under-researched context: how executive directors navigate complexity and uncertainty within family business networks. Second, it examines how sensemaking informs the ongoing challenge of balancing peer groups’ need for a safe engagement environment with the need for productive engagement, an area that has not been explicitly addressed in prior research. By shedding light on these under-explored aspects of sensemaking, this study offers valuable insights for both researchers and practitioners involved in family business networks and peer group management.

Supply chain collaboration is increasingly important in today’s competitive business environment. While prior research has acknowledged the role of relationships in facilitating collaboration, few studies have considered inter-personal and inter-organisational attributes simultaneously. This study addresses this gap by investigating these two levels of the manufacturer-supplier relationship in Vietnam’s fishery industry and their impacts on supply chain collaboration.

The study employed a quantitative approach. A questionnaire was distributed to 635 fishery manufacturers in Vietnam by the drop-and-collect method. EFA and CFA were used to assess the reliability and validity of the measurement model, while CB-SEM was employed for structural model assessment and hypothesis testing.

Supply chain collaboration encompasses incentive alignment, collaborative communication, decision synchronisation, and information sharing. All antecedents, including commitment, inter-organisational trust, reciprocity, and inter-personal trust, positively affect collaboration. Inter-personal trust positively influences the other antecedents, and inter-organisational trust enhances commitment. Furthermore, there are partial mediating effects among these relationship attributes. However, no significant moderating effect regarding firm size is observed.

The study extends the social exchange theory to encompass both inter-personal and inter-organisational relationship attributes. Additionally, it pioneers in investigating the interrelatedness of these antecedents. By addressing the research gap in the Vietnamese fishery supply chain, it offers valuable insights for both academics and practitioners, contributing to theoretical understanding and practical implications in supply chain collaboration.

This study aims to capture organizational transformation by delving into the process of business model (BM) reconfiguration in small firms operating within low-tech industries. It seeks to uncover the specific BM components that enabled a traditional less volatile and smaller organizations to adapt and innovate. We offer some recommendations in the form of insights for practitioners and other firms facing similar challenges.

We analyzed the history of a small firm belonging to a low-tech industry. Applying a single case study allowed us to explore organizational transformation in depth over time and identify the essential elements in the process of changing the BM. The analysis was performed using the procedural approach, with narratives, visual maps and temporal staggering.

The small firms went through many changes that resulted in BM reconfiguration at the organizational and industrial levels. The role of partners was relevant in this process, as well as organizational flexibility and more adaptable planning to make the necessary changes over time. The findings demonstrate the dynamism of the BM, with the prioritization of changes in organizational resources and capabilities, in order to adapt to the external environment, over time to create and capture value in a low-technology-intensive sector.

This study contributes a novel perspective to the field of Business Model Innovation (BMI) by highlighting the dynamic nature of BM in the under-explored area of small-scale enterprises of non-technology-intensive sectors. It emphasizes the critical role of serendipity, ambidexterity, pivoting, partnerships, adaptive planning and financial process organization in achieving sustained value creation and capturing value in the evolving external environments.

The purpose of this review is to examine the current state-of-the-art in artificial intelligence (AI) implementations within library settings across Southeast Asia.

The study uses the AI Library Services Innovative Conceptual Framework (AI-LSICF) to evaluate the AI initiatives in Southeast Asian libraries. Sources include relevant libraries and association’s websites, mainstream newspapers across Southeast Asia, together with academic papers published between 2019 and 2024, with a focus solely on English-language literature.

Most of the Southeast Asian libraries are in the decision and implementation stages in utilising AI technologies into library operations. It is evident that most of the libraries have made the decision to embrace AI techniques in the workplace and have started to implement the AI-enabled applications. Nevertheless, those implementations are not yet comprehensive and most of the projects are still in the trial stage. This suggests a unanimous decision concerning the use of AI in the libraries across the region has not been reached. Librarians may still face challenges and concerns in adopting AI, including resource constraints, application maintenance, staff reluctance, staff training, data security concerns and more.

A limitation of this study is its focus on completed and published projects, due to limited access to ongoing or unpublished initiatives. Non-English publications were excluded which may have omitted relevant studies and insights from non-English-speaking countries.

This paper seeks to address the gap by conducting a review of the current landscape of AI applications within libraries across Southeast Asia. Its aim to provide valuable insights for Southeast Asian libraries which seek to leverage AI advancements, ultimately supporting more user-centric and technologically adept library services.

The originality of this paper lies in its unique perspectives on library settings in Southeast Asia, showcasing successful projects while also pinpointing areas and countries in need of further development.

This article examines the role the Australian Trade Union Training Authority (TUTA) played in international education through the provision of trade union courses and exchanges. We consider how an investigation of trade union networks contributes to a richer understanding of international education linkages.

This paper is based on research conducted for an Australian Research Council (ARC)-funded project: Trade union training: reshaping the Australian industrial landscape (ARC LP180100500). This research involved a critical analysis of 60 semi-structured oral history interviews and textual archives, including the official records held by the National Archives of Australia and papers held by the Noel Butlin Archives, the Australian Council of Trade Unions and in private collections.

TUTA was established primarily as a national union training organisation, but from its inception, it also acted as a hub for the development of regional and international labour networks. The nature of TUTA’s work placed it at the intersection of international trade union and educational domains. Although there were some points of contact with formal international programs (e.g. Japan–Australia and Kellogg Foundations, the Colombo Plan and US Department of Labour exchanges schemes), the specific contribution of TUTA is overlooked in the educational exchange literature. The role of TUTA is revealed through institutional connections and individual experiences.

Further research is required to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of TUTA from the perspective of former participants in international TUTA course and current and former trade unionists in the Asia–Pacific.

This article builds new knowledge by examining the connections forged in the Asia–Pacific region at the intersection of trade union and educational networks, an area often overlooked in the literature on educational exchange.