Richard York, Eugene A. Rosa and Thomas Dietz
Ascientific consensus has emerged indicating that the global climate is changing due to anthropogenic (i.e., human induced) driving forces. Our previous research reformulated the…
Abstract
Ascientific consensus has emerged indicating that the global climate is changing due to anthropogenic (i.e., human induced) driving forces. Our previous research reformulated the well‐known I=PAT (environmental Impacts equal the multiplicative product of Population, Affluence, and Technology) model into stochastic form, named it the STIRPAT model, and used it to assess the effects of population and affluence on carbon dioxide loads. Here we extend those findings by examining the impacts of population, affluence and other factors on the emissions of the greenhouse gases (GHGs) methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2), as well as the combined global warming potential of these two gases. We also assess the potential for “ecological modernization” or an “environmental Kuznets curve” (EKC) effect to curb GHG emissions. Our findings suggest that population is a consistent force behind GHG emissions, that affluence also drives emissions, that urbanization and industrialization increase emissions, and that tropical nations have lower emissions than non‐tropical nations, controlling for other factors. Contrary to what ecological modernization and EKC theorists predict, we find that to date there is no compelling evidence of a decline in emissions with modernization. These results support both the “treadmill of production” thesis and the “metabolic rift” thesis.
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Joy‐Telu Hamilton‐Ekeke and Malcolm Thomas
This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of a teaching method (TLS (Teaching/Learning Sequence)) based on a social constructivist paradigm on students' conceptualisation…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of a teaching method (TLS (Teaching/Learning Sequence)) based on a social constructivist paradigm on students' conceptualisation of classification of food.
Design/methodology/approach
The study compared the TLS model developed by the researcher based on the social constructivist paradigm with the Regular Teaching Method (RTM) in use in the school. Students exposed to the TLS model constituted the experimental group, while the students exposed to the RTM constituted the control group. The design was a pre‐test/post‐test control design with a retention‐phase.
Findings
Results before intervention revealed gross misconceptions of pupils' classification of food, while after intervention there was significant improvement of the TLS over RTM.
Research limitations/implications
The context of the research is limited to students' conceptualisation of classification of food items into the five classes of food, i.e. carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamin, and mineral. Although food group allocation was validated from previous literature, it is still a potential limitation as a single food item may contain more than one nutrient, which makes its classification in a single food class difficult.
Practical implications
Understanding whether students' conceptualisation of classes of food is changed by the information they received by established methods would be valuable when devising methods of delivering nutrition education.
Social implications
Food provision in schools must support the messages that pupils receive through the formal curriculum.
Originality/value
Education can be immensely helpful in the pursuit of better understanding by children regarding healthy eating.
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(a) To examine “native-born/immigrant” (nativity) and “national/foreign professional credentials” (country of credentials) as status factors in terms of expectation states theory…
Abstract
Purpose
(a) To examine “native-born/immigrant” (nativity) and “national/foreign professional credentials” (country of credentials) as status factors in terms of expectation states theory, and (b) to lay out a blueprint for a theory-based, experimental research agenda in this area.
Design/methodology/approach
(for (b) above). I propose a research program based on three types of expectation states experimental designs: the open group-discussion, the rejection-of-influence standardized setting, and the application-files format. All three incorporate measures of either biased evaluations or double standards for competence, or of both. I illustrate how these designs can be adapted to assess, through the presence/absence of one or the other of those practices, the separate impacts of nativity, country of professional credentials and selected additional factors on the inference of task competence. The need for and the advantages of systematic, experimental work on this topic are highlighted.
Findings
(from (a) above). I review evidence of the status value of nativity and country of credentials through data on evaluations, employment, and earnings. My evidence originates in contemporary Canadian studies that present results from surveys, interviews, census records, and – to a lesser extent – experiments, and these findings support my claim.
Practical/social implications
The proposed research will facilitate the development of interventions toward the standardized and unbiased assessment of immigrants’ foreign credentials.
Originality/value
The agenda I put forth constitutes a novel approach to the study of nativity and country of credentials. The work will extend the expectation states program, and enhance immigration research both theoretically and methodologically.
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Mehmet Doruk Özügül and Hüseyin Cengiz
Since sustainability is an optimization between physical (both natural and man-made), economic and social dimensions of development and conservation, plans, policies and…
Abstract
Since sustainability is an optimization between physical (both natural and man-made), economic and social dimensions of development and conservation, plans, policies and applications in rapidly growing metropolises play a pivotal role for manifestation of this challenge. This article consists of three inter-related parts. First, core issues of a sustainable master plan are identified from a wide range of readings of the current literature. Second, as one of the most populated and rapidly growing metropolises of the world, Istanbul's master plans between 1980 and 2009 are evaluated in terms of their convenience to the core issues of sustainability. Finally in context of sustainability, the actual position of Istanbul is criticized on the basis of some additional qualitative and quantitative data. The above-mentioned core issues are: urban compactness, sustainable transportation, conservation of historical heritage, a clear balance between nature and man-made environments / permeability of the built environment (for natural corridors), protection of vulnerable natural assets, rehabilitation of natural ecosystems, natural resource management, a place-based economy, control of the population pressure over the environment, (low-income) housing, provision of social equity and cultural diversity. Consideration of these issues aids in analyzing the main policies of the three master plans (1980, 1995 and 2009) in context of sustainability on the one hand and picturing today's Istanbul, on the other. In fact the gap between planning and the actual situation is a characteristic problem for developing countries where illegal developments are almost legitimate. In these countries, planning also suffers from guiding development in sustainable terms due to lack of institutional capacity, participation and inadequate legal arrangements. In brief, this article focuses on the reasons and consequences of such a gap in the case of a rapidly growing metropolis.
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Jaclyn Marisa Dispensa and Robert J. Brulle
Global warming has been a well recognized environmental issue in the United States for the past ten years, even though scientists had identified it as a potential problem years…
Abstract
Global warming has been a well recognized environmental issue in the United States for the past ten years, even though scientists had identified it as a potential problem years before in 1896. We find debate about the issue in the United States media coverage while controversy among the majority of scientists is rare. The role that media plays in constructing the norms and ideas in society is researched to understand how they socially construct global warming and other environmental issues. To identify if the U.S. Media presents a biased view of global warming, the following are discussed (1) the theoretical perspective of media and the environment; (2) scientific overview and history of global warming; (3) media coverage of global warming, and (4) research findings from the content analysis of three countries’ newspaper articles and two international scientific journals produced in 2000 with comparison of these countries economies, industries, and environments. In conclusion, our research demonstrates that the U.S. with differing industries, predominantly dominated by the fossil fuel industry, in comparison to New Zealand and Finland has a significant impact on the media coverage of global warming. The U.S’s media states that global warming is controversial and theoretical, yet the other two countries portray the story that is commonly found in the international scientific journals. Therefore, media, acting as one driving force, is providing citizens with piecemeal information that is necessary to assess the social, environmental and political conditions of the country and world.
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Society’s relations to animals pose possible blind spots in sociological theory that may be revealed and illuminated by studying systems of human‐animal interaction. By…
Abstract
Society’s relations to animals pose possible blind spots in sociological theory that may be revealed and illuminated by studying systems of human‐animal interaction. By investigating whether and how animals enter into key processes that shape self and society we may determine the ways in which animals might be included in the core subject matter of sociology. An earlier discussion of the role of animals in sociology initiated by Weber is reviewed. Issues that debate raised about the extent of linguistically‐mediated human‐animal intersubjectivity are updated. It is in principle difficult to rule out animal languages, and some animals have acquired human language. But sociology may follow a more fecund empirical route by examining successful human‐animal performances produced by enduring interspecies relationships. Following this route, this paper specifically argues that the human self should be seen to take root in the available mixed species community. To show this, the work of G.H. Mead is revisited and corrected in light of recent work on early human development, and conceptual analyses of language, the body, and the self. The formation of the self is not dependent on only linguistic exchanges; a nonverbal nonhuman other can contribute to the self‐reflective sense of being a human self. Based on this reasoning, examples of studies of humans with wild and domestic animals illustrate the potential for a human‐animal sociology.
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Since Mongolia confirmed its new Constitution in 1992, it became a country with democratic political regime and armed forces for self-defense. In political and geographical…
Abstract
Since Mongolia confirmed its new Constitution in 1992, it became a country with democratic political regime and armed forces for self-defense. In political and geographical respects, it is a developing country in Asia, landlocked between two powers. In accordance with the Constitution, Mongolia adheres to the universally recognized norms and principles of international law and pursues a peaceful foreign and defense policy. Under the Constitution, Mongolia has adhered to its Military Doctrine, which was adopted by the State Great Hural in 1994, is still in effect, and serves as guiding principle of Mongolia's contemporary defense policy. What is more, the post-communist period offered Mongolia a renewed position in international affairs, and the opportunity to reassert its once-disregarded Asian identity. The author pays his attention to the issues of the constitutional basis of Mongolian defense policy, the external and internal environment of defense policy, and the purpose of the armed forces on the basis of legal acts and documents with some basic conception.
Ho Kwan Cheung, Eden King, Alex Lindsey, Ashley Membere, Hannah M. Markell and Molly Kilcullen
Even more than 50 years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination toward a number of groups in employment settings in the United States, workplace…
Abstract
Even more than 50 years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination toward a number of groups in employment settings in the United States, workplace discrimination remains a persistent problem in organizations. This chapter provides a comprehensive review and analysis of contemporary theory and evidence on the nature, causes, and consequences of discrimination before synthesizing potential methods for its reduction. We note the strengths and weaknesses of this scholarship and highlight meaningful future directions. In so doing, we hope to both inform and inspire organizational and scholarly efforts to understand and eliminate workplace discrimination.
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Luciana Turchick Hakak, Ingo Holzinger and Jelena Zikic
This paper aims to examine perceived barriers and paths to success for Latin American immigrant professionals in the Canadian job market.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine perceived barriers and paths to success for Latin American immigrant professionals in the Canadian job market.
Design/methodology/approach
Findings are based on 20 semi‐structured interviews with Latin American graduates of Canadian MBA programs. Interviews were analyzed for emergent categories and common themes.
Findings
Despite their strong educational backgrounds, participants perceived several challenges to their success in the Canadian workplace, specifically, language barriers, lack of networks, cultural differences and discrimination. They also identified factors that influenced their professional success in Canada, such as homophilious networks and their Latin American background.
Research limitations/implications
By investigating stories of Latin American immigrant professionals, the study explores subjective views of immigration experiences and discrimination in this unique and rarely examined group. A larger sample will increase the confidence of the study's findings and future studies should examine dynamics of these issues over time.
Originality/value
This paper presents insight onto the labor market experiences and coping mechanisms of the currently understudied group of Latin American immigrant professionals in Canada. The study's qualitative approach enabled the examination of challenges experienced by immigrant professionals beyond those typically studied in this literature (e.g. devaluation of foreign credentials) and led to the finding that being Latin American can act both as a disadvantage in the form of discrimination and as an advantage as it differentiates immigrant professionals from other job seekers.