Continua la crisis financiera global"New York Times":"Mixed Markets Reflect Hope for Bailout": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/01/business/01bailout.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin"With Wachovia Sale, the Banking Crisis Trickles Up": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/business/30citi.html?ref=business"El País" de Madrid:"La UE culpa a EE UU de la crisis y pide que asuma su responsabilidad": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/UE/culpa/EE/UU/crisis/pide/asuma/responsabilidad/elpepuint/20080930elpepuint_13/Tes"El pánico recorre Wall Street y la Bolsa se desploma más que en el 11/S :Los analistas auguran una ola de despidos y quiebras si no prospera el plan":http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/panico/recorre/Wall/Street/Bolsa/desploma/11-S/elpepuint/20080930elpepiint_2/Tes"Le Monde":"George Bush : "les conséquences seront pires chaque jour si nous n'agissons pas"": http://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2008/09/30/les-bourses-europeennes-ouvrent-sur-de-fortes-baisses_1101088_3234.html#ens_id=1089411"Rebond de Wall Street à l'ouverture": http://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2008/09/30/panique-sur-les-marches-asiatiques-apres-le-rejet-du-plan-paulson_1101069_3234.html#ens_id=1089411"CNN":"U.S. stocks rebound after bailout failure": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/BUSINESS/09/30/us.bailout.deal.markets/index.html"Wall Street waits on bailout vote": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/BUSINESS/10/01/us.bailout.deal.markets/index.html"La Nación":"Estamos en emergencia", dijo Bush en un dramático llamado para destrabar el plan de salvatajeEl mandatario norteamericano, que no dio por muerto su plan de rescate, alertó que "la opción es la acción o la penuria de los estadounideses"; Obama reclamó que los legisladores vuelvan a la mesa de negociaciones":http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1054864"Intentan hoy volver a votar el rescate: Tras el devastador rechazo de la Cámara de Representantes, el Senado tratará de aprobar esta noche una versión modificada del plan de salvataje; Bush advirtió sobre el peligro de un derrumbe económico "doloroso y duradero"": http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1055191"Time":"A Second Chance (and Thoughts) on the House Bailout Vote":http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1846033,00.html"Surviving the Wall Street Storm":http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1846017,00.html"China Daily":"Wall Street surge; credit worries persist":http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2008-10/01/content_7071724.htm"BBC":"House votes down bail-out package":http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7641733.stm"Citigroup to buy US bank Wachovia": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7642126.stm"El Tiempo" de Colombia:"Bolsas del mundo se recuperan en espera del salvavidas; Wall Street subió 4,68%": http://www.portafolio.com.co//economia/finanzas/2008-10-01/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR_PORTA-4576407.html"Los Ángeles Times":"Why the $700-billion rescue plan failed": http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-bailpr1-2008oct01,0,1703821.story"El Mercurio" de Chile:"Tasas de interés internacionales llegan a niveles máximos": http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/10/01/economia_y_negocios/economia_y_negocios/noticias/BABC3E47-5587-45A6-8048-6B599A9A03D8.htm?id={BABC3E47-5587-45A6-8048-6B599A9A03D8} "El Universal" de México: "Pega crisis de EU a países emergentes: Los mercados de toda Latinoamérica también cayeron en picada, con grandes pérdidas en México, Argentina, Colombia y Chile": http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/542988.html "Advierten Obama y McCain catástrofe si no se aprueba rescate financiero: Advierten los candidatos a la Casa Blanca que de no hacerlo la actual crisis financiera en Estados Unidos se convertiría en un 'desastre'": http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/543085.html "Times":"Senate sweeteners aim to push Wall Street bailout Bill through House":http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article4861524.ece "The Economist": "And then there were none: What the death of the investment bank means for Wall Street": http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12305537"The doctors' bill : The chairman of the Federal Reserve and the treasury secretary give Congress a gloomy prognosis for the economy, and propose a drastic remedy": http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12305746 AMERICA LATINA "El País" de Madrid informa: "Ecuador se enfrenta a un histórico referéndum para aprobar la nueva Constitución": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Ecuador/enfrenta/historico/referendum/aprobar/nueva/Constitucion/elpepuint/20080928elpepuint_4/Tes"CNN" publica: "Ecuadoran president cheers 'crushing' victory": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/29/ecuador.referendum.ap/index.html"El País": "El 'no' de Guayaquil empaña el éxito de Correa en las urnas: El 64% de los ecuatorianos apoya la nueva Constitución": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Guayaquil/empana/exito/Correa/urnas/elpepuint/20080930elpepiint_11/Tes"El País" de Madrid anuncia:"Rusia y Venezuela sellan una alianza para forjar un "contrapeso a EE UU": Moscú concede a Caracas un crédito de 680 millones para comprar armas": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Rusia/Venezuela/sellan/alianza/forjar/contrapeso/EE/UU/elpepiint/20080927elpepiint_7/Tes"Venezuela se rearma: Las compras de material militar y de defensa efectuadas por Caracas han superado los 6.700 millones de dólares en los tres últimos años":http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Venezuela/rearma/elpepuint/20080930elpepuint_3/Tes"La Nación" informa: "Lula, Chávez y Morales criticaron a Washington: El presidente venezolano llamó a activar el Banco del Sur para proteger a la región de la crisis global": http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1055206"El Tiempo" de Colombia publica: "Lula, Chávez y Morales critican a E.U. en cumbre de líderes suramericanos de izquierda en Brasil": http://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/home/index.html"BBC" anuncia: "Mexican head steps up drugs fight": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7645524.stm"Los Angeles Times" anuncia: "Mexico's President Calderon has few choices in drug war": http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mexwar1-2008oct01,0,6480187.story"El País" de Madrid anuncia: "El narcotráfico causa 17 nuevas muertes en Tijuana: El asesinato se suma a la escalada de violencia que sufre México.- Se sospecha que el motivo del ataque es una venganza entre bandas de narcotraficantes": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/narcotrafico/causa/nuevas/muertes/Tijuana/elpepuint/20080930elpepuint_4/Tes"CNN" publica: "Argentina grapples with fierce drought": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/26/argentina.drought/index.html"El Tiempo" de Colombia informa: "En nuevo pulso con el Gobierno, agricultores argentinos vuelven a la huelga": http://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/latinoamerica/home/en-nuevo-pulso-con-el-gobierno-agricultores-argentinos-vuelven-a-la-huelga_4577147-1 ESTADOS UNIDOS / CANADA "La Nación" analiza: "El desempleo y la desesperación golpean en el interior de EE.UU.: En las áreas industriales los trabajadores temen no poder mantener a sus familias":http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1055173"BBC" anuncia: "US rivals clash on bail-out vote":http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7641504.stm"El País" de Madrid informa: "Obama da su apoyo al principio de acuerdo del plan de rescate de Bush: McCain aún no se ha pronunciado sobre si votará a favor del plan en el Senado": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/economia/Obama/da/apoyo/principio/acuerdo/plan/rescate/Bush/elpepuint/20080928elpepueco_1/TesTanto "Time" como "BBC" presentan sitios con artículos relacionados con las elecciones estadounidenses:http://thepage.time.com/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/americas/2008/vote_usa_2008/"The Economist" analiza: "How Europe responds":http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displayStory.cfm?story_id=12331667&source=features_box_main EUROPA "El País" de Madrid informa: "La extrema derecha se dispara en las legislativas de Austria: Los ultranacionalistas de Strache y los extremistas de Haider son los vencedores en la sombra pese a la victoria de los socialdemócratas": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/extrema/derecha/dispara/legislativas/Austria/elpepuint/20080928elpepuint_6/Tes"BBC" anuncia: "EU monitors begin Georgia patrols":http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7643612.stm"CNN" publica: "Russia suspends markets as shares slide": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/BUSINESS/09/30/russia.markets.close/index.html"CNN" informa: "$9.2 billion bailout for Dexia bank": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/BUSINESS/09/30/belgium.bank.dexia.rescue.ap/index.html"Time": "Europe's Conservatives Sour On the Free Market": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1844919,00.html"La Nación" publica: "Duro reclamo de Europa a EE.UU.":http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1055203"New York Times" anuncia: "Shaky French-Belgian Bank Gets $9 Billion Injection": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/business/30assess.html?ref=business Asia – Pacífico /Medio Oriente "New York Times" informa: "Karzai Seeks Saudi Help With Taliban": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/01/world/asia/01afghan.html?ref=world"Le Monde" publica: "Afghanistan : le chef de guerre Hekmatyar revendique l'embuscade du 18 août": http://www.lemonde.fr/asie-pacifique/article/2008/09/29/afghanistan-le-chef-de-guerre-hekmatyar-revendique-l-embuscade-du-18-aout_1100650_3216.html#ens_id=1049814"Times" anuncia: "Arsonist 'fed up with life' sets fire to Japanese video 'hotel', killing 15":http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article4860696.ece"New York Times" analiza: "China Detains 22 in Tainted-Milk Case":http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/world/asia/30milk.html?ref=world"China Daily" publica: "China celebrates 59th founding anniversary": http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-10/01/content_7072546.htm"BBC" publica: "China lauds latest space 'heroes'":http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7641683.stm"El País" de Madrid informa: "Al menos 147 muertos en una estampida en la India: La avalancha se ha producido en un templo cerca de la ciudad de Jodhpur, donde miles de personas se habían congregado para marcar el comienzo de un festival hindú": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/147/muertos/estampida/India/elpepuint/20080930elpepuint_7/Tes"CNN" informa: "India temple stampede kills 147": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/09/29/india.stampede/index.html"El Universal" de México anuncia: "Deja cadena de explosiones cientos de heridos en India": http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/543058.html"Times": "India to mark Gandhi anniversary with world's biggest smoking ban": http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article4861298.ece"El País" de Madrid informa: "17 muertos en Damasco en el atentado más grave en 25 años":http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/muertos/Damasco/atentado/grave/25/anos/elpepiint/20080928elpepiint_10/Tes AFRICA"CNN" informa:"Freed hostages return from Egypt": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/09/30/egypt.tourists.kidnapped/index.html"Hundreds arrested after Nigeria oil attacks": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/09/30/nigeria.oil.unrest.ap/index.html"Zimbabweans fill streets to withdraw cash from banks": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/09/29/Zimbabwe.banks.ap/index.html"Time" anuncia: "3 Somali Pirates May be Dead in Shoot-Out": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1845817,00.html"BBC" publica: "Deadly suicide attack in Algeria":http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7641687.stm ECONOMIA "El País" de Madrid publica: "Las cinco claves de la Operación Rescate: Pugna en Washington por la cuantía y el destino del plan de salvamento financiero": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/economia/claves/Operacion/Rescate/elpepueco/20080928elpepieco_2/Tes"CNN" anuncia: "Alitalia flight attendants sign rescue plan": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/BUSINESS/09/29/alitalia.flight.attendants/index.html"The Economist": publica su informe semanal: "Business this week": http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12306023 OTRAS NOTICIAS "CNN": informa: "U.N. Security Council reaffirms sanctions on Iran": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/09/27/un.iran/index.html"El Tiempo" de Colombia publica: "En el mundo hay cerca de 25 millones de niños refugiados y desplazados, denuncia la ONU": http://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/latinoamerica/home/en-el-mundo-hay-cerca-de-25-millones-de-ninos-refugiados-y-desplazados-denuncia-la-onu-_4577146-1
From the abstract: Destination image is considered as the key in attracting tourists. This thesis purported to scrutinise whether Berlin's tourist authorities have to consider cultural segmentation when developing marketing strategies relating to the place's image. As an exploratory study, it examined Berlin's image among youths from Arab-Islamic and Protestant European countries and confronted them. In an era that is subjected to globalisation and refers to the global tourist, it is vindicated to pose this question. Various scholars are convinced that the world tourism market may be treated as a homogenous one due to globalisation. However, the literature also provides some opposing bearings and discusses them. It further gives some background information on Berlin as a tourist destination, addresses destination image concerning influential cultural factors and the implications of globalisation on consumer behaviour. Finally, it studies the Arab-Islamic and Protestant European youth cultures in the light of globalisation and possible modifying effects. In response to the objectives of this study, primary research was conducted. It involved both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods. Field and online surveys enabled the researcher to collect 239 completed questionnaires (103 Arab-Islamic and 136 Protestant European youths). Besides semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions were carried out at EF Language School, Bournemouth. Following the completion of the survey, obtained data was entered into SPSS. Frequencies and means were calculated for each variable and several ANOVA tests and cross-tabulations conducted in order to stress destination image's specificity in terms of cultural background. Research findings revealed significant differences between the groups regarding their perception of Berlin. Arab-Islamic youths had a more negative stance towards Berlin than their counterparts. Not only did divergences occur between the groups, but also within the groups. Thus, destination image is culture-specific and may also vary across countries sharing similar cultural backgrounds. Overall, despite the effects of globalisation, cultural market segmentation still remains a vital element for a tourist place such as Berlin where the image management is concerned. The thesis provides recommendations for Berlin congruent with the outcomes and concludes with the provision of recommendations for further research.Inhaltsverzeichnis:Table of Contents: Abstractiii Acknowledgementsiv Table of Contentsv List of Tablesviii List of Figuresix List of Appendicesx List of Abbreviationsxi Chapter One: Introduction1 1.1Introduction2 1.2Rationale4 1.3Aims and Objectives5 1.4Definition of terms7 1.4.1Who is meant by ''Protestant European''?7 1.4.2Who is meant by ''Arab-Islamic''?9 1.4.3The youth market10 1.4.4Culture10 1.5Chapter overview11 1.5.1Chapter One: Introduction11 1.5.2Chapter Two: Berlin as a tourist destination11 1.5.3Chapter Three: Literature Review I Destination image11 1.5.4Chapter Four: Literature Review II Globalisation: Its effects on consumer behaviour. Comparing Arab-Islamic and Protestant European Culture.11 1.5.5Chapter Five: Methodology11 1.5.6Chapter Six: Data analysis and findings12 1.5.7Chapter Seven: Conclusion and recommendations12 1.6Summary12 Chapter Two: Berlin as a tourist destination13 2.1Introduction14 2.2Berlin's tourism industry – facts and figures14 2.3Contemporary Berlin as a tourist destination16 2.4Examination of previous image studies on Germany16 2.5Examination of previous image studies on Berlin18 2.6Summary20 Chapter Three: Literature Review I Destination Image21 3.1Introduction22 3.2Defining destination image22 3.2.1Destination image's complexity24 3.3Destination image formation in the pre-visitation stage26 3.4Factors influencing the formation of pre-visitation destination image29 3.5Cultural factors influencing destination image formation32 3.6Summary35 Chapter Four: Literature Review II Globalisation: Its effects on consumer behaviour. Comparing Arab-Islamic and Protestant European Culture.37 4.1Introduction38 4.2The influence of globalisation on consumer behaviour38 4.3Analysis: Arab-Islamic and Protestant European cultures41 4.4Arab-Islamic and Protestant European youth cultures45 4.5Summary47 4.6Literature review: conclusions and research gap48 Chapter Five: Methodology51 5.1Introduction52 5.2Research philosophy52 5.2.1Applied research52 5.2.2Deductive research53 5.2.3Positivism, interpretivism and realism54 5.3Primary research55 5.4Quantitative and qualitative data analysis57 5.5Survey sample58 5.6Questionnaire design59 5.7Pilot questionnaire60 5.8Data analysis61 5.9Research limitations61 5.10Summary62 Chapter Six: Data analysis and findings63 6.1Introduction64 6.2Respondents' profile64 6.2.1Demographic characteristics: Protestant European survey participants64 6.2.2Demographic characteristics: Arab-Islamic survey participants65 6.2.3Demographic characteristics of focus group interviewees and other qualitative data collection methods67 6.3What comes first to your mind, when you think about Berlin?68 6.4Question 4: Functional attributes of Berlin the level of agreement69 6.5Question 5: Psychological attributes of Berlin the level of agreement73 6.6Question 6: Functional holistic picture of Berlin76 6.7Question 7: Psychological holistic picture of Berlin80 6.8How do you rate your overall image of Berlin as a tourist destination?83 6.9Summary87 Chapter Seven: Conclusion and recommendations90 7.1Introduction91 7.2Discussions and conclusions91 7.3Recommendations for further research95 7.4Summary96 Bibliography97 Appendices120Textprobe:Text Sample: Chapter 2.4, Examination of previous image studies on Germany: The events of the Second World War affect Germany's image even 60 years later. In some countries, Germany is still associated with features of the war and, in the US and Russia, Hitler is the best-known German, for instance. This casts a poor light on present day Germany and, arguably, on its tourism industry and may impinge on foreign people's image of the nation. However, the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany induced positive implications on Germany as a tourist destination. Prior to the World Cup, a study of BPB, the Federal Centre for Political Education, revealed that Germany's image was rather moderate in countries, such as the UK and Poland, for example, whereas Germany was already positively regarded in the Netherlands and Denmark. Yet, the World Cup further inspired Germany's image across other countries around the world. In the Anholt Nations Brand Index 2007, which measures the image of countries by considering 6 factors namely tourism, people, culture and heritage, exports, governance and investment and immigration, Germany ranks first, which means a massive improvement over the previous couple of years (GNTB 2008, Hedorfer 2008). Germany could above all score high on tourism and exports as well as on culture and heritage; while, in terms of people, the score was rather low. However, it has overtaken countries, such as the UK, Italy, Canada and France which are well-established tourist destinations. A further image study conducted by the BBC across 22 countries also revealed that Germany's political image was positive within the Western world; however, in Islamic-coined countries, such as Egypt and Turkey, the image was negative. This might be the result of the political situation in the Middle East, because Arabs and other Islam members increasingly consider the Western world as an enemy. Galal et al. allege that, since 9/11, there have been many terrible waves between Arabs and Western people, mainly due to the political situation, which plays a major role in the Arab peoples' image of the West. Although Americans are considered as the main enemy, other Western countries are seen as allies, which might also affect Germany's image in Arabic nations. Al-Hamarneh opposes this notion and claims that Germany has a good image in the Arab world for several reasons. Germany's anti-war policy during the Iraq crisis impressed Arabs and boosted Germany's bilateral relations with Arab nations. Furthermore, 'Made in Germany' is highly appreciated, as it guarantees high quality. Germany is synonymous with high quality, which explains the nation's popularity for medical tourists from the Arab world. However, Germans are also seen as hard-working, innovative, cultivated and helpful people and thus enjoy a good image too. Consequently, Germany seems to enjoy a positive position in the Arab world beyond the political situation. Chapter 2.5,Examination of previous image studies of Berlin: 10 to 15 years ago, Berlin used to be a city in search of an identity, which projected a battered image, also as a result of huge economic problems. Berlin has favourably managed its problems though and, nowadays, is one of Europe's most popular cities for tourists thanks to an image change, not only of Berlin but of Germany as a whole. Although Berlin is still not mentioned in the same breath as Paris, New York or London, it is increasingly perceived as international. For instance, the CW/HB's European Cities Monitor, which ranks European cities by their business importance, repositioned Berlin on rank 8 in 2005, meaning an improvement of 7 places in comparison to 1990. In addition, the Anholt City Brands Index 2005 (cited Clark 2008) ranks Berlin's brand-value within the top ten cities world-wide, which manifests Berlin's enhanced image. Nevertheless, as already mentioned above, Berlin is still not a big player among international cities, which is further visualised by the GAWC. GAWC clusters big cities in three different orders, Alpha, Beta and Gamma. Alpha-cities are defined as the most important world cities, Beta-cities are less significant and Gamma-cities are the least important. New York and London, for example, are Alpha-cities; whilst Berlin is a Gamma-city, which shows that, despite Berlin's recent success in tourism, the city might still not have a world reputation. While places such as London might induce clear images in people's minds around the world, Berlin's image might be more distorted the farther away people live from Berlin and this may affect primary research findings of this thesis. Some scholars assume that images of distant destinations are rather blurred, especially when the destination is not so known. In this regard, Protestant Europeans and Arabs might display varying images of Berlin, simply because the Arabs' image of the city could be blurred, especially where pre-visitation image is measured. As will be examined in 3.2, information sources are major influential factors in the image formation process. Since Berlin's marketing efforts are much higher in Europe than in the Arab world, the likelihood that people's picture of Berlin is clearer among Europeans than it is among Arabs is increased. This is also likely regarding BTM's global marketing strategies. The further away the market is the more focus is put on strategic co-operations, which means Berlin is only represented by third parties in distant places. BTM splits potential source markets into four different groups. Berlin allocates the highest marketing budget to primary markets, while the budget decreases gradually with the lowest budget for basic markets. Consequently, Berlin is much more involved in the UK market, than it is in the Middle East, for example, which might impinge on people's image of the city. Previous image studies identified that Berlin's overall image is positive. Within its source markets (Germany, France, UK, Holland, Poland, and USA), Berlin is especially interesting due to its history, its sound accessibility, its cultural offer, its rich gastronomy and its vivid cityscape. The majority of the respondents also mention Berlin's sound shopping facilities, its multi-cultural ambiance and the great variety of activities as positive attributes, which create an overall pleasant atmosphere for tourists. Altogether, most respondents, including young tourists, perceive Berlin as a young, creative, multi-cultural, hospitable and dynamic city, while a small minority also mention interesting architecture as appealing. Only when considering the attributes of cleanliness and low price levels do a greater number of people disagree. What is more, many tourists are also disappointed to see little of the Berlin Wall remaining, having originally expected more. Habermann et al's image study is appealing for this thesis, as it was based on about 2,000 respondents, of whom about 20 Prozent were under the age of 25. Furthermore, most of them were Germans, Dutch, Americans and British who are representative of Protestant Europe, except for the Americans who are also Protestants. This group exposed slight differences from elder groups in the perception of Berlin, albeit the image was also 'country of origin-specific'. For example, young people evaluated Berlin's friendliness of people and security issues lower than elderly people did, whereas older age groups gave smaller scores to cleanliness, but much higher ones in appreciating Berlin's numerous parks and other green areas. Young people appreciated Berlin's lively nightlife in particular, whereas foreigners were more reserved than Germans. Differences also became apparent in terms of assessing friendliness since Italians evaluated this attribute lower than their counterparts. British and Italians assessed Berlin's price level as favourable, while Americans agreed to a lesser extent.
Author's introductionThe media landscape has changed dramatically in recent decades, from one predominated by traditional mass communication formats to today's more personalized communications environment. Mobile telephony plays a central role in this transition, with adoption rates that surpass even those of the Internet. This article attempts to situate the role of mobile communication technology in the changing media environment by examining key areas of social change associated with its widespread diffusion and use. These areas include symbolic meaning of technology, new forms of coordination and social networking, personalization of public spaces, and the mobile youth culture. Drawing from these areas of change, we advance the argument that mobile telephony is iconic of a larger socio‐technological shift toward a new 'personal communication society.'Author recommendsRheingold, Howard 2002. Smart Mobs: The Next Social Revolution. Cambridge, MA: Basic Books.From Tokyo to Helsinki, Manhattan to Manila, Howard Rheingold takes us on a journey around the world for a preview of the next techno‐cultural shift – a shift he predicts will be as dramatic as the widespread adoption of the PC in the 1980s and the Internet in the 1990s. The coming wave, says Rheingold, is the result of super‐efficient mobile communications – cellular phones, personal digital assistants, and wireless‐paging and Internet‐access devices that will allow us to connect with anyone, anywhere, anytime. From the amusing ('Lovegetty' devices in Japan that light up when a person with the right date‐potential characteristics appears in the vicinity) to the extraordinary (the overthrow of a repressive regime in the Philippines by political activists who mobilized by forwarding text messages via cell phones), Rheingold gives examples of the fundamentally new ways in which people are already engaging in group or collective action. He also considers the dark side of this phenomenon, such as the coordination of terrorist cells, threats to privacy, and the ability to incite violent behavior. Applying insights from sociology, artificial intelligence, engineering, and anthropology, Rheingold offers a penetrating perspective on the brave new convergence of pop culture, cutting‐edge technology, and social activism. At the same time, he reminds us that, as with other technological revolutions, the real impact of mobile communications will come not from the technology itself but from how people use it, resist it, adapt to it, and ultimately use it to transform themselves, their communities, and their institutions.Katz, James E. and Mark A. Aakhus (eds.) 2002. Perpetual Contact: Mobile Communication, Private Talk, Public Performance. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.This edited volume contains a landmark collection of chapters from researchers all over the world. The book offers a multi‐national perspective on some of the key themes that were identified at the outset of the emergent new field of mobile communication studies, ranging from the private sphere of interpersonal relations to the public performance of social groups and structures. In their conclusion, the editors advance the theoretical orientation of Apparatgeist (translation: 'spirit of the machine') to explain cross‐cultural consistencies in how people conceptualize and use personal communication technologies such as the mobile phone.Ling, Rich 2004. The Mobile Connection: The Cell Phone's Impact on Society. San Francisco, CA: Morgan Kaufmann.This book, based on worldwide research involving tens of thousands of interviews and contextual observations, looks into the impact of the mobile communication on our daily lives. Areas of impact include accessibility, safety and security, coordination of social and business activities, use of public places, and the social emancipation of youth.Ito, Mizuko, Daisuke Okabe, and Misa Matsuda (eds.) 2005. Personal, Portable, Pedestrian: Mobile Phones in Japanese Life. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.This edited volume explores how Japan's enthusiastic engagement with mobile technology has become part of its trendsetting popular culture. The chapters document the emergence, incorporation, and domestication of mobile communications in a wide range of social practices and institutions. The book first considers the social, cultural, and historical context of keitai (i.e., mobile phone) development in Japan, including its beginnings in youth pager use in the early 1990s. It then discusses the virtually seamless integration of keitai use into everyday life, contrasting it to the more escapist character of Internet use on the PC. Other essays suggest that the use of mobile communication reinforces ties between close friends and family, producing 'tele‐cocooning' by tight‐knit social groups. The book also discusses mobile phone manners and examines keitai use by copier technicians, multitasking housewives, and school children.Castells, Manuel, Mireia Fernandez‐Ardevol, Jack Linchuan Qiu and Araba Sey 2007. Mobile Communication and Society: A Global Perspective. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.This book looks at how the possibility of multimodal communication from anywhere to anywhere at any time affects everyday life at home, at work, and at school, and raises broader concerns about politics and culture both global and local. Drawing on data gathered from around the world, the authors explore who has access to wireless technology, and why, and analyze the patterns of social differentiation seen in unequal access. They explore the social effects of wireless communication – what it means for family life, for example, when everyone is constantly in touch, or for the idea of an office when workers can work anywhere. The authors consider the rise of a mobile youth culture based on peer‐to‐peer networks, with its own language of texting, and its own values. They examine the phenomenon of flash mobs, and the possible political implications. And they look at the relationship between communication and development and the possibility that developing countries could 'leapfrog' directly to wireless and satellite technology. Drawing from a global body of research, the book helps answer the key questions about our transformation into a 'mobile network society'.Ling, Rich 2008. New Tech, New Ties: How Mobile Communication Reshapes Social Cohesion. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.In New Tech, New Ties, Rich Ling examines how the mobile telephone affects both mobile‐mediated and face to face interactions. Ling finds that through the use of various social rituals the mobile telephone strengthens social ties within the circle of friends and family – sometimes at the expense of interaction with those who are physically present – and creates what he calls 'bounded solidarity'. Ling argues that mobile communication helps to engender and develop social cohesion within the family and the peer group. Drawing on the work of Emile Durkheim, Erving Goffman, and Randall Collins, Ling shows that ritual interaction is a catalyst for the development of social bonding. From this perspective, he examines how mobile communication affects face‐to‐face ritual situations and how ritual is used in interaction mediated by mobile communication. He looks at the evidence, including interviews and observations from around the world, which documents the effect of mobile communication on social bonding and also examines some of the other possibly problematic issues raised by tighter social cohesion in small groups.Katz, James E. (ed.) 2008. Handbook of Mobile Communication Studies. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.This edited volume offers a comprehensive view of the cultural, family, and interpersonal consequences of mobile communication across the globe. Leading scholars analyze the effect of mobile communication on all parts of life, from the relationship between literacy and the textual features of mobile phones to the use of ringtones as a form of social exchange, from the 'aspirational consumption' of middle class families in India to the belief in parts of Africa and Asia that mobile phones can communicate with the dead. The contributors explore the ways mobile communication profoundly affects the tempo, structure, and process of daily life around the world. They discuss the impact of mobile communication on social networks, other communication strategies, traditional forms of social organization, and political activities. They consider how quickly miraculous technologies come to seem ordinary and even necessary – and how ordinary technology comes to seem mysterious and even miraculous. The chapters cut across social issues and geographical regions; they highlight use by the elite and the masses, utilitarian and expressive functions, and political and operational consequences. Taken together, the chapters demonstrate how mobile communication has affected the quality of life in both exotic and humdrum settings, and how it increasingly occupies center stage in people's lives around the world.Ling, Rich and Scott W. Campbell (eds.) Forthcoming in Fall/Winter 2008. The Reconstruction of Space and Time: Mobile Communication Practices. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers.Mobile communication enables us to call specific individuals, not general places. This advancement had changed, and continues to change, human interaction. It also alters the ways people experience both space and time. This edited volume explores these changes through a collection of studies from some of the top mobile communication researchers from around the world. Collectively, the contributions highlight nuanced changes in coordination and cohesion across space and time, the ways people manage mobile communication and mobility in new spatio‐temporal realms, and how individuals relate to their co‐present surroundings while using mobile communication technology.Online materials Resource Center for Mobile Communication Studies http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/ci/cmcs/ The Center for Mobile Communication Studies is the world's first academic unit to focus solely on social aspects of mobile communication. Established in June 2004 at Rutgers University's School of Communication, Information and Library Studies, the Center has become an international focal point for research, teaching, and service on the social, psychological, and organizational consequences of the burgeoning mobile communication revolution. International Journal of Mobile Communication Studies https://www.inderscience.com/browse/index.php?journalID=40 The International Journal of Mobile Communication (IJMC), a fully refereed journal, publishes articles that present current practice and theory of mobile communications, mobile technology, and mobile commerce applications. The objectives of the IJMC are to develop, promote, and coordinate the development and practice of mobile communications. The IJMC aims to help professionals working in the field, academic educators, and policy makers to contribute, to disseminate knowledge, and to learn from each other's work. The international dimension is emphasised in order to overcome cultural and national barriers and to meet the needs of accelerating technological change and changes in the global economy. IJMC is an outstanding outlet that can shape a significant body of research in the field of mobile communications and in which results can be shared across institutions, governments, researchers, and students, and also industry. Wi: The Journal of Mobile Media http://wi‐not.ca/ Wi publishes the latest in Canadian mobilities research, encompassing disciplines such as design, engineering, computer science, communications, and media studies. MobileActive.org http://mobileactive.org/ MobileActive.org is an all‐volunteer community of people and organizations using mobile phones for social impact. They are committed to increasing the effectiveness of NGOs around the world who recognize that the 3.5 billion mobile phones provide unprecedented opportunities for organizing, communications, and service and information delivery. They work together to create the resources NGOs need to effectively use mobile phones in their work: locally relevant content and services, support and learning opportunities, and networks that help MobileActives connect to each other. With these things on hand, tens of thousands of NGOs will be in a better position to enrich and serve their communities. The MobileActive.org community includes grassroots activists, NGO staff, intermediary organizations, content and service providers, and organizations who fund mobile technology projects. Mobile Society http://www.mobilesociety.net/ Mobile Society is an academic research website focusing on social aspects of the mobile phone. The site includes links and information about news, events, publications, and other related sites pertaining to the social consequences of mobile communication. SmartMobs: The Next Social Revolution http://www.smartmobs.com/ A Website and Weblog about topics and issues discussed in the book 'Smart Mobs' by Howard Rheingold.Select sample syllabus topics and readings for course on 'the social consequences of mobile communication' History and adoption of the mobile phone
Ling, Rich. 2004. 'The Mobile Connection' Chapter 1: Introduction. Castells et al. 2007. 'Mobile Communication and Society' Chapter 1: The Diffusion of Wireless Communication in the World.
Theoretical perspectives on the relationship between technology and society: Part 1, social and technological determinism
Ling, Rich. 2004. 'The Mobile Connection' Chapter 2: Making Sense of Mobile Telephone Adoption. Campbell, Scott W. and Tracy C. Russo 2003. The Social Construction of Mobile Telephony. Communication Monographs 70: 317–34.
Theoretical perspectives on the relationship between technology and society: Part 2, the 'network' perspective
Castells, Manuel. 2000. 'The Rise of Network Society' Opening Chapter: The Network is the Message. Castells et al. 2007. 'Mobile Communication and Society' Chapter 5: The Space of Flows, Timeless Time, and Mobile Networks.
Mobile communication in everyday life: Part 1, safety and security
Ling, Rich. 2004. 'The Mobile Connection' Chapter 3: Safety and Security.
Mobile communication in everyday life: Part 2: new forms of coordination
Ling, Rich. 2004. 'The Mobile Connection' Chapter 4: The Coordination of Everyday Life.
Mobile communication in everyday life: Part 3: new social networking practices
Ling, Rich and Birgitte Yttri. 2002. 'Hyper‐coordination via Mobile Phones in Norway' in Katz & Aakhus (eds.) Perpetual Contact. Licoppe, Christian. 2003. 'Two Modes of Maintaining Interpersonal Relations through Telephone: From the Domestic to the Mobile Phone' in J. Katz (ed.) Machines that Become Us. Campbell, Scott. W. and Michael Kelley. 2006. Mobile phone use in AA networks: An exploratory study. Journal of Applied Communication Research 34: 191–208.
Apparatgeist: 'Spirit of the machine' and the fashion and function of the mobile phone
Katz, James E. and Mark Aakhus. 2002. 'Conclusion: Making meaning of mobiles – a theory of Apparatgeist' in Katz & Aakhus (eds.) Perpetual Contact. Campbell, Scott W. 2008. 'Mobile Technology and the Body: Apparatgeist, Fashion and Function' in J. Katz (eds.) Handbook of Mobile Communication.
SMS and the language of wireless communication
Ling, Rich. 2004. 'The Mobile Connection' Chapter 7: Texting and the Growth of Asynchronous Discourse. Castells et al. 2007. 'Mobile Communication and Society, Chapter 6: The Language of Wireless Communication.
Use of mobile technology in public settings
Ling, Rich. 2004. 'The Mobile Connection' Chapter 6: The Intrusive Nature of Mobile Technology. Okabe, Daisuke and Ito, Mizuko. 2005. 'Keitai in public transportation' in Ito, Okabe, & Matsuda (eds.) Personal, Portable, Pedestrian. Ito, Mizuko, Daisuke Okabe and Ken Anderson 2008. 'Portable Objects in Three Global Cities: The Personalization of Urban Places' in Ling & Campbell (eds.) Reconstruction of Space and Time: Mobile Communication Practices. Campbell, Scott W. 2006. Perceptions of mobile phones in college classrooms: Ringing, cheating, and classroom policies. Communication Education 55: 280–294.
M 10/22 Use of the technology around co‐present others and the challenge of 'absent presence'
Cumiskey, Kathleen. 2007. 'Hidden meanings: Understanding the social‐psychological impact of mobile phone use through storytelling' in Goggin & Hjorth (eds.) Mobile Media Proceedings. Gergen, Kenneth. 2002. 'The challenge of absent presence' in Katz & Aakhus (eds.) Perpetual Contact.
The mobile youth culture
Ling, Rich. 2004. 'The Mobile Connection' Chapter 5: The Mobile Telephone and Teens. Castells et al. 2007. 'Mobile Communication and Society' Chapter 4: The Mobile Youth Culture.
Mobile communication in the socio‐political sphere
Castells et al. 2007. 'Mobile Communication and Society Chapter 7: The Mobile Civil Society: Social Movements, Political Power, and Communication Networks. Rheingold, Howard. 2002. 'Smart Mobs' Chapter 7: Smart Mobs – The Power of the Mobile Many. Campbell, Scott W. and Nojin Kwak. 2008, May. Mobile communication and the public sphere: Linking patterns of use to civic and political engagement. Paper presented at the ICA pre‐conference, The Global and Globalizing Dimensions of Mobile Communication: Developing or Developed?, Montreal.
W 11/7 Mobile communication in the developing world
Castells et al. 2007. 'Mobile Communication and Society' Chapter 8: Wireless Communication and Global Development: New Issues, New Strategies. Donner, Jonathan. 2008. Research approaches to mobile use in the developing world: A review of the literature. The Information Society 24: 140–159. Donner, Jonathan. 2008. The rules of beeping: Exchanging messages via intentional 'missed calls' on mobile phones. Journal of Computer‐Mediated Communication, 13(1). Available: http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol13/issue1/donner.html.
M 11/12 Mobile communication and work
Andriessen, Erick and Mattai Vartianen. 2006. Emerging Mobile Virtual Work in Andriessen & Vartianen (eds.) Mobile Virtual Work: A New Paradigm? Perry, Mark and Jackie Brodie. 2006. Virtually Connected, Practically Mobile in Andriessen & Vartianen (eds.) Mobile Virtual Work: A New Paradigm? Chesley, Noelle. 2005. Blurring boundaries? Linking technology use, spillover, individual distress, and family satisfaction. Journal of Marriage and Family 67: 1237–1248.
OptionalFocus questions
To what extent does mobile communication lead to changes in family dynamics? On the one hand, mobile communication empowers youth to carry out their social relations 'under the radar' of parental supervision. In the 'old days', kids had to share a domestic landline phone and had less privacy, or had to shut themselves up in their room when on the phone to get privacy. The mobile phone is anytime/anywhere and it a personal object (not shared), so users have much more control over their private relations. Text messaging is an especially effective way of having private communication. Because of all this, young people have more autonomy to live out their social lives as they see fit. On the other hand, the mobile phone also gives parents more control by being able to better keep tabs on their kids and their kids' whereabouts. In some respects, it can actually be considered as an 'umbilical cord' keeping kids accountable to their parents. This is an interesting dichotomy for discussion. To what extent and how does the mobile phone support 'perpetual contact' among social ties? There seems to be a continual flow of communication now, which some refer to as 'perpetual contact'. Follow‐up questions could be: how is this a good thing? Are there negative aspects of perpetual contact? How is the mobile phone used for boundary management (i.e., demarcating in‐group members from out‐group members)? This can be seen in names kept in contact lists, who people text with, whose calls they screen, and even the style or brand of a phone ... some groups of friends get the same types of phones. What are the effects of taking/placing a phone call when interacting with physically co‐present others? What are norms for doing this? How can people mitigate the intrusion? On a related note to the questions above ... to what extent does the mobile phone lead to 'absent presence?' The notion of absent presence refers to being physically present, but socially absent. To what extent is this problematic? To what extent might mobile communication lead to 'tele‐cocooning?' Some are concerned that people are getting so wrapped up in their tight little social networks now, that they are less engaged with others who are weak social ties. If this is true, then it begs the question about whether there are benefits to having weak social ties. Most feel there are benefits, like being exposed to a diversity of perspectives and ideas. With regard to the changing media landscape, where else do we see increased 'personalization' in our uses of traditional mass media? In this sense, 'personalization' can refer to personalized content, interactivity, control, etc.
Research project idea (note this approach can be taken with any of the topics recommended above)Description of the paperMobile communication technology has become a common artifact in public settings, offering a means for social connection for its users and unsolicited melodies, chirps, and half conversations for co‐present others. Because social norms for behavior around others often conflict with those for phone conversations, mobile communication can present as many challenges as it does opportunities for maintaining social order. In class, we will discuss numerous perspectives on this topic, such as absent presence, symbolic fences, front stage‐back‐stage dynamics, and cocooning through mobile media. The purpose of this paper is to conduct an original investigation of the use of mobile communication technology around others. Each student will select a particular aspect of this phenomenon to explore in depth by collecting data first‐hand, analyzing those data, and drawing conclusions to shed new light on this topic. Students may choose to examine mobile communication in a particular setting, compare mobile communication in different social contexts or across different users, examine or compare the use of certain types of mobile technologies, observe reactions of and effects on non‐users of the technology, or select some other such 'angle' for the project that sheds light on this topic.Paper guidelinesYour paper should contain the following sections: (1) An introduction that justifies the importance of your topic and provides a clear explanation of the purpose of the paper, (2) a review of relevant literature/theory/key concepts to frame your particular project followed by specific research questions, (3) a method section explaining how you collected data (observation, interviews, questionnaires, and/or otherwise) and how you analyzed your data, and (4) a discussion section that develops conclusions based on the findings. Each paper should have at least 10 scholarly citations, of which at least half should come from readings other than those assigned for class. Use American Psychological Association (5th edition) to format citations and reference list. Papers should be about 10 pages in length, double‐spaced. In addition to meeting these guidelines, the writing should be clearly organized within each section and (of course) well‐written. Students will present their papers in class at the end of the semester.
CRISIS EN BOLIVIA Los enfrentamientos de civiles de la región autonomista de Pando y los partidarios del proyecto estatista e indigenista de Evo Morales suponen un nuevo peldaño en la escalada de violencia por la que asciende el país andino desde hace varios años. Desde el pasado jueves, estos enfrentamientos han dejado un saldo de más de treinta muertos, cientos de heridos y desaparecidos.Frente a esta situación de crisis, la Unión de Naciones Suramericanas: UNASUR (creada el 23 de mayo de 2008), se reunió el pasado el lunes en Santiago de Chile con miras de alcanzar una posición común para poner fin al conflicto. La UNASUR salió airosa de su primera prueba de fuego al acordar en la cumbre extraordinaria de jefes de Estado de la región una contundente respuesta de apoyo al Gobierno democrático del presidente de Bolivia, Evo Morales, y al rechazar todo intento de golpe de Estado en el país andino. Varios medios informan al respecto:"El País" de Madrid:"Evo Morales anuncia que detendrá al gobernador opositor de Pando por desacato: Los opositores advierten con romper el diálogo si hay un solo muerto más - Los fallecidos en los enfrentamientos de Pando son ya una treintena - Miles de personas marchan en Santa Cruz para pedir unidad": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Evo/Morales/anuncia/detendra/gobernador/opositor/Pando/desacato/elpepuint/20080914elpepuint_4/Tes"Evo Morales acude hoy a la cumbre regional que analizará la crisis en Bolivia: Los gobernadores rebeldes intentan sin éxito tener asiento en la cita de la UNASUR en Santiago de Chile": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Evo/Morales/acude/hoy/cumbre/regional/analizara/crisis/Bolivia/elpepuint/20080915elpepuint_3/Tes"Suramérica da un histórico apoyo a la democracia boliviana: Nueve países de la región, con Brasil al frente, respaldan Morales pero le exigen que pacte con los gobernadores rivales": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Suramerica/da/historico/apoyo/democracia/boliviana/elpepuint/20080916elpepuint_8/Tes"New York Times":"A Crisis Highlights Divisions in Bolivia": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/world/americas/15bolivia.html?ref=world"Bolivian Leader and Rival Talk in Wake of Violence": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/world/americas/14bolivia.html?_r=1&ref=world&oref=slogin"Le Monde":"Bolivie : état de siège dans le nord du pays":http://www.lemonde.fr/ameriques/article/2008/09/13/bolivie-etat-de-siege-dans-le-nord-du-pays_1094846_3222.html#ens_id=1080276"Huit morts lors d'affrontements entre partisans et adversaires d'Evo Morales": http://www.lemonde.fr/ameriques/article/2008/09/12/bolivie-huit-morts-lors-d-affrontements-entre-partisans-et-adversaires-d-evo-morales_1094461_3222.html#ens_id=1080276 "CNN":"Bolivian 'state of siege' declared": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/12/bolivia.stateofseige/index.html"Bolivian president calls for ouster of U.S. ambassador": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/10/bolivia.us/index.html"Bolivia's opposition agrees to talks": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/17/bolivia.agreement/index.html"La Nación":"Se moviliza toda la región por la crisis en Bolivia":http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1050074"Fuerte advertencia de Chávez a los jefes militares de Bolivia: Reiteró que no se quedará "de brazos cruzados" si Evo Morales es derrocado": http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1050017"Fuerte apoyo regional a Evo Morales: Los nueve presidentes reunidos en Chile aprobaron por unanimidad un documento de respaldo; no hubo críticas a EE.UU.": http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1050381"El Tiempo" de Colombia:"Evo Morales recibe fuerte apoyo de países suramericanos, mientras diálogo avanza lento en Bolivia": http://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/latinoamerica/home/evo-morales-recibe-fuerte-apoyo-de-paises-suramericanos-mientras-dialogo-avanza-lento-en-bolivia_4532999-1"Time":"Morales Struggles to Maintain Control in Bolivia": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1841122,00.html"BBC":"Talks aim to end Bolivian crisis":http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7615485.stm"Move to tackle Bolivian turmoil: Chile has called an emergency meeting of the Union of South American Nations to help resolve the crisis in Bolivia.": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7614784.stm"MSNBC":"Bolivia's president: Unrest an attempted coup. Region's leaders meet in Chile to discuss resolution to political unrest": http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26724256/"El Mercurio" de Chile:"Bachelet busca acercar posturas de Chávez y Lula con propuesta de consenso ante crisis en Bolivia´": http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/09/15/_portada/index.htm"Bolivia despliega militares en Pando para hacer cumplir el estado de sitio": http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/09/15/_portada/index.htm"Los Angeles Times":"South American leaders hold emergency session on Bolivia":http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-bolivia16-2008sep16,0,1445392.story"Bolivia death toll rises":http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-bolivia15-2008sep15,0,658958.storyAMERICA LATINA"El País" de Madrid anuncia: "La primera ayuda humanitaria empieza a llegar a Cuba: La Habana pide a EEUU que suspenda el embargo por seis meses para facilitar las compras de productos para enfrentar la catástrofe":http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/primera/ayuda/humanitaria/empieza/llegar/Cuba/elpepuint/20080915elpepuint_15/Tes"El Tiempo" de Colombia: "Los dos bombarderos rusos que están en Venezuela entrenan en cielo caribeño":http://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/latinoamerica/home/los-dos-bombarderos-rusos-que-estan-en-venezuela-entrenan-en-cielo-caribeno_4531913-1"Time" anuncia: "Behind Chavez's Anti-US Rant": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1840732,00.html"New York Times" publica: "Trial Over Cash-Stuffed Suitcase Offers Insight Into Chávez Government": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/world/americas/15venez.html?ref=world"MSNBC" informa: "Venezuelan leader orders U.S. ambassador out: Chavez gives envoy 72 hours to leave, says move is in support of Bolivia": http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26665875/"Time" anuncia: "US Ambassador to Venezuela Out": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1840711,00.htmlTras crisis en Bolivia "El País" de Madrid analiza: "Brasil y Argentina temen perder su gas": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Brasil/Argentina/temen/perder/gas/elpepuint/20080915elpepiint_1/Tes"MSNBC" informa: "Police find bodies of 24 men in central México: Rural area has been hit by increasingly bloody violence between gangs": http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26682413/"Los Angeles Times" publica: "Mexican officials blame organized crime for deadly blasts": http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mexattack17-2008sep17,0,2057095.story"CNN" informa: "Violence mars Mexico's independence day celebration": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/09/16/mexico.explosions/index.htmlESTADOS UNIDOS / CANADA"New York Times" informa: "Rescues Continue in Texas; Millions Without Power": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/us/16Ike.html?ref=us"La Nación" publica: "Dramáticas tareas de rescate tras el huracán: Lanzaron una masiva operación para hallar sobrevivientes": http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1049987"MSNBC" anuncia: "Ike victims search streets for food, water, gas: 60 survivors found on isolated peninsula; death toll at 34 in 9 states": http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26695458/"Miami Herald" informa: "9/11 justice: War crimes tribunals don't engage public:": http://www.miamiherald.com/news/world/story/681520.html"BBC" publica: "US marks seventh 9/11 anniversary": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7609636.stm"La Nación" informa: "Un golpe a la economía global: Wall Street cerró en alza tras el anuncio de la Reserva Federal": http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1050394"The Economist" analiza: "A lifeline for AIG: America's government comes to the rescue of a giant insurance company": http://www.economist.com/finance/displayStory.cfm?story_id=12244993&source=features_box_main"China Daily" anuncia: "McCain, Obama joust over how to fix Wall Street": http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2008-09/17/content_7032347.htm"Time" presenta sitio con links a artículos relacionados con las elecciones estadounidenses:http://thepage.time.com/EUROPA"New York Times" anuncia: "Engine Failure Studied in Russian Air Crash": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/world/europe/15russia.html?ref=world"El País" de Madrid publica: "Un fallo en la turbina ocasiona el accidente del avión ruso en los Urales: El motor derecho se incendió en pleno vuelo debido a un "desperfecto", revela un informe preliminar": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/fallo/turbina/ocasiona/accidente/avion/ruso/Urales/elpepuint/20080915elpepuint_5/Tes"El Tiempo" de Colombia informa: "200 observadores civiles serán enviados a Georgia para garantizar retirada de tropas rusas": http://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/europa/home/200-observadores-civiles-seran-enviados-a-georgia-para-garantizar-retirada-de-tropas-rusas_4530170-1"Time" analiza: "Georgia President Eager to Join NATO": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1841162,00.html"New York Times" anuncia: "NATO Envoys Will Offer Their Support in Georgia": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/world/europe/15nato.html?ref=world"El País" de Madrid informa: "La OTAN tiende la mano al ingreso de Georgia: El secretario general de la Alianza Atlántica anuncia una comisión para estudiar su incorporación": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/OTAN/tiende/mano/ingreso/Georgia/elpepuint/20080915elpepuint_11/Tes"La Nación" publica: "Naufragio en Turquía: buscan a 30 personas: Viajaban unos 150 pasajeros":http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1049988"El País": "Barroso califica de "dramática" la situación de los gitanos en Europa: Responsables europeos, miembros de la sociedad civil y representantes de la comunidad gitana discuten en Bruselas la situación de discriminación de los gitano": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Barroso/califica/dramatica/situacion/gitanos/Europa/elpepuint/20080916elpepuint_22/TesAsia – Pacífico /Medio Oriente"El País" de Madrid publica: "La investigación sobre el programa nuclear iraní queda en punto muerto: El OIEA culpa a Irán de "atascar" sus informes y cree que ha construido 3.820 centrifugadoras.- Teherán pide un cambio de enfoque": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/investigacion/programa/nuclear/irani/queda/punto/muerto/elpepuint/20080915elpepuint_10/Tes"Time" analiza: "UN: Iran Blocking Nuke Probe": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1841186,00.html"MSNBC": "IAEA: Iran stalls probe into nuclear research: U.N. inquiry into allegations of secret atom bomb efforts 'at a gridlock'": http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26717979/"BBC" publica: "Suicide bombing kills 22 in Iraq": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7617606.stm"New York Times" anuncia: "Afghanistan Is in Its Worst Shape Since 2001, European Diplomat Says": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/world/asia/15kabul.html?ref=world "Miami Herald" publica: "Pakistanis reportedly fired at U.S. forces: Sources say U.S. forces staging a helicopter raid into tribal lands on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border were fired on by Pakistani troops.":http://www.miamiherald.com/news/world/story/687977.html"CNN" informa sobre atentado en Yemen: "Al Qaeda blamed for U.S. Embassy attack": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/09/17/yemen.blast/index.html"BBC" publica: "Blasts rock US embassy in Yemen": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7620362.stm "MSNBC" informa: "Thai protesters sit tight as government bickers: Prime minister's compound remains occupied; no agreement on new leader": http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26724553/ "New York Times": anuncia: "As Economy Slows, China Eases Monetary Policy": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/business/worldbusiness/16yuan.html?ref=world "Time" publica: "N. Korean Leader Remains Palpably Absent": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1841239,00.html"The Economist" analiza: "Kim JongIll or Kim Jong Well?: Fresh speculation about the Dear Leader's health": http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12209348AFRICA"New York Times" informa: "Zimbabwe Rivals Sign Power-Sharing Agreement":http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/world/africa/16zimbabwe.html?ref=world"Time" analiza: "Can Zimbabwe's Shotgun Marriage Work?": http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1841286,00.html "BBC" publica: "Zimbabwe rivals in historic pact": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7615906.stm"MSNBC" informa: "2 aid workers kidnapped in Somalia: 20 humanitarian workers have been kidnapped so far this year": http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26707537/"BBC" anuncia: "Troops die in Mauritania ambush": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7617223.stm"MSNBC" publica: "Militants battle Nigerian forces in oil region: Foreign workers warned to leave southern delta as violence escalates":http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26688414/ECONOMIA Esta semana se sucedieron acontecimientos que marcaron fuertemente la economía mundial:"The Economist" presenta su informe semanal: "Business this week": http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12209954"New York Times" informa: "Stocks Fall Sharply Despite Aid to A.I.G.":http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/business/worldbusiness/16markets.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin"El País" de Madrid publica:"El Bank of America compra Merrill Lynch por 31.000 millones: La entidad se consolida como el gigante más grande del mundo tras la operación": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/economia/Bank/of/America/compra/Merrill/Lynch/31000/millones/elpepueco/20080915elpepueco_3/Tes"Lehman Brothers se declara en bancarrota: La quiebra del cuarto banco de inversión de EE UU confirma los temores sobre la estabilidad del mercado financiero del país": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/economia/Lehman/Brothers/declara/bancarrota/elpepueco/20080915elpepueco_1/Tes"Wall Street no recibe bien el rescate de AIG": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/economia/Wall/Street/recibe/bien/rescate/AIG/elpepueco/20080917elpepueco_2/Tes"La Nación" anuncia: "Lehman Brothers se declara en bancarrota y tiemblan los mercados: El cuarto banco de inversión de EE.UU. se acogió a la ley de quiebras tras fracasar en las gestiones para conseguir un comprador; la Fed y el BCE inyectan liquidez; Bank of America adquiere el Merrill Lynch; se derrumban las bolsas de Europa; se mantienen las fuertes caídas en Wall Street":http://www.lanacion.com.ar/nota.asp?nota_id=1050112"Time" analiza: "Financial Meltdowns: How Big a Blow to the Economy?": http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1841214,00.html"CNN" publica:"Stocks get crushed: Wall Street socked by biggest crisis in years, with the Dow down over 400 points, as the Lehman bankruptcy, Merrill buyout, AIG cash scramble rattle investors.": http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/15/markets/markets_newyork2/index.htm"Stocks slump on AIG, housing: Wall Street retreats as Fed's rescue of insurer adds to the sense that financial market distress is far from over.": http://money.cnn.com/2008/09/17/markets/stockswatch/index.htm?cnn=yes"BBC" informa: "Lehman Bros files for bankruptcy": http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7615931.stm"The Economist" analiza: "Nightmare on Wall Street: A weekend of high drama reshapes American finance":http://www.economist.com/daily/news/displaystory.cfm?source=most_commented&story_id=12231236&fsrc=nwlOTRAS NOTICIAS"El País" de Madrid publica: "El agujero de la capa de ozono ya es más grande que en 2007: La ONU señala en el Día Mundial para la Preservación de la Capa de Ozono que los científicos relacionan cada vez más su reducción con el cambio climático": http://www.elpais.com/articulo/sociedad/agujero/capa/ozono/grande/2007/elpepusoc/20080916elpepusoc_3/Tes "The Economist" analiza: "Climate change and the poor: Adapt or die. Environmentalists have long said the world should concentrate on preventing climate change, not adapting to it. That is changing":http://www.economist.com/world/international/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12208005
Author's introductionBy reflecting on violence in its many manifestations this course is intended to problematize youth's relationship to violence. Not only will it underscore how and why violence is perpetrated by young people, but, perhaps more important, how young people are affected. Students will reflect on how violence impacts and enters their own lives – sometimes in very inauspicious ways. Much of what counts as entertainment is laden with, and centres on, violence. For example, Grand Theft Auto is a popular video game wherein game players assume the role of a wannabe gangster whose rise though the criminal underworld is predicated upon his thieving and murderous efficiency. Similarly, the movie Never Back Down follows a young male as he attempts to fight his way into the vaunted inner circle of his high school's 'in' group. Marred by and revered for his reputation as a 'tough guy', the protagonist is forced, in a contradiction that only makes coherent sense in the context of the pervasive violent masculinity which buoys the film, to fight his way clear of this foul reputation.Human intersections with violence are undeniably and unexpectedly complicated. We are fascinated and our lives are directly affected by violence regardless of proximity. Significantly, violence – both the Hollywood version and that which is 'real'– affects each and all. Fears of violence, whether they are informed by official statistics, crime‐based dramas, the 6 o'clock news or reality television, contour our existence in very definite ways. Our temporal and spatial movement through urban space, our understandings of law and governance strategies, our relations with 'others'– significant and otherwise – are conditioned by tangential, lived, experienced and witnessed violence. It alters our way of being, where we choose to live, and how we conduct, protect and entertain ourselves. No one is immune. Human experience is contoured irrevocably by violence.At issue is our inconsistent and contradictory relationship to youth violence. Parents applaud young people's violence – especially their sons'– as they 'duke it out' on the football field and in the hockey arena and urge them to 'get' or 'kill' the other team. At the same time, young people are overrepresented as victims of violence – especially our daughters. This course provides an opportunity to explore and analyze how youth [and] violence is braided into the fabric of Western culture.Starting points/learning objectives1What follows are issues students should consider and meditate on throughout the term. I encourage readers to introduce them at the beginning of the semester and return to them several times throughout. They may also be used to frame study questions and as a course summary.
What is violence? Why is there such growing concern about youth violence? What role does the media play in our understanding of youth violence? How are youth gangs perceived? What is the relationship between youth and violence? What is the connection between masculinity(ies) and violence? How does Western culture champion and, at the same time, abhor youth violence? What are 'solutions' to youth violence? What role can youth play in this process?
Author recommendationsHannah Arendt, 1970, On Violence. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace.Following her tumultuous experiences of living through the Second World War and student protests of the 1960s, Hannah Arendt penned her reflections on violence. She famously writes that, 'Violence can always destroy power; out of the barrel of a gun grows the most effective command, resulting in the most instant and perfect obedience. What never can grow out of it is power' (53). She maintains that even though power and violence may hold phenomological elements in common, they are in fact opposites: 'where the one rules absolutely, the other is absent. Violence appears where power is in jeopardy, but left to its own course it ends in power's disappearance' (56). Arendt develops this line of argument later in the book and concludes that, 'Every decrease in power is an open invitation to violence – if only because those who hold power and feel it slipping from their hands ... have always found it difficult to resist the temptation to substitute violence for it' (87). For Arendt, worlds (both individual and global) become irrevocably altered through incidences of violence. She writes, 'the practice of violence, like all action, changes the world, but the most probable change is to a more violent world' (80). Arendt's reflections occasion an opportunity to reflect not only on interpersonal violence, but perhaps more important, state violence.Fearnley, Fran (ed.). 2004. I wrote on all Four Walls: Teens Speak Out on Violence. Toronto, Canada: Annick.How do youth experience violence? This collection contains the captivating stories of nine affected youth whose voices narrate experiences of being victims and instigators of violence. Their stories evidence the complexities of violence. They demonstrate how a great deal of slippage exists between the categories of victim and offender. Instead of being clear cut, the spellbinding tales evidence how the line separating the violent and the victim is often blurred. Most striking about this collection is the demand that adults listen to youth's voices. Tragically, youth are too often the objects of social regulation and academic discourse without being its authors. This collection forces the reader to consider what role, if any, youth voices may play in the amelioration of violence.Loeber, Rolf and David P. Farrington (eds.). 1998. Serious and Violent Juvenile Offenders: Risk Factors and Successful Interventions. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.Co‐edited by Rolf Loeber and David Farrington, this impressive collection offers innovative and insightful essays centring on the aetiology and trajectory of violent youth. This report of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's focus group on serious and violent offenders asks the reader to reflect on well‐worn assumptions. Instead of attending to single and static causal explanations of youth violence, the authors identify significant risk and resiliency factors. Collectively, the 17 chapters argue for more proactive responses to youth violence that attend to the complexity of juvenile development. The authors maintain that effective reforms and interventions can be implemented only when predictable assemblages of risk and protective factors are isolated. This volume of essays is impressive for the surfeit of data on risk and resiliency.Messerschmidt, James. 2000. Nine Lives: Adolescent Masculinities, The Body and Violence. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.No list of recommended readings on violence would be complete without at least one of James Messerschmidt's splendid books. In addition to Nine Lives, his Masculinities and Crime and Flesh and Blood are equally impressive. Tying these works together is the author's insistence that masculinities are at the centre of any coherent understanding of violence. Equally important to Messershmidt's work in Nine Lives is his use of the 'life history method'; which involves 'appreciating how adolescent male violent offenders construct and make sense of their particular world, and to comprehend the ways in which they interpret their own lives and the world around them' (5). For Messerschmidt, the world of boys is saturated with violent images that provide a rather limited cultural script through which to define manhood and manliness. Instead of prizing sensitivity and empathy, this hegemonic masculinity rewards (among other destructive qualities) toughness. The significance of this book lies in how Messerschmidt underscores the gendered meaning of violence in the world of nine boys.Sheridan, Sam. 2007. A Fighter's Heart: One Man's Journey Through the World of Fighting. New York, NY: Grove.A scarred man dripping in blood emblazons the cover of Sam Sheridan's book. Taken after one of his professional fights, the image captures the gaze while it repulses the mind. Sheridan's work takes the reader through the preparation and training of the violent body. The interested are catapulted into the world of fighting for sport and the intense and somewhat bizarre physical and, perhaps more important, psychological preparations fighters undertake to do violence to an other. In this book, Sheridan takes the reader on a journey through the life of a professional fighter and along the way provides insight into the corporeality of violence. Sheridan writes, 'Fighting is not just a manhood test; that is the surface. The depths are about knowledge and self knowledge, a method of examining one's own life and motives. For most people who take it seriously, fighting is much more about the self than the other' (337). While the other books I have recommended seek to stand at a distance from violence and describe the physical, psychological and spiritual construction of the violent body from a safe vantage, Sheridan's book dives head first into the masculine phenomenon.Zimring, Franklin. 1998. American Youth Violence. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.With fantastic media claims of a looming youth violence crisis and equally unreasonable governmental policy responses as the backdrop, Franklin Zimring's book offers a sober(ing) reflection. While the author finds media representations of juvenile violence particularly troubling, he considers the aggressive governmental response exceedingly incongruent with the scope of the problem. Wild media depictions of marauding youth criminals and equally pugnacious governmental responses has contributed to an ethos of intolerance manifest in an increasingly punitive juvenile court. After a systematic and careful analysis of juvenile court data and existing state policy, Zimring concludes that youth violence is a problem that requires a more level‐headed approach than is evidenced in escalating incarceration rates and reactionist policy.Zizek, Slavoj. 2008. Violence. New York, NY: Picador.Like Arendt, Slavoj Zizek implores the reader to think more critically and widely about the meanings of violence. Enjoining his characteristic psychoanalytic cunning bolstered by Marxist sagicity, Zizek maintains that violence embodies three overlapping and bouying configurations: subjective, objective and systemic. Through the lens of popular and not‐so‐popular movies and jokes, he suggests that our myopic preoccupation with subjective violence (interpersonal) obscures more insidious forms of systemic violence (committed by capital as intrinsic to the cost of doing business). Engrossment in subjective violence not only allows the systemic forms to go on (relatively) undetected, but to fester. Zizek's book demands that the reader assume a more panoramic stance when posing questions about violence.Course assignmentAdvertising campaign to end violenceIn groups or individually, students act as the creative marketing team for the mayor who is intent on curbing violent youth crime.Instructions
Select a category of violent youth crime for which you would like to create an advertising campaign (e.g. gang violence; dating violence; assault; sexual assault/rape & etc). For your selected issue, create an advertisement in any media (i.e. poster; newspaper/magazine spot; radio ad (60 sec.); television spot (90 sec.); Public Service Advertisement (PSA, 20 min.); Youtube message (2 min.); newspaper insert; billboard & etc.). You must describe the location/place where the campaign will be found (i.e. which newspaper? During what television show(s)?, etc.). In addition to your advertisement, you are required to submit a 7 to 10‐page paper that provides the theoretical and intellectual background to your advertising campaign (drawing on at least seven sources). The paper will outline the nature of the selected violent crime problem and explain how the campaign will manage or curb its incidence. Elements of your paper will include: clear introduction and conclusion; clear identification of the major factors involved in the issue; familiarity with the relevant literature; clear organization of the material and arguments; and critical analysis (i.e. What are the limitations of your approach). You will be given 10 minutes during a town‐hall meeting held during the last week of classes to pitch your campaign to the mayor and alderpersons (aka the class). You must explain why your approach will prove effective and ultimately receive the mayor's endorsement. Effective Advertising campaigns will be attractive, memorable, clear and creative. A useful example can be found at: http://www.gov.ab.ca/acn/200706/216833FE9BEF6‐0ECF‐81D6‐01A4883EC4C04B71.html Supporting media: http://www.aglc.gov.ab.ca/pdf/social_responsibility/cage_poster_one_stepped_toe.pdf http://www.aglc.gov.ab.ca/pdf/social_responsibility/cage_poster_five_asked_dance.pdf You must submit and justify the budget for your campaign. The price tag must be in‐line with potential return.
Recommended films and videosA number of outstanding videos on the topic of youth violence now exist, and I use a number of these throughout the course. In addition to films, I use a variety of additional media forms (i.e. websites, newspaper articles and television news) and guest speakers (i.e. Former gang members, juvenile justice professionals, street kids) that encourage critical thinking. Three films that I find particular useful are: Tough Guise–http://www.mediaed.org/videos/MediaGenderAndDiversity/ToughGuiseTeaching guide: http://mediaed.org/videos/MediaGenderAndDiversity/ToughGuise/studyguide/html Gang Aftermath–http://www.nfb.ca/collection/films/fiche/?id=54450 A Clockwork Orange–http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066921/Useful websitesFight Violence.net –http://www.fightviolence.net/Ihuman –http://www.ihuman.org/Jackson Katz – 10 Things Men Can do to Prevent Gender Violence –http://www.jacksonkatz.com/wmcd.htmlPromoting Relationships and Eliminating Violence (PREVnet) –http://prevnet.ca/Public Health Agency of Canada – Dating Violence –http://www.phac‐aspc.gc.ca/ncfv‐cnivf/familyviolence/html/femdatfreq_e.htmlThe Youth Restorative Action Project –http://yrap.org/Youth Violence: A Report of the Surgeon General –http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/youthviolence/Sample course outlineSection 1 –Introduction to the courseThe first class(es) are intended to provide students with an overview of the course. The starting points/learning objectives outlined above provide a useful entry.Section 2 –What is violence?Providing conceptual clarification of the main concept under consideration is essential before proceeding too far into course content. This section reflects on how violence is defined (and left undefined) in philosophy, law, and criminology. Students will be asked to meditate on the limitations of each approach and to query whether violence can ever be justified and, if so, how.Section 3 –How much violence?Citizens are concerned about violent crime and are impressed by what crime statistics reveal. However, official statistics reveal only those cases which come to police attention or, more specifically, where police arrest a suspect for committing what the criminal code determines to be a violent offence. Understandably, not all violent crime is reported to police. Criminologists refer to the remainder as the dark figure of crime. It follows that crime scholars and statisticians can never be certain they have captured all the crime – violent or otherwise – that is committed in a particular society. When official statistics and media reports are the sole means employed to construct the public face of violence, victimization remains obscured. 'Not on the public's radar in the ethos of school shootings and high profile stabbings is that youth are the most likely victims of violence. Indeed, when the focus of the public's ire is set against a (perceived) rise in violent crime';2 victimization (i.e. bullying, dating violence, and, but not limited to, sexual assault) becomes an almost irrelevant aside to statistics. This section of the course provides an opportunity to shift the locus of debate from sensational media accounts to the complexities involved in youth violence.Section 4 –Understanding Violence and the Violent Offender?For what reasons do youth act violently? Since expert opinion varies widely, the answer you receive to this question will depend greatly on to whom it is posed. With particular attention paid to gender (especially masculinity), this section surveys various explanations of violent youth behaviour.Section 5 –Violent VictimizationYouth are typically overrepresented as victims of violent crime. This section of the course considers why this seems to be the case. It also surveys different forms of violent victimization including: racial violence, bullying, dating violence and sexual assault. Students will be asked to consider the most likely perpetrators of these crimes.Section 6 –The Culture of ViolenceViolence pervades Western culture. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the mass media. Movies, video games, sports, music videos and television programmes all contain heavy doses of violence. This section of the course confronts the violent images many take for granted. An attempt is made to juxtapose simulated violence with 'real‐life' violence and ponder what renders the former (more) acceptable while the latter is (almost) universally condemned. Through an examination of violence in media (movies, video games, etc.) and sport (hockey, football and mixed martial arts) students consider what our relative acceptance of these forms of violence reveals about Western society.Section 7 –Regulating and Managing ViolenceFear of violence has prompted individuals to respond in very direct ways to the prospect of victimization (i.e. buying pepper spray, purchasing burglar alarms, avoiding a particular area of town after dark). They have also demanded that their governments impose the most austere punishments on violent offenders and enact increasingly intrusive legislation. Bootcamps, chain gangs, the strap and, of course, incarceration have been advanced in the fight against violence. Canada's ruling Conservative party has recently pressured the Senate to speed up their deliberations over their proposed Tackling Violent Crime Act; which boasts a number of measures intended to satiate demand from a fearful public.Questions to consider in this section of the course include: Why has state intervention proven relatively ineffective? What innovative programs exist 'outside' of the state? To what extent does the amelioration of violence depend on the creation and widespread acceptance of a more tolerant and less aggressive masculine ethic? What role can youth play in preventing violence?Section 8 –ConclusionThe final section provides an opportunity to reflect on course themes by returning to the learning objectives and starting points outlined above. It is also an opportunity to move forward. If all agree that youth violence is indeed a problem, we must ask what we (each and all) are willing to do toward its amelioration. In the meantime we need to ask difficult and uncomfortable questions while assembling creative means of positively improving the situation many young people face. This means going beyond interventions that replicate the status quo to considering what a more just and humane world would look like.Notes * Correspondence address: Department of Sociology, University of Alberta, 5‐21 H.M. Tory Building, Edmonton, AB T6G 2H4, Canada. Email: bryan.hogeveen@ualberta.ca.
1 Starting Points are adapted from Minaker and Hogeveen, Youth, Crime and Society: Issues of Power and Justice.
2 Hogeveen, Bryan. 2007. 'Youth (and) Violence.' Sociology Compass. ½: 463–484. ReferencesHogeveen, Bryan 2007. 'Youth (and) Violence.' Sociology Compass ½: 463–84.Minaker, Joanne C. and Bryan Hogeveen 2008. Youth, Crime and Society: Issues of Power and Justice. Toronto, Canada: Pearson.
Birds are adapted for the environment conditions. However human began to change many nature conditions and change inhabitant places of many bird species. One of the most powerful factors, that provoked birds to occupy new inhabitant places, was the overhead power line system development. There are many publications about bird electrocution (Pererva, Blochin, 1981; Pererva, Grazhdankin, 1983; Lanovenko, Abdulnazarov, 1983; Saltykov, 1999; Karyakin et al., 2005; Karyakin, Barabashin, 2005; Karyakin, 2008; Medzhidov et al., 2005; Matsyna, 2005; 2006; Karyakin, Novikova, 2006) and this problem need the immediate solution. But in this paper I want to emphasize another side of the problem the positive impact of power lines to improve nesting conditions for many raptor species. Since the power line appearing birds began to use electric poles as perches during breeding season and migrations. However soon birds began to use electric poles and for nest building. The Raven (Corvus corax) began to inhabit power lines in forest-steppe of Russia on 10 years later than the Jackdaw (C. monedula) and the Rook (C. frugilegus) in 1980-s and has begun to spread in the steppe zone only since 1990-s. I had already found tens of raven nests on electric poles in steppes of the Middle Volga in 1995-98. The species only has begun to spread in Western Kazakhstan. There is the paper about the process of raven spreading through power lines in the Cis-Caucasus region: Belik V.P. et al., 2004. The first nest of ravens on an electric pole was found in that region in 2000. The Carrion and the Hooded Crows (Corvus cornix, C. corone)are the latest species of Corvidae who have begun to use electric poles for the nest building. Now 0.7% pairs of Hooded Crows, 4% pairs of Rooks, 30% pairs of Ravens and 55% pairs of Jackdaws build nests on electric poles in the steppe zone of the Volga-Ural region. After Corvidae birds of prey began to occupy electric poles in the forest and forest-steppe zones. The first raptors who began to nest on electric poles were little falcons the Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) and the Red-footed Falcon (Falco vespertinus). Only pairs of Kestrels and Red-footed Falcons bred in the south of the Perm district in 1980-s. The number of Kestrel and Red-footed Falcon nests located on electric poles has increased to 22% and 5% accordingly in the Volga-Ural region till 2007. The first event of the Hobby (Falco subbuteo) nesting in the electric pole was registered in the Ulyanovsk district 29 July 2005. Only the Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) amongst all species of owls began to occupy nests of Corvidae (usually nests of Jackdaws) built on electric poles. There are known 5 such nests. Steppe Eagles began to use electric poles in desert and semi-desert regions in the south of Russia and Western Kazakhstan. The Steppe Eagle nesting on wooden electric poles had been already noted in Kalmykia at the end of 1970-s (Survillo et al., 1977), however the species nested almost only on the ground until 1950-s and began to nest on thatch ricks only in 1950-70-s and on electric poles in 1970-80-s (Bostanzhoglo, 1911; Kozlov, 1959; Savinetskiy, Shilova, 1986; 1996). Similar process was note in Western Kazakhstan. The Steppe Eagle nesting on concrete electric pole crossarms was found in the Pre-Ural region in 1982 (Pererva, Grazhdankin, 1983). The species had occupied to nest metal and concrete poles widely in the Ural and Emba river basins already to the end of 1990-s. Now 27.3% of the total number of known nests (n=286) is built on electric poles, 52,6% of which is located on concrete pole crossarms (Karyakin, Novikova, 2006). Now the Steppe Eagle has already begun to nest on metal electric poles (15-20 m height) of power lines with high voltage in Kalmykia, the Lower Volga region, Western and the south of Central Kazakhstan, unfortunately it is isolated cases (Belik, 2004; author's information). By the way the Steppe Eagle is not noted to nest on electric poles in the north of his own range in the Samara district (Karyakin, 2002), in the west of the Orenburg district, as well as in Eastern Kazakhstan (Smelyanskiy et al., 2006) and in Southern Siberia (Karyakin et al., 2006) that are inhabited the large breeding populations of the species. Now only western subspecies of the Steppe Eagle (A. nipalensis orientalis) uses electric pole for nesting, but the eastern subspecies (A. n. nipalensis) has not yet been registered to nest on electric poles. The power line infrastructure development is believed to impact on the Long-legged Buzzard spreading in Western Kazakhstan. M.N. Korelov (1962) supposed the species not to breed or breed rarely in the territory between The Volga and the Ural rivers, however the species was found near the Elton Lake and Janybek in 1964, and 39 nests located mostly in large willows in the territory of leaved villages and on wood electric poles had been already known till 1982 (Lindeman, 1983). V.I. Pererva and A.V. Grazhdankin noted 3 nests on electric poles in the Pre-Ural Mountains region (1983). The number of the Long-legged Buzzard had being increased in the Volga-Ural semideserts till 1990-s, as the result the species have inhabited all suitable territories in the region. (Lindeman et al., 2005). Now more than 80% of local breeding groups of the Long-legged Buzzard nest on electric poles in most regions of Western and the west of Central Kazakhstan. The Upland Buzzard inhabiting mountain steppes in Mongolia and Southern Siberia as well as the Long-legged Buzzard began to nest on electric poles but it seemed to be later mostly since the end of 1970-s. The Upland Buzzard was not noted to nest on electric poles in Northern Mongolia in 1960-s (Pichocki, 1968). However the species nesting on electric poles was common in Central Mongolia at the end of 1990-s (Potapov et al., 2001). Surveying the Upland Buzzard in Tuva А.А. Baranov (1991) found 27 nests of the species located only on cliffs and trees, but nothing on electric poles. However near 40-50% of the Upland Buzzard nests had been already registered on electric poles (by the way only on wood poles) in 1999.The species seemed to begin to nest on electric poles in Tuva since 1991 to 1999. The Upland Buzzard was found to nest on electric poles in Khakassia in 2000. A.V. Davygora (1999) was the first who found the Imperial Eagle nesting on the electric pole in the woodless valley of the Irgiz river. Also active nests of the Imperial Eagle on electric poles were found in the Ustyurt Plateau and the Aral Sea region in 2003 (Karyakin et al., 2004). We found 5 pairs of the Steppe Eagle and 3 pairs of the Imperial Eagle nesting on electric poles in the Aral Sea region in 2003, however only pair nested on the electric pole in 2006, but the number of Imperial Eagle pairs increased to 9. Almost all nests of Steppe Eagles besides one were occupied by Imperial Eagles. Besides Steppe Eagles Imperial Eagles also forced Saker Falcons (Falco cherrug) out and occupied 2 nests, where falcons bred earlier. As the result the density of breeding pairs of Imperial Eagles in the monitored fragment of power line increased from 2.01 to 6.03 pairs/100 km of power line while the density of Steppe Eagles decreased from 2.68 to 0.67 pairs/100 km of power line during 4 years (Karyakin, 2006). The Emperial Eagle breeding on electric poles was noted in the Emba river basin in the Kinderli-Kayasanskoe Plateau in 2004 (Levin, Karyakin, 2005), between the Turgay and Zhilanchik rivers in the south of the Kostanay district (Bragin, 2005) and in Eastern Betpak-Dala (Levin, Karpov, 2005). Also nests of Imperial Eagles on electric poles with the density 0,53 pairs/100 km of power line were surveyed in the lower reaches of the Syrdarya river to the east of the Aral Sea in 2005 (Karyakin et al., 2005), in steppes to the north of the Ulutau Mountains (Karyakin, Barabashin, 2006) and Western Betpak-Dala. Two living nests on electric poles were found in the Mugodzhary Mountains in 2006, and one of them was actually occupied by Steppe Eagles in 2004 (Pazhenkov et al., 2005); 1 in the Kalbinskiy Altai foothills (Smelyanskiy et al., 2006). We known 200 breeding pairs of the Imperial Eagles in Kazakhstan in 2006, 25 of which (12.5%) nested on electric poles, while 10 of them forced Steppe Eagles out in 2005-2006 (Karyakin, 2006). Visiting Western Betpak-Dala once again in 2007 we noted the number of nests on electric poles to increase at least in 2 times in contrast with 2005. All facts the Imperial Eagle expansion mentioned above were registered only in semidesert regions of Kazakhstan. The first active nest of the Imperia Eagle located on the concrete electric pole crossarm was found in the steppe in the territory of the Kostanay district of Kazakhstan on 24 May 2007, and the nest with 2 fledglings located on the metal electric pole was found in the forest-steppe in the north-east of the Samara district of Russia on 7 August 2007. The Black-eared Kite (M. m. lineatus) was the first subspecies of the Black Kite which began to nest on electric poles. The Black-eared Kite began actively to nest on metal electric poles along the Enisey river valley in the Tuva depression in 1999-2006. There were 12 nests near Kyzyl and Ak-Dovurak till 2006. The Black Kite breeding on the metal electric pole was registered in the Republic of Altai in 2000, later a breeding colony consisting of 11 active nests and located on metal electric poles was found in the Chuya steppe. The first nest of the Black Kite on the electric pole was found in the Minusinsk depression in 2006. The first living nest of the Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) built on the top on the metal electric pole was found in the Kerzhenets river valley in the N. Novgorod district in 2007. V.G. Kolbintsev (2004) noted the Short-toed Eagle (Circaetus gallicus) nesting on the electric pole in the desert near Kyzylkol Lake in the Maly Karatau Mountains foothills. Also A.V. Kovalenko (pers. com.) surveyed a nest of the Short-toed Eagle on the electric pole in the south-eastern Kazakhstan. The Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) nesting on electric poles was found in the Ustyurt Plateau: 2 nests located in metal electric poles were visited in 2003 (Karyakin et al., 2004). The Buzzard (Buteo buteo) only one of 1113 found nests in the Ural region located on the metal electric pole in deciduous forest was registered in the Chelyabinsk district (Karyakin, 1998). Following the Upland Buzzard and the Raven the Saker Falcon occupying their nests began to inhabit electric poles in Mongolia in 1970-s. The Saker pairs breeding on artificial structures (55.3%) were considered to outnumber the pairs on the natural substrates in the Central Mongolia at the end of 1990-s (Potapov et al., 2001). Sakers nesting on electric poles were registered in Tuva in 1990-s. Surveying Sakers in Tuva A.A. Baranov (1991) did not found any nests of falcons on electric poles. However Sakers were noted to occupy Upland Buzzard nests on wooden electric poles in the Ubsunur and Tuva depression in 1999. Local herders cut down poles with 9 nests of sakers in the left side of the Tes-Chem river since 1999 to 2003, 93.3%, of saker nests (n=13) were destroyed in the steppe region near Agar-Dag-Taiga Mountains during 7 years (Karyakin, 2005а; 2005б), the all 3 poles with saker nests were cut down near the Cheder and Chadyn Lakes in the Tuva depression. A pair of Sakers was noted to breed in the Raven nest on the wooden pole of only functioning power line in 2006. As the result of power line destroying by herders and poaching the number of Sakers decreased in Tuva and falcons has not begun to nest on metal electric poles. Sakers breeding on electric poles were not found in the all territory of the range in Western Siberia and Northern Kazakhstan. The first and last nest of the Saker made by Ravens on concrete electric pole were existing in the north-west of the Orenburg district in the European part of Russia during 2 years in 1998-99 (Karyakin et al., 2005). Sakers has not registered in the Volga and Pre-Ural regions since 2005. The largest density of the Saker was registered on following poles of power lines located in Eastern Betpak-Dala and the Balkhash Lake region (Kazakhstan): in fragments with metal double poles 10.6 pairs/100 km; in fragments with concrete poles 5.6 pairs/100 km, in fragments with single metal poles 7.9 pairs /100 km. The minimal density (3.9 pairs/100 km) was noted for the power line in the territory of military polygon (Levin, Karpov, 2005). Only nest of Sakers made by Imperial Eagles was found on the concrete pole in Western Betpak-Dala in 2005 (Karyakin, Barabashin, 2006). Also Sakers nesting on metal and concrete poles of the power line locating in the Sarysu river basin in south-west of the Kazakh Upland in 2007. Sakers breeds sufficiently sporadically in sands of the Aral Sea region. A.V. Kovalenko (pers. com.) found 2 pairs of Sakers breeding on concrete poles of power line along the Syr-Darya river in 2005. Four pairs were registered in nests made by eagles on concrete poles of the destroyed power line 183 km in length in the Bolshye Barsuki sands in 2003 (Karyakin et al., 2005). Now Sakers are not found to breed on electric poles to the west of the Bolshye Barsuki sands in Kazakhstan and Russia up to the Western Ukraine. Thus the power lines using by birds are distinguished in different regions and years. Appearing in bird inhabitant places power lines impact differently on different subpopulation of the species and it depends on different factors. The most distinguished differences of developing abilities to nest on electric poles development adaptation are revealed between the Steppe and Imperial Eagles. Escaping negative factors pairs of the Steppe Eagle western subspecies began to use electric pole for nesting in optimal breeding habitat, but the Imperial Eagle began to use electric pole as the result of moving from optimal to sub-optimal habitats. Our research confirms power lines to be very important for creating subpopulations of raptor species in untypical places for raptors and therefore and influence development of population structure of those species. From one hand their adaptation to nest on electric poles especially in human disturbed territories promotes their survival. But from another hand birds become to depend on the power engineering management. Now when extensive using of electric poles by raptors is noted, the special program need for collaboration between ornithologists and power engineering specialists for bird protection from electrocution. ; Birds are adapted for the environment conditions. However human began to change many nature conditions and change inhabitant places of many bird species. One of the most powerful factors, that provoked birds to occupy new inhabitant places, was the overhead power line system development. There are many publications about bird electrocution (Pererva, Blochin, 1981; Pererva, Grazhdankin, 1983; Lanovenko, Abdulnazarov, 1983; Saltykov, 1999; Karyakin et al., 2005; Karyakin, Barabashin, 2005; Karyakin, 2008; Medzhidov et al., 2005; Matsyna, 2005; 2006; Karyakin, Novikova, 2006) and this problem need the immediate solution. But in this paper I want to emphasize another side of the problem the positive impact of power lines to improve nesting conditions for many raptor species. Since the power line appearing birds began to use electric poles as perches during breeding season and migrations. However soon birds began to use electric poles and for nest building. The Raven (Corvus corax) began to inhabit power lines in forest-steppe of Russia on 10 years later than the Jackdaw (C. monedula) and the Rook (C. frugilegus) in 1980-s and has begun to spread in the steppe zone only since 1990-s. I had already found tens of raven nests on electric poles in steppes of the Middle Volga in 1995-98. The species only has begun to spread in Western Kazakhstan. There is the paper about the process of raven spreading through power lines in the Cis-Caucasus region: Belik V.P. et al., 2004. The first nest of ravens on an electric pole was found in that region in 2000. The Carrion and the Hooded Crows (Corvus cornix, C. corone)are the latest species of Corvidae who have begun to use electric poles for the nest building. Now 0.7% pairs of Hooded Crows, 4% pairs of Rooks, 30% pairs of Ravens and 55% pairs of Jackdaws build nests on electric poles in the steppe zone of the Volga-Ural region. After Corvidae birds of prey began to occupy electric poles in the forest and forest-steppe zones. The first raptors who began to nest on electric poles were little falcons the Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) and the Red-footed Falcon (Falco vespertinus). Only pairs of Kestrels and Red-footed Falcons bred in the south of the Perm district in 1980-s. The number of Kestrel and Red-footed Falcon nests located on electric poles has increased to 22% and 5% accordingly in the Volga-Ural region till 2007. The first event of the Hobby (Falco subbuteo) nesting in the electric pole was registered in the Ulyanovsk district 29 July 2005. Only the Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) amongst all species of owls began to occupy nests of Corvidae (usually nests of Jackdaws) built on electric poles. There are known 5 such nests. Steppe Eagles began to use electric poles in desert and semi-desert regions in the south of Russia and Western Kazakhstan. The Steppe Eagle nesting on wooden electric poles had been already noted in Kalmykia at the end of 1970-s (Survillo et al., 1977), however the species nested almost only on the ground until 1950-s and began to nest on thatch ricks only in 1950-70-s and on electric poles in 1970-80-s (Bostanzhoglo, 1911; Kozlov, 1959; Savinetskiy, Shilova, 1986; 1996). Similar process was note in Western Kazakhstan. The Steppe Eagle nesting on concrete electric pole crossarms was found in the Pre-Ural region in 1982 (Pererva, Grazhdankin, 1983). The species had occupied to nest metal and concrete poles widely in the Ural and Emba river basins already to the end of 1990-s. Now 27.3% of the total number of known nests (n=286) is built on electric poles, 52,6% of which is located on concrete pole crossarms (Karyakin, Novikova, 2006). Now the Steppe Eagle has already begun to nest on metal electric poles (15-20 m height) of power lines with high voltage in Kalmykia, the Lower Volga region, Western and the south of Central Kazakhstan, unfortunately it is isolated cases (Belik, 2004; author's information). By the way the Steppe Eagle is not noted to nest on electric poles in the north of his own range in the Samara district (Karyakin, 2002), in the west of the Orenburg district, as well as in Eastern Kazakhstan (Smelyanskiy et al., 2006) and in Southern Siberia (Karyakin et al., 2006) that are inhabited the large breeding populations of the species. Now only western subspecies of the Steppe Eagle (A. nipalensis orientalis) uses electric pole for nesting, but the eastern subspecies (A. n. nipalensis) has not yet been registered to nest on electric poles. The power line infrastructure development is believed to impact on the Long-legged Buzzard spreading in Western Kazakhstan. M.N. Korelov (1962) supposed the species not to breed or breed rarely in the territory between The Volga and the Ural rivers, however the species was found near the Elton Lake and Janybek in 1964, and 39 nests located mostly in large willows in the territory of leaved villages and on wood electric poles had been already known till 1982 (Lindeman, 1983). V.I. Pererva and A.V. Grazhdankin noted 3 nests on electric poles in the Pre-Ural Mountains region (1983). The number of the Long-legged Buzzard had being increased in the Volga-Ural semideserts till 1990-s, as the result the species have inhabited all suitable territories in the region. (Lindeman et al., 2005). Now more than 80% of local breeding groups of the Long-legged Buzzard nest on electric poles in most regions of Western and the west of Central Kazakhstan. The Upland Buzzard inhabiting mountain steppes in Mongolia and Southern Siberia as well as the Long-legged Buzzard began to nest on electric poles but it seemed to be later mostly since the end of 1970-s. The Upland Buzzard was not noted to nest on electric poles in Northern Mongolia in 1960-s (Pichocki, 1968). However the species nesting on electric poles was common in Central Mongolia at the end of 1990-s (Potapov et al., 2001). Surveying the Upland Buzzard in Tuva А.А. Baranov (1991) found 27 nests of the species located only on cliffs and trees, but nothing on electric poles. However near 40-50% of the Upland Buzzard nests had been already registered on electric poles (by the way only on wood poles) in 1999.The species seemed to begin to nest on electric poles in Tuva since 1991 to 1999. The Upland Buzzard was found to nest on electric poles in Khakassia in 2000. A.V. Davygora (1999) was the first who found the Imperial Eagle nesting on the electric pole in the woodless valley of the Irgiz river. Also active nests of the Imperial Eagle on electric poles were found in the Ustyurt Plateau and the Aral Sea region in 2003 (Karyakin et al., 2004). We found 5 pairs of the Steppe Eagle and 3 pairs of the Imperial Eagle nesting on electric poles in the Aral Sea region in 2003, however only pair nested on the electric pole in 2006, but the number of Imperial Eagle pairs increased to 9. Almost all nests of Steppe Eagles besides one were occupied by Imperial Eagles. Besides Steppe Eagles Imperial Eagles also forced Saker Falcons (Falco cherrug) out and occupied 2 nests, where falcons bred earlier. As the result the density of breeding pairs of Imperial Eagles in the monitored fragment of power line increased from 2.01 to 6.03 pairs/100 km of power line while the density of Steppe Eagles decreased from 2.68 to 0.67 pairs/100 km of power line during 4 years (Karyakin, 2006). The Emperial Eagle breeding on electric poles was noted in the Emba river basin in the Kinderli-Kayasanskoe Plateau in 2004 (Levin, Karyakin, 2005), between the Turgay and Zhilanchik rivers in the south of the Kostanay district (Bragin, 2005) and in Eastern Betpak-Dala (Levin, Karpov, 2005). Also nests of Imperial Eagles on electric poles with the density 0,53 pairs/100 km of power line were surveyed in the lower reaches of the Syrdarya river to the east of the Aral Sea in 2005 (Karyakin et al., 2005), in steppes to the north of the Ulutau Mountains (Karyakin, Barabashin, 2006) and Western Betpak-Dala. Two living nests on electric poles were found in the Mugodzhary Mountains in 2006, and one of them was actually occupied by Steppe Eagles in 2004 (Pazhenkov et al., 2005); 1 in the Kalbinskiy Altai foothills (Smelyanskiy et al., 2006). We known 200 breeding pairs of the Imperial Eagles in Kazakhstan in 2006, 25 of which (12.5%) nested on electric poles, while 10 of them forced Steppe Eagles out in 2005-2006 (Karyakin, 2006). Visiting Western Betpak-Dala once again in 2007 we noted the number of nests on electric poles to increase at least in 2 times in contrast with 2005. All facts the Imperial Eagle expansion mentioned above were registered only in semidesert regions of Kazakhstan. The first active nest of the Imperia Eagle located on the concrete electric pole crossarm was found in the steppe in the territory of the Kostanay district of Kazakhstan on 24 May 2007, and the nest with 2 fledglings located on the metal electric pole was found in the forest-steppe in the north-east of the Samara district of Russia on 7 August 2007. The Black-eared Kite (M. m. lineatus) was the first subspecies of the Black Kite which began to nest on electric poles. The Black-eared Kite began actively to nest on metal electric poles along the Enisey river valley in the Tuva depression in 1999-2006. There were 12 nests near Kyzyl and Ak-Dovurak till 2006. The Black Kite breeding on the metal electric pole was registered in the Republic of Altai in 2000, later a breeding colony consisting of 11 active nests and located on metal electric poles was found in the Chuya steppe. The first nest of the Black Kite on the electric pole was found in the Minusinsk depression in 2006. The first living nest of the Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) built on the top on the metal electric pole was found in the Kerzhenets river valley in the N. Novgorod district in 2007. V.G. Kolbintsev (2004) noted the Short-toed Eagle (Circaetus gallicus) nesting on the electric pole in the desert near Kyzylkol Lake in the Maly Karatau Mountains foothills. Also A.V. Kovalenko (pers. com.) surveyed a nest of the Short-toed Eagle on the electric pole in the south-eastern Kazakhstan. The Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) nesting on electric poles was found in the Ustyurt Plateau: 2 nests located in metal electric poles were visited in 2003 (Karyakin et al., 2004). The Buzzard (Buteo buteo) only one of 1113 found nests in the Ural region located on the metal electric pole in deciduous forest was registered in the Chelyabinsk district (Karyakin, 1998). Following the Upland Buzzard and the Raven the Saker Falcon occupying their nests began to inhabit electric poles in Mongolia in 1970-s. The Saker pairs breeding on artificial structures (55.3%) were considered to outnumber the pairs on the natural substrates in the Central Mongolia at the end of 1990-s (Potapov et al., 2001). Sakers nesting on electric poles were registered in Tuva in 1990-s. Surveying Sakers in Tuva A.A. Baranov (1991) did not found any nests of falcons on electric poles. However Sakers were noted to occupy Upland Buzzard nests on wooden electric poles in the Ubsunur and Tuva depression in 1999. Local herders cut down poles with 9 nests of sakers in the left side of the Tes-Chem river since 1999 to 2003, 93.3%, of saker nests (n=13) were destroyed in the steppe region near Agar-Dag-Taiga Mountains during 7 years (Karyakin, 2005а; 2005б), the all 3 poles with saker nests were cut down near the Cheder and Chadyn Lakes in the Tuva depression. A pair of Sakers was noted to breed in the Raven nest on the wooden pole of only functioning power line in 2006. As the result of power line destroying by herders and poaching the number of Sakers decreased in Tuva and falcons has not begun to nest on metal electric poles. Sakers breeding on electric poles were not found in the all territory of the range in Western Siberia and Northern Kazakhstan. The first and last nest of the Saker made by Ravens on concrete electric pole were existing in the north-west of the Orenburg district in the European part of Russia during 2 years in 1998-99 (Karyakin et al., 2005). Sakers has not registered in the Volga and Pre-Ural regions since 2005. The largest density of the Saker was registered on following poles of power lines located in Eastern Betpak-Dala and the Balkhash Lake region (Kazakhstan): in fragments with metal double poles 10.6 pairs/100 km; in fragments with concrete poles 5.6 pairs/100 km, in fragments with single metal poles 7.9 pairs /100 km. The minimal density (3.9 pairs/100 km) was noted for the power line in the territory of military polygon (Levin, Karpov, 2005). Only nest of Sakers made by Imperial Eagles was found on the concrete pole in Western Betpak-Dala in 2005 (Karyakin, Barabashin, 2006). Also Sakers nesting on metal and concrete poles of the power line locating in the Sarysu river basin in south-west of the Kazakh Upland in 2007. Sakers breeds sufficiently sporadically in sands of the Aral Sea region. A.V. Kovalenko (pers. com.) found 2 pairs of Sakers breeding on concrete poles of power line along the Syr-Darya river in 2005. Four pairs were registered in nests made by eagles on concrete poles of the destroyed power line 183 km in length in the Bolshye Barsuki sands in 2003 (Karyakin et al., 2005). Now Sakers are not found to breed on electric poles to the west of the Bolshye Barsuki sands in Kazakhstan and Russia up to the Western Ukraine. Thus the power lines using by birds are distinguished in different regions and years. Appearing in bird inhabitant places power lines impact differently on different subpopulation of the species and it depends on different factors. The most distinguished differences of developing abilities to nest on electric poles development adaptation are revealed between the Steppe and Imperial Eagles. Escaping negative factors pairs of the Steppe Eagle western subspecies began to use electric pole for nesting in optimal breeding habitat, but the Imperial Eagle began to use electric pole as the result of moving from optimal to sub-optimal habitats. Our research confirms power lines to be very important for creating subpopulations of raptor species in untypical places for raptors and therefore and influence development of population structure of those species. From one hand their adaptation to nest on electric poles especially in human disturbed territories promotes their survival. But from another hand birds become to depend on the power engineering management. Now when extensive using of electric poles by raptors is noted, the special program need for collaboration between ornithologists and power engineering specialists for bird protection from electrocution.
Catástrofe en Asia China: El fuerte sismo del Domingo pasado, que midió 7,8 grados en la escala de Richter, azotó el sudoeste del país y habría causado cientos de heridos en diferentes ciudades. El sitio más afectado, resultó el condado de Beichuan, donde según reveló la agencia oficial Xinhua se estima que el 80 por ciento de las construcciones se derrumbaron, al mismo tiempo que informó que esa localidad tiene una población de 160.000 personas. Hoy en día las autoridades chinas temen que la cifra de muertos alcance los 20.000. El último balance recoge 14.866 fallecidos.Myanmar: A más de una semana del paso del ciclón tropical "Nargis" por Myanmar, la cifra de fallecidos se situaría en 34.273 y habría 27.836 desaparecidos, aunque la ONU calcula que el número de víctimas mortales se elevará entre los 60.000 y los 100.000 y que los desaparecidos ascienden, en realidad, a unas 200.000 personas. A esta situación se le suman problemas de abastecimiento.Diferentes medios informan al respecto:"MSNBC" informa: "Massive quake kills nearly 10,000 in China.7.9 temblor topples buildings; untold numbers thought to be trapped":http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24573168/"Los Angeles Times" informa: "At least 8,500 killed in China earthquake video":http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-chinaquake13-2008may13,0,6114570.story"Time" publica: "Toll Mounts in China Earthquake":http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1739287,00.html "Le Monde": "Chine : après le séisme meurtrier dans le Sichuan, les secours tentent de s'organiser ":http://www.lemonde.fr/asie-pacifique/article/2008/05/12/chine-apres-le-seisme-meurtrier-dans-le-sichuan-les-secours-tentent-de-s-organiser_1044028_3216.html#ens_id=1043586"New York Times" publica: "Quake Kills Thousands in Western China":http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/13/world/asia/13china.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin"CNN" informa: "Thousands killed by huge China quake":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/05/12/china.quake/index.htmlUn terremoto en China dejó 10 mil muertos.El sismo fue de 7,8 grados en la escala de Richter; estiman que se derrumbó el 80 por ciento de los edificios en la provincia de Sicuani, "La Nación" informa:http://www.lanacion.com.ar/exterior/nota.asp?nota_id=1011813&origen=rss"China Daily" publica: "About 10,000 people dead in killer earthquake":http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/13/content_6678227.htm"Time" informa: "Dams Reported Damaged as Soldiers Reach Quake's Center":http://www.time.com/time/worldLas autoridades chinas temen que la cifra de muertos alcance los 20.000, informa "El País" de Madrid:http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/autoridades/chinas/temen/cifra/muertos/alcance/20000/elpepuint/20080514elpepuint_8/Tes"CNN" informa: "Girl pulled from quake rubble after 50 hours":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/05/14/quake.thursday/index.html"Time" publica: "China Races to Save Quake Victims":http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1770925,00.htmlChina busca a miles de víctimas que siguen atrapadas bajo los escombros. El Gobierno ha enviado 50.000 policías y soldados a la zona del terremotohttp://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/China/busca/miles/victimas/siguen/atrapadas/escombros/elpepuint/20080514elpepiint_6/Tes"China Daily" informa: "National death toll rises to 14,866 two days after quake":http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-05/14/content_6682723.htm"People Daily" publica: "Sichuan quake death toll rises to nearly 10,000":http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/90882/6409236.html"CNN" informa: "China's earthquake victims 'eat bitterness'":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/05/14/china.vause/index.html"The Economist": "Responding to disaster":http://www.economist.com/opinion/displayStory.cfm?story_id=11359253 Myanmar: "No shelter from the storm", informa "The Economist": http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11332728"Los Angeles Times" publica: "Myanmar's cyclone victims brace for new storm":http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-irrawaddy12-2008may12,0,156545.storyMyanmar persiste en impedir la entrada de ayuda internacional. La Junta Militar fija en 34.000 los fallecidos mientras la ONU eleva la cifra hasta 100.000.- La Cruz Roja alerta de la peligrosidad de nuevas lluvias en la zona, "El País" de Madrid informa: http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Myanmar/persiste/impedir/entrada/ayuda/internacional/elpepuint/20080514elpepuint_14/Tes"MSNBC": "Monks back on front line to aid cyclone victims. But they say military is curbing their efforts, even as it fails to deliver aid":http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24582349/"New York Times" informa: "Myanmar Votes as Rulers Keep Grip on Aid": http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/11/world/asia/11myanmar.html?_r=1&ref=world&oref=slogin"El Tiempo" de Colombia publica: "La ONU acusa a la Junta Militar birmana de confiscar la ayuda humanitaria":http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/otrasregiones/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4140403.html"CNN" informa: "Relief boat sinks, leaving aid in Myanmar river":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/05/11/myanmar.aid/index.htmlMyanmar: naufragó un barco de la Cruz Roja. Habría chocado contra un tronco sumergido en las aguas; era el primer envío de ayuda para los sobrevivientes del Nargis:http://www.lanacion.com.ar/exterior/nota.asp?nota_id=1011613AMERICA LATINA"El País" de Madrid informa: "Los papeles de las FARC acusan a Chávez. El ordenador de Raúl Reyes revela la colaboración del presidente con la guerrilla":http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/papeles/FARC/acusan/Chavez/elpepuint/20080510elpepiint_6/Tes"El Tiempo" de Colombia publica: "Chávez dice que Bush dejará cargo antes que él, pese a supuestos planes de E.U. para derrocarlo":http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/latinoamerica/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4158488.html"El Tiempo" de Colombia informa: "E.U. cree en autenticidad de archivos de PC de 'Raúl Reyes' que vinculan a Hugo Chávez con las FARC": http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/euycanada/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4154081.html"El Mercurio" de Chile informa: "Líder estudiantil venezolano Yon Goicoechea: "Mi lucha no es contra Chávez, es a favor de la democracia"":http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/05/12/internacional/internacional/noticias/3808EB70-8C21-48C3-AE05-9F01BC62C20A.htm?id={3808EB70-8C21-48C3-AE05-9F01BC62C20A"La Nación" informa: "Antes de su gira por América latina, Merkel criticó el populismo y afirmó que frena el desarrollo: La canciller alemana visitará cuatro países de la región, pero no la Argentina":http://www.lanacion.com.ar/edicionimpresa/exterior/nota.asp?nota_id=1011478"EL Universal" de México publica: "Dice presidente de la CE que críticas de Chávez a Merkel no ayudan":http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/506178.htmlEvo Morales someterá a referéndum su continuidad al frente de Bolivia. Los nueve gobernadores se jugarán también el puesto en la convocatoria, "El País" de Madrid informa: http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Evo/Morales/sometera/referendum/continuidad/frente/Bolivia/elpepuint/20080510elpepiint_10/Tes "CNN" publica: "Bolivian president agrees to vote of confidence":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/americas/05/08/bolivia.referendum/index.html"The Economist" informa: "Battle by referendum. A tactical victory for the opposition":http://www.economist.com/world/la/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11332954El mandatario brasileño elogió también a Morales y a Lugo. Enérgica defensa de Lula a Chávez. Dijo que "es el mejor presidente que ha tenido Venezuela en los últimos cien años". "La Nación" informa: http://www.lanacion.com.ar/edicionimpresa/exterior/nota.asp?nota_id=1011475"El Tiempo" de Colombia publica: "Grave daño ecológico por erupción del volcán Chaitén en el sur de Chile":http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/latinoamerica/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4158472.html"El Universal" de México informa: "Presionan para evacuar animales de zona cercana a volcán chileno":http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/506196.html"El Tiempo" de Colombia informa: "Gobernadores argentinos abren diálogo con agricultores en medio de la huelga": http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/latinoamerica/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4158573.htmlCortes de tráfico y 'cacerolazos' en apoyo del campo argentino. El sector agropecuario advierte de que la huelga puede extenderse por el país en caso de no obtener una respuesta del Gobierno, "El País" de Madrid publica: http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Cortes/trafico/cacerolazos/apoyo/campo/argentino/elpepuint/20080512elpepuint_9/Tes"El Mercurio" de Chile informa: "Crisis política en Argentina: El campo amenaza con extender su paro y gobernadores recibirán a dirigentes ruralistas":http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/05/12/internacional/_portada/noticias/E0D2FC51-C221-419C-92D8-96A811363514.htm?id={E0D2FC51-C221-419C-92D8-96A811363514"Time" publica: "Nicaragua's Great Leap Forward":http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1738460,00.html"El Universal" publica: "Cuba descarta el acceso de los particulares a Internet a corto plazo": http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/506148.htmlESTADOS UNIDOS/CANADÁ Deferentes medios informan sobre campaña electoral estadounidense:Obama supera a Clinton en número de superdelegados. Varios medios estadounidenses otorgan ventaja al senador por Illinois, que ayer obtuvo el apoyo de su ex rival John Edwards , "El País" de Madrid informa:http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Obama/supera/Clinton/numero/superdelegados/elpepuint/20080510elpepuint_4/Tes"The Economist" analiza: "The big remaining question: He is closer to the Democratic nomination. But how will Barack Obama's colour affect his chances in November?":http://www.economist.com/world/na/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11332201"New York Times" infroma: "Mississippi Fallout":http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/14/mississippi-fallout/index.html?hp"CNN" analiza: "Clinton crushes Obama across the board":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/05/13/west.virginia.analysis/index.html"The Economist" publica: "Primary colour":http://www.economist.com/world/na/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11332289EE.UU.: al menos 18 muertos tras varios tornados. Golpearon con fuerza en Oklahoma y Missouri; hay cuantiosos daños materiales e interrupción de los servicios; no se precisó el número de heridos, "La Nación" publica:http://www.lanacion.com.ar/exterior/nota.asp?nota_id=1011606"El Mercurio" de Chile informa: "Fuertes tornados dejan al menos 22 muertos en el centro y sur de EE.UU.":http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/05/12/internacional/internacional/noticias/6865AB89-CB95-4363-979F-D695E5A52388.htm?id={6865AB89-CB95-4363-979F-D695E5A52388EUROPA Los serbios eligen entre proeuropeos y ultranacionalistas: Tras su victoria en las legislativas el pasado domingo en Serbia, la coalición de fuerzas pro europeas, liderada por el Partido Democrático (DS), del presidente Boris Tadic, emprende ahora el diálogo con fuerzas minoritarias para formar Gobierno. La iniciativa corresponde a los ganadores, partidarios de acabar con el aislamiento serbio y acercar el país a la UE.Diferentes medios informan al respecto: "CNN" publica: "Divided Serbia begins key elections": http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/05/11/serbia.election.ap/index.html"New York Times": "Serbia Braces for Electoral Showdown":http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/13/world/europe/13serbia.html?hp"El País" de Madrid informa: "Los partidos serbios buscan alianzas para formar Gobierno":http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/partidos/serbios/buscan/alianzas/formar/Gobierno/elpepuint/20080512elpepuint_6/Tes"CNN" publica: "Shock election win sets Serbia on path to EU":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/05/12/serbia.election/index.html"Time" informa: "Serbian Voters Spurn Nationalists":http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1739295,00.html"The Economist" publica: "The European Union is doing its utmost to influence Serbia's voters": http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11332870"El Mercurio" informa: "Nuevo Premier italiano: Economía y seguridad, los desafíos del cuarto mandato de Silvio Berlusconi": http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/05/12/internacional/_portada/noticias/50C6E7F5-0250-4DB9-81D9-23D31248B00F.htm?id={50C6E7F5-0250-4DB9-81D9-23D31248B00F"La Nación"informa: "Italia buscará la expulsión de la inmigración ilegal. Será considerada un delito penal":http://www.lanacion.com.ar/edicionimpresa/exterior/nota.asp?nota_id=1011473"El Tiempo" de Colombia informa: "El primer ministro italiano Silvio Berlusconi adopta la línea dura contra la inmigración clandestina":http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/europa/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4157840.htmlKey posts unchanged in new Russia government. Putin's reshuffle underscores central importance of gas, oil to economy, "MSNBC" publica:http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24577955/ETA quería "una matanza" con una bomba muy potente. Los investigadores atribuyen al 'comando Vizcaya' el atentado en Legutiano, que ha costado la vida a un guardia civil y ha dejado cuatro heridos.- Los terroristas programaron la explosión de más 100 kilos de explosivo con muy poco tiempo para huir, "El País" de Madrid informa:http://www.elpais.com/articulo/espana/ETA/queria/matanza/bomba/potente/elpepuesp/20080514elpepunac_2/Tes"El País" de Madrid publica "El Reino Unido revisa los plazos para abortar":http://www.elpais.com/articulo/sociedad/Reino/Unido/revisa/plazos/abortar/elpepisoc/20080510elpepisoc_5/Tes "El Mercurio" informa: "Premier británico: Popularidad de Gordon Brown cae a niveles récord":http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/05/12/internacional/internacional/noticias/FCB2B2E9-A398-4D68-903B-B86E03AE5982.htm?id={FCB2B2E9-A398-4D68-903B-B86E03AE5982}ASIA – PACÍFICO Y MEDIO ORIENTEHezbolá retira a sus milicias de las calles de Beirut. Los opositores dejan en manos del Ejército las calles de la capital del Líbano, después de que los altos mandos rechazaran las decisiones del Gobierno. "El País" de Madrid informa:http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/Hezbola/retira/milicias/calles/Beirut/elpepuint/20080510elpepuint_6/TesHezbollah cede el control de Beirut. Lo hizo luego de que el ejército suspendió dos medidas del gobierno en su contra; ayer hubo 14 muertos en el norte del país, "La Nación" publica:http://www.lanacion.com.ar/edicionimpresa/exterior/nota.asp?nota_id=1011552 "El Tiempo" de Colombia informa: "Aumentan combates entre rebeldes y leales al gobierno en el Líbano": http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/orientemedio/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4158468.html"CNN": "Judge row puts Pakistan coalition in danger":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/05/11/pakistan.judges.ap/index.html"Atentado en vísperas de elecciones dejó al menos diez muertos en Sri Lanka"http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/otrasregiones/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4154321.html"El Mercurio" de Chile analiza: "A 60 años de la guerra árabe-israelí: Los palestinos necesitan ayudarse a sí mismos para lograr su Estado": http://diario.elmercurio.com/2008/05/12/internacional/internacional/noticias/C999854B-29DF-4989-BC4C-FF8A87B57BE8.htm?id={C999854B-29DF-4989-BC4C-FF8A87B57BE8 Declaraciones del presidente Iraní respecto al aniversario de independencia israelí: "Mahmud Ahmadinejad dice que Israel "está en vías de desaparición"":http://www.eltiempo.com/internacional/orientemedio/noticias/ARTICULO-WEB-NOTA_INTERIOR-4151332.htmlBush visita Israel: "Gaza Rocket Rocks Bush's Israel Trip", "Time" informa:http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1779536,00.htmlÁFRICAEl líder opositor de Zimbabue acepta la segunda vuelta de las presidenciales. Tsvangirai pide observadores internacionales para que el presidente Robert Mugabe no repita el fraude de la primera ronda.- El Gobierno descarta las condiciones y dice que los comicios se realizarán bajo las leyes vigentes, informa "El País" de Madrid: http://www.elpais.com/articulo/internacional/lider/opositor/Zimbabue/acepta/segunda/vuelta/presidenciales/elpepuint/20080510elpepuint_7/Tes "CNN" publica: "Official: Zimbabwe runoff must be delayed":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/05/11/zimbabwe.runoff.ap/index.html"CNN" informa "U.N. aid worker shot dead in Kenya":http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/05/09/kenya.shooting/index.html"MSNBC" informa: "Sudan closes border with Chad and halts trade. The move comes a day after Sudan severed diplomatic relations with Chad":http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24556085/Economist calls on world to aid African farmers, "CNN" informa:http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/05/08/africa.farming.ap/index.html ECONOMIA "The Economist" en su resumen semanal: "Business this week":http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11333281&CFID=5407672&CFTOKEN=71878483La mayor aseguradora del mundo entra en 'números rojos'.Los malos resultados de AIG y Citigroup, que ultima una nueva depreciación de activos, ponen de relieve que Wall Street sigue bajo los efectos de la crisis, informa "El País" de Madrid:http://www.elpais.com/articulo/economia/mayor/aseguradora/mundo/entra/numeros/rojos/elpepueco/20080509elpepueco_5/Tes "Time" publica: "Citigroup To Shed Nearly $500B in Assets":http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1738840,00.html?iid=336x280_ad3OTRAS NOTICIAS "The Economist" infroma acerca de la crisis de alimentos: "Taking the strain. The political fallout from the rising cost of food has been manageable—so far":http://www.economist.com/world/international/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11332931Fallece rescatadora de 2500 niños judíos en la Shoá (Holocausto), "Irena Sendler, who smuggled children out of Warsaw Ghetto, was 98" "MSNBC" informa:http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24574531/"The economist" publica: "Microsoft and Yahoo!, No deal":http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11332396
Epic, historic, momentous, transformational. In a word- saturated environment, it is hard to find a term powerful enough to describe the significance of this election for the American psyche. A few vignettes from history may help us grasp this idea better than any hyperbolic epithets. When Frederick Douglass came to the White House, which had been opened to the public to celebrate President Abraham Lincoln's second inauguration in 1865, he was not allowed in. The freed slave, by then a well-known author, abolitionist, activist and orator, sent his card in to the President, who immediately ordered him admitted. In 1901 President Theodore Roosevelt was severely criticized for inviting writer Booker T. Washington to a private dinner at the White House. Thirty years later, his niece, first lady Eleanor Roosevelt received the same vociferous criticism for hosting several African Americans as guests in the White House, including soprano Marion Anderson in 1939. Of course, the practice of receiving black guests in the presidential residence became much more accepted as African Americans were elected to high office in the sixties and seventies. But the journey for the inclusion of the black race has been a long and arduous one for this country, and it will culminate in poetic symbolism this coming January, as Barack and Michelle Obama and their two daughters make the White House their residence. This is a remarkable achievement that all Americans are proud of, and a powerful unifying force for the nation, as mentioned by John McCain in his gracious concession speech on Tuesday night. Barack Obama ran a brilliant, disciplined campaign which will be analyzed for years to come for its innovative use of technology, its break with traditional funding methods and the pervasive influence of the leader 's personality which set a positive tone, an optimistic aura that trickled down to millions of volunteers and contributors. Obama captured the spirit of the times, anticipated the extent to which the country was ready for a change before anyone else did, and proposed a vision that mobilized millions behind him. He was the only one able to take the pulse of the nation and grasp its mood. Eight years of unresponsive and irresponsible leadership, of a lingering war that could not be won, of unimaginable depredation of their cherished values and foundational ideals, had brought Americans to the verge of a nihilistic self-hate. If Obama's intelligence enabled him to perceive this mood, his audacity propelled him forward to seek the higher office in order to change it. Because he believes in the resilience of the country himself, he was able to spark the last bit of fire and illusion left at the bottom of the American heart. He spoke of unity and human dignity; of changing the distorted image the rest of the world has of America, of using diplomacy rather than force, of consulting with allies and talking to enemies. Leaving ideologies aside, he focused on what we all have in common and not on what divides us. And America heard him. His campaign was mainly geared toward the digital generation, and that is where he found his base. Building on Howard Dean's use of the Internet for financing and organizing his own grassroots campaign during the 2003 Democratic primary election, he perfected a technological platform from which he reached millions of citizens. His email list for daily announcements had eight million addresses, eight hundred thousand people registered in mybarackobama.com to get direct information from the campaign and the candidate himself into their mobile phone text messaging systems, and thirteen million people contributed money through the internet. He had one million and a half cyber volunteers who got special training and connected with affinity groups already in existence, such as Democracy for America and the more radical Moveon.org. His field volunteers could choose between training at local headquarters and attending "night school" on the web. By September 1st, the date of the official start of the presidential campaign once both conventions were over, he had amassed four times more money than his opponent. That led him to opt out of public financing, being the first candidate to take this decision since federal funding was established in the 1970s. He took a gamble and won: in September alone, he was able to raise 153 million from small donors on the internet, while McCain, who stopped accepting donations in order to be eligible for public funds, had to content himself with the $84 million received under that program. The contagious optimism and low-key approach that characterize the candidate was also found in every field office, every phone bank volunteer, and every neighborhood canvassing team. The lack of internal disputes and the positive atmosphere earned his campaign the nickname of "No Drama Obama" and the candidates as well as his close team of advisers deserve full credit for it. He started with a small circle of inner political advisors who had worked with him during his Senate run. Talent and serenity, no prima donnas and no big egos, were the main qualifications. In a new version of J.F. Kennedy's The Best and the Brightest, he drew on his friends from Harvard and Columbia, and his colleagues and students from the University of Chicago as the next circle of supporters and advisors. They helped him recruit five hundred paid political operatives among the best in the business, and an army of volunteers. They mounted a huge voter registration operation and a get- out -the vote campaign that would pay off immensely on Election Day. In difficult times during the campaign, David Axelrod, his chief strategist says, Obama and his team would regain their motivation focusing on what he would be able to achieve once in the White House. During the lowest point of his campaign, the Reverend Jeremy White controversy, after brainstorming for a while, Obama decided to make a speech on race as he saw it, based on his own experience and perspective. If he could not persuade Americans of his good faith, he would lose and go back to the Senate, he told his closer advisors with his usual cool detachment that belies a disciplined tenacity and a passion for his call of service to the country. That speech was hailed as exceptional, and was well-received by all races and creeds; it generated a consensus seldom forthcoming on such a divisive topic. The result of these efforts, from the vision that inspired it all to the organizational strengths, was reaped on election night, when he won over 61% of the youth vote, 98% of the African American vote, 67% of the Hispanic vote, 56% of the women's vote, 47% of white men. He also won the Independents vote, as well as the Catholic and even some of the Evangelical vote. This broad based coalition is also reflected in a geographical shift, with the inroads he made into Republican territory by winning Virginia, North Carolina, Indiana, Ohio, Nevada and Colorado as well as Florida. There is no denying that this represents a major political realignment, even if it is too early to evaluate whether these demographic and geographical changes are permanent. But they do reflect changes in the economy, with economic power flowing away from major urban centers and into new states such as Virginia and Colorado. This transfer of economic power brings about demographic change and, ultimately, a shift in political power. Obama put it with subtlety when he said: "There are no red states and blue states; there is the United States of America." Now the major question being posed these days is whether President Obama will be able to govern as flawlessly as he campaigned and whether he will make good on his promise of bipartisanship. He has quite a few good options to do this when choosing his cabinet: moderate Republican Robert Gates could, for example, be asked to stay on as Secretary of Defense, or Chuck Hagel, a Republican Senator that was outspoken on his opposition to the Iraq war could replace him. Colin Powell's name has been suggested for Secretary of Education. Obama has already announced that his first measures will be on the economy, namely, a stimulus package to spur employment, extension on unemployment benefits and more attention to the implementation of legislation already passed on mortgage foreclosures. Given the economic crisis and the huge bailout package that will have to be administered by the incoming administration, the Treasury Secretary will be the most important cabinet member. Here Obama will probably choose a Democrat such as former Clinton Secretary Treasurers Larry Summers or Bob Rubin, or perhaps younger Timothy Geithner, President of the New York Federal Reserve Bank. A larger question is whether Obama will be bold or cautious in his first decisions. President Reagan was of the idea that what a president does not get done during the first year of his tenure, goes into oblivion and does not get done at all. Since the center of the political spectrum decided the election and gave him a strong mandate, he will need to address their concerns first. For example, by giving the middle class the promised tax cuts, and financing those by letting Bush's tax cuts on the wealthy elapse. Health care reform is also a possibility, to demonstrate his commitment to voters, but one that would cost a lot and take time to implement. The main difficulty he faces lies in the conundrum of how to do something bold without enlarging the trillion dollar budget deficit he is inheriting, and all without raising taxes. A neo-Keynesian approach is likely, with, for example, the government ignoring the deficit for a while, and investing in a huge renewable energy program, thereby creating thousands of green jobs and meeting two campaign promises with one bold stroke. He could also opt for highly symbolic actions, such as closing Guantánamo and delivering the prisoners to the US regular court system. Politically, he has a mandate for this, but there may be some legal sticking points that might protract the process and thus not render it so symbolically effective. Whatever he decides to do, the transition period will set the tone for the rest of his administration. He thus needs to do it right, lay out his vision of a national purpose and work towards it in a bipartisan and transparent way, avoiding the temptation of governing with the Democratic legislature only, to the exclusion of the Republican minority. The same mobilized digital-age generation that gave him this victory will be monitoring his every move, assessing the results and sharing their opinions on blogs and chat rooms. Since Obama has his sights set on the long-term, he will try his best not to disappoint. Senior Lecturer, Department of Political Science and Geography Director, ODU Model United Nations Program Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia
1. IntroductionOver the last decade, increased attention has been paid to terrorism, particularly to the new wave of terrorist groups, fundamentalist movements, and extremist organisations such as Al‐Qaeda. September 11 marked the beginning of a turbulent phase in which states face a new kind of threat made up of a complex network of insidious revolutionary and nationalist forces. Such transformations have given rise to an unprecedented number of publications. However, both political violence and terrorism remain sources of endless disputes and controversies because of their political implications. At the same time, in the scientific community, terrorism studies lack conceptual and methodological uniformity. In his article, Domenico Tosini synthesises and discusses some major findings from this research. Courses using such a review will be confronted with the four major topics that any analysis of terrorism, to be comprehensive, should take into account: the definition of terrorism; its history and classification; its explanations; and an assessment of the consequences of counterterrorism policies.2. Literature recommendations Bjørgo, Tore (ed.) 2005. Root Causes of Terrorism: Myths, Realities and Ways Forward. London, UK: Routledge.In this book, based on the analysis of numerous case studies (e.g. Palestinian armed groups, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, right‐wing extremists, state terrorism and state‐sponsored terrorism), experts in political violence examine the preconditions for the emergence of different types of terrorist organisations and the main factors that sustain terrorist campaigns. Cole, David 2003. Enemy Aliens: Double Standard and Constitutional Freedoms in the War on Terrorism. New York, NY: The New Press.Thanks to its analysis and evaluation of the consequences of counter‐terrorism measures, David Cole's Enemy Aliens is one of the most rigorous discussions of how states (like the United States since 2001) often combat terrorism by adopting emergency powers (such as the special detention at Guantanamo Bay), which, in turn, risk undermining civil liberties. della Porta, Donatella 1995. Social Movements, Political Violence, and the State. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.Based on empirical research that compares the origins and development of left‐wing terrorism in Italy and Germany between the 1960s and the 1990s, della Porta offers a middle‐range theory of political violence that combines an analysis of the political opportunities and ideological frames exploited by armed groups, a profile of their organisational structures, and an investigation of the typical patterns underlying their recruitment processes. Gambetta, Diego (ed.) 2006. Making Sense of Suicide Missions. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.In this book, a number of distinguished social scientists, while examining the use of suicide missions by political and religious groups (such as the Japanese Kamikaze, the Tamil Tigers, Palestinian organisations, and Al‐Qaeda), specify and discuss the most important methodological questions associated with definitions, data collection, and explanations concerning this form of political struggle. Hoffman, Bruce 2006. Inside Terrorism. New York, NY: Colombia University Press.The book introduces the most important issues of terrorism studies: the controversial problem of the definition of terrorism; a history of terrorism, from anti‐colonial struggles to international terrorism; an examination and explanation of the most recent waves of religious extremists and suicide terrorism; an analysis of the ways terrorist groups exploit old and new media such as the Internet; and, finally, an overview of the strategies, tactics, and organisational aspects of modern and contemporary terrorism. Horgan, John 2005. The Psychology of Terrorism. London, UK: Routledge.Horgan presents a critical analysis of our understanding of terrorist psychology; many shortcomings emerge, particularly the limitations of personality theories in attempting to explain militancy. Based on interviews with terrorists, the book considers the most relevant psychological and social factors underlying involvement and engagement in political violence, and the process of leaving terrorist organisations. Kalyvas, Stathis 2006. The Logic of Violence in Civil War. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.Scholars generally distinguish between terrorism and other forms of violence against civilians – tactics of guerrilla warfare or insurgency in civil wars, for example. However, this work makes a relevant contribution to terrorism studies. Kalyvas clarifies the rationality and micro‐processes of interactions during armed conflicts that account for indiscriminate and selective uses of violence against civilian populations by political actors. Kushner, Harvey W. 2003. Encyclopedia of Terrorism. London, UK: Sage.One of the most accurate and exhaustive dictionaries focusing on terrorism, with more than 300 entries concerning terrorist groups, key events, people, terms, and statistics, as well as biographical, historical, and geographical information. Free access is available at the Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism (MIPT) (http://www.terrorisminfo.mipt.org/eBooks.asp). Laqueur, Walter 2002. A History of Terrorism. London, UK: Transaction Publishers.Along with Laqueur's Guerrilla Warfare: A Historical and Critical Study (London: Transaction Publishers, 1998), this constitutes a pioneering history of armed organisations, from nineteenth century Europe, to the anarchists of the 1880s and 1890s, to the left‐wing clashes during the 20th century, and up to the most recent terrorist groups. Pape, Robert A. 2005. Dying to Win: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism. New York, NY: Random House.Over the last decade, suicide terrorism has become an alarming political threat and a crucial challenge for social scientists. In his work, which compares a number of organisations responsible for suicide attacks, Pape rejects the explanation of suicide terrorism based on religious fundamentalism. He argues for a correlation between the use of this tactic and specific kinds of groups engaged in separatist campaigns or in struggles for liberation from foreign occupiers. Ranstorp, Magnus (ed.) 2007. Mapping Terrorism Research: State of the Art, Gaps and Future Directions. London, UK: Routledge.In this book, distinguished scholars of terrorism studies discuss state‐of‐the‐art field research. In exploring new trends in this area – the most important questions about the explanation of recent terrorist organisations such as Al‐Qaeda, and about counterterrorism – these essays shed light on the strengths and weaknesses of our current knowledge of political violence. Reich, Walter (ed.) 1998. Origins of Terrorism: Psychologies, Ideologies, Theologies, States of Mind. Washington, DC: Woodrow Wilson Center Press.This is another seminal work on terrorism, bringing together some of the most well known experts in political violence. The variety of approaches used in the explanations of terrorist organisations and in the analysis of counterterrorism paves the way for a real interdisciplinary setting, which is absolutely crucial once the multi‐faceted nature of terrorism is clear. Sageman, Marc 2004. Understanding Terror Networks. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press.Based on the analysis of biographical data for nearly 200 members of global Islamist extremism (of which Al‐Qaeda is a part), Sageman accounts for the origins and developments of this movement and specifies the crucial role played by social networks in the recruitment of individuals as Islamist militants. Wilkinson, Paul 2006. Terrorism versus Democracy: The Liberal State Response. London, UK: Routledge.Wilkinson examines major trends in international terrorism and liberal democratic responses. On the one hand, the book introduces the specificity of terrorism and offers a classification and explanation of the most important types of armed groups. On the other, in approaching how states deal with terrorist threats, this work discusses forms of counterterrorism, by taking into account their impact on the rule of law and on the protection of civil liberties.3. Online materials Agenzia Informazioni e Sicurezza Interna (AISI) (Agency for Internal Information and Security)(http://www.aisi.gov.it)The Agenzia Informazioni e Sicurezza Interna (AISI) is the branch of Italian Intelligence tasked with collecting and analysing information about any criminal and terrorist threat to security. Among other activities, the AISI distributes its own periodical, Gnosis, online, where a chronology of international as well as domestic terrorist attacks since 2004 (currently updated through 2007) is available. Counterterrorism Blog (http://counterterrorismblog.org)The Counterterrorism Blog is a multi‐expert blog devoted to providing a one‐stop gateway to the counterterrorism community. It offers, among other things, overnight and breaking news, with real time commentary by experts; reports on terrorist organisations; discussions of long‐term trends in counterterrorism; and summaries of and discussions about US and international law. Center for Constitutional Rights
(CCR) (http://ccrjustice.org)Founded in 1966 by attorneys who represented civil rights organisations, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) is a non‐profit legal and educational organisation dedicated to protecting the rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It also offers information about important issues related to counterterrorism (e.g., the prolonged battle in defence of civil liberties associated with the special detention at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba). Global Terrorism Database (GTD)(http://www.start.umd.edu/data/gtd)The Global Terrorism Database (GTD) is an open‐source database on terrorist incidents around the world since 1970 (currently updated through 2004). It includes systematic data on international as well as domestic terrorist attacks. For each GTD incident, information is available on the date and location of the attack, the weapons used and nature of the target, the number of casualties, and (when possible) the identity of the perpetrator. Another important database, the Terrorism Knowledge Base (TKB) at the Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism (MIPT) (http://www.mipt.org/TKB.asp), has recently ceased operations and elements of the system have been merged with the GTD. Information on terrorist groups is now available at the Terrorist Organization Profiles (http://www.start.umd.edu/data/tops). Human Security Report Project
(HSRP) (http://www.hsrgroup.org)The HSRP conducts research on global and regional trends in political violence, exploring their causes and consequences, and then making this research accessible to the policy and research communities, the media, educators, and the interested public. The HSRP's publications include the Human Security Report, the Human Security Brief series, and the Human Security Gateway. The recent Human Security Brief 2007, online, makes a relevant contribution in discussing the methodological issues associated with collecting data on terrorism and offers a comprehensive overview of terrorist incidents in the last decade. Middle East Media Research Institute
(MEMRI) (http://www.memri.org)The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) explores the Middle East through the region's media with respect to a variety of topics including terrorism. MEMRI provides translations of Arabic, Persian, and Turkish media, as well as analysis of political, ideological, intellectual, social, cultural, and religious tendencies in the Middle East. A new section, the MEMRI's Islamist Websites Monitor Project, was launched in 2006 as part of the Jihad & Terrorism Studies project. Its aim is to keep Western audiences informed about the phenomenon of jihadist sites on the Internet, which are used by terrorist groups and their sympathisers to spread their extremist messages, to raise funds, and to recruit activists. Uppsala Conflict Data Project
(UCDP) (http://www.pcr.uu.se/research/UCDP)The Uppsala Conflict Data Project (UCDP) collects data on armed conflicts around the world. A global conflict database is now available online. Data are useful for systematic studies of conflict origins, dynamics, and resolution. Worldwide Incidents Tracking System (WITS)(http://wits.nctc.gov)The Worldwide Incidents Tracking System (WITS) is the National Counterterrorism Center's (NCTC) database of terrorist incidents. NCTC serves as the primary organisation in the United States government for integrating and analysing all intelligence pertaining to terrorism and, at the same time, as the central and shared knowledge bank on terrorism information. Based on WITS, the NCTC provides an annual report and statistical information about terrorist incidents. Additional Online Resources Scores of additional organisations and centres (too many to list) conduct and disseminate research on issues related to armed conflicts, terrorism, terrorist groups, security, and counterterrorism. What follows is a list of some other key organisations and centres, with links to their websites:Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI)(http://www.aspi.org.au)Centre for Asymmetric Threat Studies (CATS)(http://www.fhs.se/en/Research/Centers‐and‐Research‐Programmes/CATS)Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)(http://www.csis.org)Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence (CSTPV)(http://www.st‐andrews.ac.uk/~wwwir/research/cstpv)IntelCenter(http://intelcenter.com)International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR)(http://www.pvtr.org)International Crisis Group (ICG)(http://www.crisisgroup.org)International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS)(http://www.iiss.org)International Policy Institute for Counter‐Terrorism (ICT)(http://www.ict.org.il)Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism (MIPT)(http://www.mipt.org)Saban Center at the Brookings Institution(http://www.brookings.edu/saban.aspx)Senlis Council(http://www.senliscouncil.net)Southern Poverty Law Center(http://www.splcenter.org)Terrorism and Homeland Security at RAND Corporation(http://www.rand.org/research_areas/terrorism)Terrorism Research Center (TRC)(http://www.terrorism.org)Transnational Radical Islamism Project at the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment(http://www.mil.no/felles/ffi/english/start/research/Analysis_Division/_TERRA)United States Institute of Peace(http://www.usip.org/index.html)4. Sample syllabus Course Title: A Sociological Analysis of Terrorism and Counterterrorism Course Description In this course, we will explore the most relevant issues around terrorism and counterterrorism policies. Although we will largely approach this topic from a sociological perspective, this study is quite interdisciplinary. Consequently, we will be reading works from other academic disciplines, including history, psychology, political science, and economics. There are four major areas that any analysis of terrorism, to be comprehensive, should take into account: the definition of terrorism; its history and classification; its explanations; and an assessment of consequences related to counterterrorism. After an introduction to terrorism research (part 1), we will discuss the controversies related to the definition of terrorism (part 2) and to data collection (part 3), both necessary for an understanding of tendencies concerning terrorist incidents. A historical overview (part 4) will give us some preliminary information about the variety of terrorist campaigns – information that prepares us for the next exercise (part 5): grouping terrorist organisations by different types. Looking in more depth at the evolution of terrorism in the last decade, we will examine the case of Al‐Qaeda (part 6), and how this and other organisations exploit old and new media, especially the Internet (part 7). The next chapter will be the explanation of terrorism, that is, the specification of the main psychological, political, cultural, and religious factors underlying the emergence of a terrorist organisation and the unfolding of a terrorist campaign. Suicide terrorism will be used as a case study. More specifically, we will approach terrorism by examining the motivations and rationality of terrorist organisations (part 8), of the communities that support them (part 9), and of those who join them (part 10). We end the course by focusing on both the legal (part 11) and strategic (part 12) implications of counterterrorism measures adopted since 2001. Course outline and reading assignments Part 1. Terrorism Research An overview of the most important approaches to the study of terrorism and of the strengths and weaknesses of available analyses. Bjørgo, Tore 2005. 'Introduction' (pp. 1–15) and 'Conclusions' (pp. 256–264) in Root Causes of Terrorism: Myths, Realities and Ways Forward, edited by Tore Bjørgo. London, UK: Routledge. Crenshaw, Martha 2000. 'The Psychology of Terrorism: An Agenda for the 21st Century.'Political Psychology 21 (2): 405–420 (Doi: 10.1111/0162-895X.00195). Ranstorp, Magnus 2007. 'Introduction: Mapping Terrorism Research – Challenges and Priorities.' Pp. 1–28 in Mapping Terrorism Research, edited by Magnus Ranstorp. London, UK: Routledge. Silke, Andrew 2004. 'An Introduction to Terrorism Research.' Pp. 1–29 in Research on Terrorism: Trends, Achievements and Failures, edited by Andrew Silke. London, UK: Frank Cass. Sinai, Joshua 2007. 'New Trends in Terrorism Studies: Strengths and Weaknesses.' Pp. 31–50 in Mapping Terrorism Research, edited by Magnus Ranstorp. London, UK: Routledge. Turk, Austin T. 2004. 'Sociology of Terrorism.'Annual Review of Sociology 30: 271–286 (Doi: 10.1146/annurev.soc.30.012703.110510). Wilkinson, Paul 2007. 'Research into Terrorism Studies: Achievements and Failures.' Pp. 316–328 in Mapping Terrorism Research, edited by Magnus Ranstorp. London, UK: Routledge. Part 2. What is Terrorism? A discussion of one of the most controversial issues, the definition of terrorism, focusing on its political and methodological implications. Aly, Waleed 2008. 'The Axiom of Evil.'The Guardian, 8 July, http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/jul/08/nelsonmandela.terrorism (last accessed: 8 July 2008). Hoffman, Bruce 2006. Chapter 1 (pp. 1–42). Inside Terrorism. New York, NY: Columbia University Press. della Porta, Donatella 2004. 'Terror Against the State.' Pp. 208–16 in The Blackwell Companion to Political Sociology, edited by Kate Nash and Alan Scott. Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishing. Schmid, Alexander P. 2004. 'Frameworks for Conceptualising Terrorism.'Terrorism and Political Violence 16 (2): 197–221 (Doi: 10.1080/09546550490483134). Tilly, Charles 2004. 'Terror, Terrorism, Terrorist.'Sociological Theory 22 (1): 5–16 (Doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9558.2004.00200.x). Tosini, Domenico 2007. 'Sociology of Terrorism and Counterterrorism: A Social Science Understanding of Terrorist Threat', Sociology Compass 1 (2), 664–681 (Doi: 10.1111/j.1751-9020.2007.00035.x). Wilkinson, Paul 2006. Chapter 1 (pp. 1–19). Terrorism versus Democracy: The Liberal State Response. London, UK: Routledge. Part 3. Collecting Data on Terrorism Incidents An introduction to the challenges and solutions to the collection of terrorism data, a preliminary and crucial aspect of any scientific analysis. Buchalter, Alice R. and Glenn E. Curtis 2003. Inventory and Assessment of Databases Relevant for Social Science Research on Terrorism. Washington, DC: Federal Research Division Library of Congress, http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/frd (last accessed 10 June 2008). Enders, Walter and Todd Sandler 2006. Chapter 3 (pp. 52–83). The Political Economy of Terrorism. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Lafree, Gary 2007. 'Introducing the Global Terrorism Database.'Terrorism and Political Violence 19 (2): 181–204 (Doi: 10.1080/09546550701246817). HSP 2008. Human Security Brief 2007. Dying to Lose: Explaining the Decline in Global Terrorism. Simon Fraser University, Canada: Human Security Report Project, http://www.humansecuritybrief.info/HSRP_Brief_2007.pdf (last accessed 15 June 2008). Part 4. Waves of Terror: The Evolution of Terrorism A look at terrorism from a historical perspective in an attempt to identify continuities and discontinuities in the use of political violence. Abrahms, Max 2006. 'Why Terrorism Does Not Work.'International Security 31 (2): 42–78 (Doi: 10.1162/isec.2006.31.2.42). Duyvesteyn, Isabelle 2004. 'How New Is the New Terrorism?'Studies in Conflict and Terrorism 27 (5): 439–454 (Doi: 10.1080/10576100490483750). Hoffman, Bruce 2006. Chapters 2–4 (pp. 43–130). Inside Terrorism. New York, NY: Columbia University Press. Jenkins, Brian 1975. International Terrorism: A New Mode of Conflict. Research Paper n. 48, California Seminar on Arms Control and Foreign Policy. Kaplan, Jeffrey 2007. 'The Fifth Wave: The New Tribalism?'Terrorism and Political Violence 19 (4): 545–570 (Doi: 10.1080/09546550701606564). Laqueur, Walter 2002. Chapters 1–2 (pp. 3–78). A History of Terrorism. London, UK: Transaction Publishers. Münkler, Herfried 2005. Chapter 5 (pp. 99–116). The New Wars. Cambridge, UK: Polity. Rapoport, David C. 2004. 'Modern Terror: The Four Waves.' Pp. 46–73 in Attacking Terrorism: Elements of a Great Strategy, edited by Audrey Cronin and J. Ludes. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press. Reed, Donald J. 2008. 'Beyond the War on Terror: Into the Fifth Generation of War and Conflict.'Studies in Conflict and Terrorism 31 (8): 684–722 (Doi: 10.1080/10576100802206533). Part 5. Typologies of Terrorist Movements An overview of the complex task of classifying terrorist organisations on the basis of characteristics such as political objectives, ideological frames, and the cleavages between them and their enemies. Goodwin, Jeff 2006. 'A Theory of the Categorical Terrorism.'Social Forces 84 (4): 2027–2046. Gunaratna, Rohan and Graeme C. S. Steven 2004. Chapter 1 (pp. 1–98). Counterterrorism. Santa Barbara, CA: Abc Clio. Schmid, Alexander P. and Albert J. Jongman 1988. Chapter 2 (in collaboration with M. Stohl and P. A. Fleming, pp. 39–60). Political Terrorism. London, UK: Transaction Publishers. Tosini, Domenico 2007. 'Sociology of Terrorism and Counterterrorism: A Social Science Understanding of Terrorist Threat.'Sociology Compass 1 (2), 664–681 (Doi: 10.1111/j.1751-9020.2007.00035.x). Wilkinson, Paul 2006. Chapter 2 (pp. 20–38). Terrorism versus Democracy: The Liberal State Response. London, UK: Routledge. Part 6. Al‐Qaeda and its Affiliates: Ideologies, Strategies, Structures A sociological look at the ideological, strategic, and organisational aspects of Al‐Qaeda's terrorism from the 1980s to its most recent campaign in Iraq. Al‐Zayyat, Montasser 2004. The Road to Al‐Qaeda. London, UK: Pluto Press. Gunaratna, Rohan 2002. Chapters 1–2 (pp. 21–126). Inside Al‐Qaeda. New York, NY: Berkley Books. Pape, Robert A. 2005. Chapter 7 (pp. 102–125). Dying to Win: The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism. New York, NY: Random House. Sageman, Marc 2004. Chapters 1‐2 (pp. 1‐60). Understanding Terror Networks. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. Hafez, Mohammed M. 2007. Chapters 1–5 (pp. 35–162). Suicide Bombers in Iraq. Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace Press. Part 7. Terrorism and the Media An exploration of the ways that terrorist organisations exploit old and new media, especially the Internet, as communicative channels (for staging their attacks, threats, demands, and propaganda) and as instrumental tools (for fund raising, coordination, and recruitment). Hoffman, Bruce 2006. Chapters 6–7 (pp. 173–228). Inside Terrorism. New York, NY: Columbia University Press. ICG 2006. In Their Own Words: Reading the Iraqi Insurgency. International Crisis Group: Middle East Report No 50, 15 February, http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=3953&l=1 (last accessed 5 February 2008). Rogan, Hanna 2006. Jihadism Online: A Study of How Al‐Qaeda and Radical Islamist Groups Use Internet for Terrorist Purposes. Norwegian Defence Research Establishment: FFI/RAPPORT‐2006/00915, http://rapporter.ffi.no/rapporter/2006/00915.pdf (last accessed 5 June 2008). Sageman, Marc 2008. Chapter 6 (pp. 109–123). Leaderless Jihad. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press. Weimann, Gabriel 2006. Chapters 3–4 (pp. 49–145). Terror on the Internet. Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace Press. Part 8. Terrorist Organisations and Their Logic An examination of the political objectives and ideologies of terrorist organisations and an overview of the rationality and strategies underlying their decision‐making in relation to the political opportunities and military events shaping their environment. Boyns, David and James David Ballard 2004. 'Developing a Sociological Theory for the Empirical Understanding of Terrorism.'American Sociologist 35 (2): 5–26 (Doi: 10.1007/BF02692394). Crenshaw, Martha 1998. 'The Logic of Terrorism: Terrorist Behaviour as a Product of Strategic Choice.' Pp. 7–24 in Origins of Terrorism, edited by Walter Reich. Washington, DC: Woodrow Wilson Center Press. Gambetta, Diego 2006. 'Can We Make Sense of Suicide Missions?' Pp. 259–299 in Making Sense of Suicide Missions, edited by Diego Gambetta. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Hafez, Mohammed and Quintan Wiktorowicz 2004. 'Violence as Contention in the Egyptian Islamic Movement.' Pp. 61–88 in Islamic Activism: A Social Movement Theory Approach, edited Quintan Wiktorowicz. Indianapolis, IN: Indiana University Press. Kalyvas, Stathis 2006. Chapters 6–7 (pp. 147–208). The Logic of Violence in Civil War. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Kramer, Martin 1998. 'The Moral Logic of Hezbollah.' Pp. 131–157 in Origins of Terrorism, edited by Walter Reich. Washington, DC: Woodrow Wilson Center Press. Pape, Robert A. 2005. Chapters 3–5 (pp. 27–60). Dying to Win. New York, NY: Random House. Tosini, Domenico 2009. 'A Sociological Understanding of Suicide Attacks.'Theory, Culture & Society (Forthcoming). Part 9. Mechanisms of Social Support A discussion of the economic, cultural, and political conditions which make possible the support for, and collaboration with, terrorist organisations by members of certain communities. Cook, David and Olivia Allison 2007. Chapters 1–5 (pp. 1–85). Understanding and Addressing Suicide Attacks: The Faith and Politics of Martyrdom Operations. Westport, CT: Praeger Security International. Chernick, Marc 2007. 'FARC‐EP: From Liberal Guerrillas to Marxist Rebels to Post‐Cold War Insurgency.' Pp. 51–120 in Terror, Insurgency, and the State, edited by Marianne Heiberg et al. Philadelphia, PA: University Pennsylvania Press. Hashim, Ahmed S. 2006. Chapter 2 (pp. 59–124). Insurgency and Counter‐Insurgency in Iraq. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. Kalyvas, Stathis 2006. Chapter 4 (pp. 87–110). The Logic of Violence in Civil War. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Merari, Ariel 2005. 'Social, Organizational and Psychological Factors in Suicide Terrorism.' Pp. 70–86 in Root Causes of Terrorism: Myths, Realities and Ways Forward, edited by Tore Bjørgo. London, UK: Routledge. Pape, Robert A. 2005. Chapters 6–8 (pp. 79–167). Dying to Win. New York, NY: Random House. Part 10. Social Networks and Recruitment An analysis of the motivations behind the process of joining terrorist organisations and of the role played by group dynamics and social networks. della Porta, Donatella 1995. Chapter 7 (pp. 165–186). Social Movements, Political Violence, and the State. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Sageman, Marc 2004. Chapters 4–5 (pp. 99–173). Understanding Terror Networks. Philadelphia, PA: University Pennsylvania Press. Horgan, John 2005. Chapter 3 (pp. 47–79). The Psychology of Terrorism. London, UK: Routledge. Khosrokhavar, Fahad 2005. Chapter 3 (pp. 149–224). Suicide Bombers. London, UK: Pluto Press. Pedahzur, Ami 2005. Chapters 6–7 (pp. 118–181). Suicide Terrorism. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press. Stern, Jessica 2003. Chapter 9 (pp. 237–280). Terror in the Name of God. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publisher. Wintrobe, Ronald 2006. Chapters 5–6 (pp. 108–157). Rational Extremism: The Political Economy of Radicalism. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Part 11. Counterterrorism I: Legal Implications An overview of the emergency powers of antiterrorism legislations and 'special measures', and an analysis of their legal impact on the protection of human rights. Cole, David 2003. Chapters 1–5 (pp. 17–82). Enemy Aliens. New York, NY: The Free Press. Haubrich, Dirk 2003. 'September 11, Anti‐Terror Laws and Civil Liberties: Britain, France and Germany Compared.'Government and Opposition 38 (1): 3–29 (Doi: 10.1111/1477-7053.00002). Parker, Tom 2005. 'Counterterrorism Policies in the United Kingdom.' Pp. 119–148 in Protecting Liberty in an Age of Terror, edited by Philip B. Heymann and Juliette N. Kayyem. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Tosini, Domenico 2007. 'Sociology of Terrorism and Counterterrorism: A Social Science Understanding of Terrorist Threat', Sociology Compass 1 (2): 664–681 (Doi: 10.1111/j.1751-9020.2007.00035.x). Part 12. Counterterrorism II: Strategic Limitations An examination of the most important counterterrorism policies adopted since 2001, with special reference to the occupation of Iraq, and an assessment of their advantages and risks for combating and preventing terrorism. Nesser, Peter 2006. 'Jihadism in Western Europe After the Invasion of Iraq: Tracing Motivational Influences from the Iraq War on Jihadist Terrorism in Western Europe.'Studies in Conflict and Terrorism 29 (4): 323–342 (Doi: 10.1080/10576100600641899). Pape, Robert A. 2005. Chapter 12 (pp. 237–250). Dying to Win. New York, NY: Random House. Silke, Andrew 2005. 'Fire of Iolaus: The Role of State Countermeasures in Causing Terrorism and What Needs to Be Done.' Pp. 241–255 in Root Causes of Terrorism: Myths, Realities and Ways Forward, edited by Tore Bjørgo. London, UK: Routledge. Smelser, Neil J. 2007. Chapter 6 (pp. 160–199). The Faces of Terrorism: Social and Psychological Dimensions. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Tosini, Domenico 2007. 'Sociology of Terrorism and Counterterrorism: A Social Science Understanding of Terrorist Threat', Sociology Compass 1 (2): 664–681 (Doi: 10.1111/j.1751-9020.2007.00035.x). Wilkinson, Paul 2006. Chapters 5–6 (pp. 61–102). Terrorism versus Democracy: The Liberal State Response. London, UK: Routledge.5. Films and videos Al‐Qaeda Film on the First Anniversary of the London Bombings. 2006 (17 min)(http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/215/1186.htm)Excerpts from a message from 2005 London bomber Shehzad Tanweer and statements by Al‐Qaeda leaders Ayman Al‐Zawahiri and Adam Gadahn, posted on http://www.tajdeed.net.tc on 8 July 2006. A typical example of the communicative use of the Internet by Islamists in their attempt to frame terrorist attacks as legitimate acts of martyrdom, committed by courageous Muslims in defence of their brothers and sisters in occupied Muslim lands (e.g. Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine). Al‐Qaeda Leader in Iraq Abu Musab Al‐Zarqawi's First Televised Interview. 2006 (17 min)(http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/344/1118.htm)A video posted by the Islamist web forum http://www.alsaha.com on 25 April 2006, in which the Al‐Qaeda commander in Iraq Abu Musab Al‐Zarqawi (killed by an airstrike on 7 June 2006) outlines all the typical condemnations (by Islamist extremists) of the Iraq occupation by the US‐led coalition, and calls for a jihad against its forces and allies. Propagandising the military capabilities of Al‐Qaeda, the video culminates in footage of Al‐Zarqawi with masked fighters, firing an automatic weapon, and 'new missiles' developed by 'the brothers'. Al‐Arabiya TV Special on the Culture of Martyrdom and Suicide Bombers. 2005 (7 min)(http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/215/807.htm)Excerpts from a show about the culture of martyrdom, aired on Al‐Arabiya TV on 22 July 2005. The documentary investigates some of the most relevant religious and political justifications and symbolic representations among Islamist extremists in favour of suicide attacks. In particular, it looks at the Palestinian organisations Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and at the Lebanese Hezbollah. The film includes an interview with Maha Ghandour, the wife of Salah Ghandour, who was responsible for a suicide attack carried out in 1995 on behalf of Hezbollah against an Israeli military convoy. Battle For Haditha. 2007 (93 min)(http://www.nickbroomfield.com/haditha.html)In this film, the director Nick Broomfield looks at the dramatic events surrounding an incident that occurred in Haditha, Iraq, when 24 Iraqis were allegedly massacred by US Marines, following the death of a Marine in a bombing perpetrated by Iraqi insurgents. The harsh reality of the war is viewed from three perspectives: that of the US troops, the insurgents who committed the attacks, and a civilian Iraqi family. Iranian Animated Film for Children Promotes Suicide Bombings. 2005 (10 min)(http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/215/906.htm)Including excerpts from an Iranian animated movie for children, aired on IRIB 3 TV on 28 October 2005, this film is an example of the mechanisms of de‐humanization of the enemy (the Israelis), based on a tale of the ferocious murder of innocent people by Israeli soldiers. This incident is followed by a bomb attack framed as an act of martyrdom by young militants in revenge of the previous assassination. Paradise Now. 2005 (91 min)In his film, the director Hany Abu‐Assad focuses on the final days of two Palestinian militants as they prepare to carry out a suicide attack in Tel Aviv. Once childhood friends Said (Kais Nashef) and Khaled (Ali Suliman) are offered such an attack, they feel a sense of purpose in serving their people's cause, whereas a young Palestinian woman, after learning of their plan, tries to dissuade them from carrying out their missions. Paradise Now has been viewed as a controversial attempt to examine the motivations of suicide bombers. The Reach of War: Sectarian War in Iraq. 2006 (7 min)(http://www.nytimes.com/packages/khtml/2006/12/28/world/20061228_SECTARIAN_FEATURE.html)The New York Times journalist Marc Santora reports on some of the most violent and bloody effects of the sectarian violence perpetrated in Iraq during the civil war between Sunnis and Shiites, which has followed the occupation by the US‐led coalition. The Road to Guantanamo. 2006 (92 min)(http://www.roadtoguantanamomovie.com)Directed by Michael Winterbottom, the film tells the story of four friends beginning a holiday in Pakistan. Through a series of interviews and news footage, the film shows how they end up in Afghanistan, where are then captured by American forces and kept in harsh conditions at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for over 2 years. The Role of Foreign Fighters in the Iraqi Jihad. 2006 (9 min)(http://www1.nefafoundation.org/multimedia‐original.html)In this video, NEFA Foundation expert Evan Kohlmann documents the phenomenon of foreign fighters in Iraq and their role within the Sunni insurgency. The video includes footage of senior figures from Abu Musab al‐Zarqawi's terrorist group (including Lebanese, Saudi, and Kuwaiti nationals) and scenes from Al‐Qaida training camps in Iraq. The Suicide Bomber. 2005 (12 min)(http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/terrorism/july‐dec05/bombers_11‐14.html)In this debate aired on PBS on 14 November 2005, three experts (Mia Bloom, Mohammed M. Hafez, and Robert A. Pape) discuss what motivates suicide bombers and their terrorist organisations, with special reference to the 2005 hotel bombings in Amman, Jordan, where a female militant joining these attacks was found alive after her bomb failed to detonate. The Terrorist Propaganda (three videos): Indexing Al‐Qaeda Online. 2005 (6 min)(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp‐dyn/content/custom/2005/08/05/CU2005080501141.html?whichDay=1) Without the Video, It's Just an Attack. 2007 (5 min)(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp‐dyn/content/video/2007/09/28/VI2007092800608.html) Al‐Qaeda's Growing Online Offensive. 2008 (14 min)(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp‐dyn/content/article/2008/06/23/AR2008062302135.html)Over the last decade, terrorist propaganda on the Internet has increased dramatically. In these videos, experts discuss how insurgent groups, in particular Islamist extremists in Iraq and Afghanistan, are using new media to spread their messages worldwide, to chronicle their operations (including the assembly and emplacement of roadside bombs targeting US forces), to recruit, and to raise money.6. Focus questions
What challenges do researchers interested in terrorism studies face and why? What are the most important theoretical and methodological weaknesses in current terrorism research? How can we define terrorism? What political controversies affect the definition of terrorism? When comparing different terrorism data sets, what kinds of diagnoses can we make on the tendencies of terrorist incidents in the last decade? How has terrorism changed in history? Based on the literature concerning Al‐Qaeda's ideology, strategies, and structures, what continuities and discontinuities can we identify with respect to previous forms of terrorism? When dealing with the explanation of terrorism, what are the most significant factors to be taken into account? How can we learn from the current literature on suicide terrorism in order to build a comprehensive model for its explanation? Given the legislative and military responses to September 11 and subsequent attacks (e.g. the 2005 London bombings), what have been the legal consequences affecting our societies and the strategic implications for combating and preventing terrorist violence?
7. SeminarsParticipants will be divided into small groups of about three persons. Each group will be asked to make a contribution to a sociological analysis (either written or presented) of a specific armed organisation, such as:Al‐Gama'a Al‐IslamiyyaAl‐QaedaAl‐Qaeda in IraqAl‐Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (formerly Salafist Group for Call and Combat)Ansar Al‐SunnahAnsar Al‐IslamArmed Islamic Groups (GIA)Army of GodAum ShinrikyoChechen separatistsEgyptian Islamic JihadEuskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA)HamasHezbollahIrgun Zvai LeumiIrish Republican Army (IRA)Islamic Movement of UzbekistanJemaah IslamiyahKashmiri separatistsKu Klux Klan (KKK)Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)Lashkar‐e‐JhangviLibyan Islamic Fighting GroupPalestinian Islamic JihadPalestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO)Red Army Faction (RAF)Red Brigades (BR)Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC)Taliban.For each armed organisation, each group will examine the following aspects:
data on its attacks – including information that justifies the label of 'terrorist organisation'; a historical account of its origins and developments; an analysis of the strategy underlying its terrorist campaigns; a clarification of its social support and collaboration (if any); a profile of its militants and patterns of recruitment; a discussion of the counterterrorism policies adopted by states and their impact on the terrorist organisation.
Note * Correspondence address: Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology and Social Research, Piazza Venezia 41 – 38100 Trento, Italy, +39 0461 881324; +39 0461 881348 (fax); +39 347 2329219 (mobile); Email: domenico.tosini@soc.unitn.it http://portale.unitn.it/dpt/dsrs/docenti/tosini.htm
The field of 'trans' studies, which incorporates transsexual, transgender, and cross‐dressing among its experiences and theorizing, has undergone tremendous changes within the century or so in which it has been developing. Initially, the scope of transsexual studies spans for almost a century, across social institutions and within a rigid model of proving a person's 'true transsexuality'. On the other hand, the reach and depth of transgender studies, emergent only less than 20 years ago, moves across disciplines, incorporates first and third person accounts, and it is less invested in reifying 'true' transgender identity and expression (although there are emergent movements attempting to solidify transgender as a multiple gender response to the gender binary, often by elite or privileged citizens). In summary, the field of transgender and transsexual studies is in constant development and change, and there are significantly some tensions that could offer much newer theorizing (e.g. between the categories of transsexuality and transgender as an umbrella term).Sociology's continued influence within the transsexual and transgender studies/fields require our attention to interdisciplinarity, while at the same time a serious grounding on the sociological literatures concerning the topic. Sex, gender, and sexuality are analytical concepts of much importance in order to study 'trans' populations and issues, as are questions of social location based on ethno‐racial, class, and other positionalities. These recommended readings, films and exercises form a foundation to implement critical views on the topic of 'trans' studies, and its intersections with other topics such as gender identity, homosexuality, gender presentation, and some historical accounts of the formation and solidification of the transgender category.Author recommendsStryker, Susan, and Stephen Whittle (eds) 2006. The Transgender Studies Reader. New York, NY: Routledge.A compilation of a number of old articles, and recent contributions by emergent scholars from many areas (including sexology, psychiatry, queer theory, feminist scholars, and transgender men and women), this reader is a critical reference to those interested in trans studies. Susan Stryker, herself one of the originators of transgender studies, poses a critical look at the resistance to acknowledge transgender (and transsexual) embodiment and identity. Stephen Whittle, a European scholar, also bridges the field in his beginning remarks. The chapters are a varied contribution to the scholarship of transgender studies, broadly defined. Its first part is a compilation of previously published work on transsexuality, but the majority of the text uncovers a series of issues newly developed (such as intersectionality, embodiment, and identities and communities).Valentine, David 2007. Imagining Transgender: An ethnography of a Category. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.This book is empirically based on fieldwork among three groups of transgender populations in New York City. Ranging from the staff and volunteers of the Gender Identity Project at the Gay and Lesbian Community Center, sex workers in the area of the 'meat packing district' (a district in the lower part of Manhattan) and at 'House Balls' (events of dance and competitions among queer youth of color), Valentine draws from all of these experiences to formulate the solidification of the 'transgender' category. A compilation of previously published articles and new material, this book is award winning within its field – anthropology. One of its main contributions is the use of 'transgender' as a term that evokes current debates and political struggles to solidify distinctions between gender and sexuality, and in many instances, the transgender category as relational to homosexuality.Bryant, Karl 2006. 'Making Gender Identity Disorder of Childhood: Historical Lessons for Contemporary Debates.'Sexuality Research and Social Policy 3 (3): 23–39.This article is a social history of the diagnostic category of 'gender identity disorder' and, in particular, how it was applied to children (mostly boys) in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders from the American Psychiatric Association. The discourses surrounding the psychiatric diagnosis are traced from the beginning of related studies and the inception of the term (from the 1960s on) and into the present. Bryant gives a significant review of past debates in order to inform the contemporary ones taking place through his analysis of archival data, interviews with key mental health and psychiatry providers, and published reports on the development of this diagnosis. Among the aspects he looks at are the controversies as to whether atypical gender behaved boys will grow up to be homosexual, transsexual, or transvestite, and how current advocates for or against this diagnosis may be reproducing similar assumptions, or producing normative results, in their critiques of this diagnosis.Halberstam, Judith 2005. In a Queer Time and Place: Transgender Bodies, Subcultural Lives. New York, NY: New York University Press.This book is a significant development from a humanities‐based cultural studies angle that takes a close look at artistic and media portrayals of transgender experience. Halberstam argues for a complex relationship (much closer than otherwise portrayed) between transgender and transsexual identities by looking at various individuals and their experiences – most notably Brandon Teena, who was killed in Nebraska by acquaintances, when it was 'discovered' that Brandon was a female‐bodied person who 'passed' as male. Halberstam's introduction to the book is a great challenge to the privileging of analysis of space in contemporary social theorizing (drawing on criticisms of works such as David Harvey's) and centering a newer analysis of queer uses of time as a challenge to normative assumptions about family and the nation. In a Queer Time and Place seriously engages the relationship between embodiment and representation, and the urban and rural contrasts in trans theorizing.Meyerowitz, Joanne 2002. How Sex Changed: A History of Transsexuality in the United States. Cambridge, MA, and London, UK: Harvard University Press. How Sex Changed is an elaborate historical examination of the ways sex, gender, and sexuality are tied together in early sexual science studies through the authority of medical and scientific 'experts'. Meyerowitz offers a broad historical and geographic discussion on transsexuality, ranging from the 19th century to the 1980s United States, and at times draws excellent comparisons between the US and European nations in their (often imprecise) dealings with transsexuality. A significant feature of Meyerowitz's work is the tracing of medical and scientific authority over access to technologies that would allow transsexuals to 'change sex'; transsexual narratives countered this authority with their accounts of self. The book illustrates the complex negotiation between what doctors considered to be the reasons and symptoms of transsexuality and the kinds of stories put forth by transsexuals seeking their help.Rubin, Henry 2003. Self‐Made Men: Identity and Embodiment among Transsexual Men. Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt University Press. Self Made Men is a sociological study of the experiences of 22 transsexual men from various US cities. Rubin answers questions about the body and identity for his research subjects by weaving two discussions: of genealogy and phenomenology; the former a more discursive argument, the latter, a more grounded one. In this way, Rubin attempts to engage in structure versus agency theorizing in the narratives shared by the female‐to‐male transsexuals he interviewed. Rubin's book has a significant overlap to Meyerowitz, where he discusses the 1970s division between female‐bodied transsexual and lesbian identifications – worth taking a close look at as well. But Rubin's contributions also attest to the embodied experiences of the transmen he interviewed, by weaving experiences of betrayal and misrecognition, identities in progress, and some of the historical determinants for the development of a male transgender identity.Irvine, Janice 1990. Disorders of Desire: Sex and Gender in Modern American Sexology. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.This book gives a comprehensive look at the sexological field in the 20th century. As a sociologist, Irvine produces a compelling set of critiques of the ways in which a normative set of perspectives – about what takes place in one's sexual lives, about seeking help for sexual health, and about homosexuality and gender variant men and women – is dissected by the fields of psychiatry, psychology, and medicine. The text gives a comprehensive sense of the professionalization of sexology as a field – discussing Alfred Kinsey's work, the visibility and political mobilization of feminists and gay/lesbian groups, and later sexological scholarship on the physiological reactions to sex, erotic sensations, and pleasure. An award‐winning book, this is a great text to combine with readings on the social construction of sex, gender, and sexuality in contemporary USA.Kessler, Suzanne, and Wendy McKenna 2000. 'Who Put the "Trans" in Transgender? Gender Theory and Everyday life.'International Journal of Transgenderism, 4 (3): July–September. http://www.symposion.com/ijt/gilbert/kessler.htm.This very brief online essay offers a set of reflections on the uses and claims of 'trans' as a prefix that means different things to various populations (including academics and transgender people). The authors link their current reflections to their early work (Gender: An Ethnomethodological Approach) in order to politicize the various possible social change results that can come out of radical uses of trans. Their discussion is a refreshing approach that combines sociological and feminist analyses of gender identity in transgender people. Moving through the meanings of trans, and the history of the study of transsexuality and transgender identity nowadays, they evoke a social constructionist perspective to how gender develops, but as well, to how the biological is also a social construction.Mason‐Schrock, Douglas 1996. 'Transsexuals' Narrative Construction of the True Self.'Social Psychology Quarterly, 59 (3): 176–92.This article shows the development of interactive strategies to solidify an identity construction among several identities and experiences expressed in a support group for transsexual, cross‐dresser, transvestites and other gender variant men and women. Through naming, 'modeling', guiding each other through their past histories, and ignoring certain 'facts' about each other's past, the participants in these support groups foregrounded a transsexual narrative, to the detriment of other expressions. The work Mason‐Schrock developed here is an exploration of identity negotiation at its core, and one that merits attention by scholars on gender and sexuality, as well as transgender studies. Centro: Journal of the Center for Puerto Rican Studies. Special Issue: 'Puerto Rican Queer Sexualities', Volume XIX, Number 1 (Spring 2007) (Guest Edited by Luis Aponte‐Parés, Jossianna Arroyo, Elizabeth Crespo‐Kebler, Lawrence La Fountain‐Stokes, and Frances Negrón Muntaner).This special issue of the Centro Journal has an introduction that frames the place of Puerto Rican sexualities in social scientific knowledge. I recommend this issue in particular due to several articles that illustrate the lives of an important Puerto Rican transgender woman (Sylvia Rivera, key figure in the Stonewall riots), as well as José Arria, another key Latino individual whose visibility in the gay/trans communities has often been overlooked. The special issue also reproduced the talk that Sylvia Rivera gave at the Latino Gay Men of New York (the largest Latino gay male group in New York City) in 2000, a few years before her death, as well as an interview with Antonio Pantojas – a long‐time female impersonator in Puerto Rico. For the reader interested in literature, the special issue also includes some discussion and analysis of Caribbean fiction that gave visibility to transgender people.Films and documentaries Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton's Cafeteria (Victor Silverman, Susan Stryker, writers, directors, producers, 2005). Info at: http://www.screamingqueensmovie.com/.This documentary illustrates a challenge to the notion that a queer revolution started in 1969 in New York City, but instead, was initiated in the Tederloin, a marginalized San Francisco neighborhood. The historical accounts of transwomen that experienced life in the neighborhood where the Compton's cafeteria was located at the time of the riot are presented through interviews and archival documentation. You Don't Know Dick: Courageous Hearts of Transsexual Men (Bestor Cram, Candace Schermerhorn, producers, 1997. Info at: http://www.berkeleymedia.com/catalog/berkeleymedia/films/womens_studies_gender_studies/gay_lesbian_transgender_issues/you_dont_know_dickAlthough old, this documentary shows the stories of several female‐to‐male transsexual men whose lives, their sexual experiences, and their gender negotiations are made evident. A very heartfelt documentary to show students the range of histories of transsexuality in an often ignored group – transgender men.Online materials
Sexuality Research and Social Policy e‐journal. Many articles published in this electronic journal showing the range of trans experiences (see in particular special issues December 2007 and March 2008, co‐edited by Dean Spade and Paisley Currah). Trans‐academics.org. An excellent website with many resources for scholars.
Suggested syllabiInstead of providing a single (and perhaps, narrower) view of 'trans' studies and issues through a sample syllabus, I urge the reader to go to Trans‐academics.org. There are several syllabi addressing the various perspectives in teaching trans issues (and from various disciplines). The page can be accessed here: http://trans‐academics.org/trans_studies_syllabiProject ideas and suggested exercises1. This exercise explores various issues foundational to discussions of trans experiences by looking at self‐representations, or other representations, as well as potential sociological analyses.Take a look at recent films, documentaries, research articles and books, and first person testimonials from transgender people. Divide the classroom into groups of 4–5, and assign each of them a different cultural text/document to look at. After exploring general reactions in each of the groups, assign each of the groups a collective response to some or all of the following questions:
What are the representations of transsexuality or transgender identity or experience in your assigned text? What is the relationship between sex and gender as evidenced in the films/videos/documentaries/articles/research reviewed? What, if any, are the discussions of gender and sexuality in the text? How are first person narratives authorized? What are the underpinnings – the history, the encounters with regulating social institutions, and the community formation as expressed in these texts? How does your group see sociology and sociological analyses in these texts? (This is important to assess whether the source you are reflecting upon is sociological or not.)
2. This assignment may lead students to think critically about the separation of gender and sexuality as analytical constructs. The document utilized also makes students reflect on migratory experiences and whether (and to what extent) they influence one's own knowledge and perceptions about transgender and transsexual experiences.Look at the Sexilio document (a comic‐book style autobiography) in the AIDS Project Los Angeles website (apla.org). Sexilio (Sexile) is a life history of a male‐to‐female transsexual who was born and raised in Cuba, and migrated with the Marielitos, the massive 1980 migration from Cuba to Miami, Florida. It is but one example of a first person illustration of transgender issues that complicates the relationship between gender identity and sexual orientation, adding migration experiences as yet another layer of analysis. Specific links: http://apla.org/publications/sexile/Sexile_web.pdf (English) http://apla.org/espanol/sexilio/Sexilio_web.pdf (Español)3. This assignment is intended to make students aware of the differences between first person representations, and media representations, of trans experiences.Have students research blogs, newspaper articles, films/documentaries, made‐for‐TV movies, other media coverage, and interviews (when available) of trans people that have been recently on the public eye, such as Calpernia Adams, Gwen Araujo, Tyra Hunter, Fred Martinez, and Brandon Teena. Then, have students explore:
What are trans people saying about themselves? (In the cases in which they have said anything about themselves – there are cases where they became well known after death.) What are the various media outlets saying about trans people? Trans experience? (And here, pay special attention to the various media outlets and the regional, cultural, and religious differences, as well as other potential differences, in their reporting.) Are the messages about transsexual and transgender expression/identity clearly separated in these illustrations? Which (re)presentations link homosexuality to transsexuality? Which separate it? Under what arguments are these fusions and distinctions being made?
4. This is an exercise for smaller classrooms, where there can be significantly more discussion about one's own personal experience.Have students evaluate their own gender presentation and the ways in which others attribute their gender identity. For such a discussion, refer to the reflections on Lucal (1999). Then have the students discuss the different meanings of trans as discussed by Kessler and McKenna (2000), or the gender insignia as discussed by West and Zimmerman (1987).Kessler, Suzanne, and Wendy McKenna 2000. 'Who Put the "Trans" in transgender? Gender Theory and Everyday Life.'International Journal of Transgenderism 4 (3): July–September. http://www.symposion.com/ijt/gilbert/kessler.htm.Lucal, Betsy 1999. 'What It Means to Be Gendered Me: Life on the Boundaries of a Dichotomous Gender System.'Gender & Society 13 (6): 781–97.West, Candace; Don H. Zimmerman 1987. 'Doing Gender.'Gender & Society, 1 (2): 125–51.5. This assignment aims to break away from the transgender versus transsexual discussion, by incorporating cross‐dressing and drag performances.Discuss the meanings of 'trans' beyond the transgender and transsexual as explored in the article. Focus on cross‐dressing and drag queen/king discussions, by taking a comparative approach to cross‐dressing among some of the following scholars:Schacht, Steven P. (ed.) 2004. The Drag Queen Anthology: The Absolutely Fabulous but Customary World of Female Impersonators. New York, NY: Haworth Press.Schacht, Steven P. 2002. 'Four renditions of doing female drag: feminine appearing conceptual variations of a masculine theme.' Pp. 157–80 in Gendered Sexualities (Advances in Gender Research, Volume 6), edited by Patricia Gagne and Richard Tewksbury. New York, NY: Elsevier Science Press.Shapiro, Eve. 2007. 'Research Report: Drag Kinging and the Transformation of Gender Identities.'Gender & Society 21 (2): 250–71.Taylor, Verta, and Leila J. Rupp. 2006. 'Learning from Drag Queens.'Contexts, 5 (3): 12–17.Taylor, Verta, and Leila J. Rupp. 2003. Drag Queens at the 801 Cabaret. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.Discuss: What are some of the assumptions about gender that those 'doing drag' engage in? Likewise, what are some of the ways in which the researchers apply those assumptions themselves? Is there a difference between cross‐dressing and drag? Have the students exhaust the potential differences, and name what they perceive to be the similarities between the two.If possible, further the conversation by incorporating drag and cross dressing as part of the transgender umbrella term. What are some of the historical implications of drag and cross‐dressing? Where do they see cross‐dressing in relation to sex, gender, and sexuality? And doing drag? Do they see a distinction between doing drag for female‐bodied and male‐bodied individuals? If yes, how so? If no, why not?6. This assignment is intended for a theory or sociology of gender class where theoretical discussions are expected – ideally, an upper‐level sociology course.Discuss the ways in which ethnomethodology, phenomenology, symbolic interactionism, cultural studies, queer theory, and discourse analysis all frame transgender and transsexual experience. Use any of the sociology references in the 'Transgender and Transsexual Studies' article.
As late back as 1993, Ahmed noted that many Muslims voiced concern of the negative representation of Islam and Muslims by the Western media. However, following on from such incidents as the Rushdie affair, the first Gulf War and 9/11, interest in media representations of Islam have grown. An ever‐increasing body of research has argued that the images, representations and discourses relating to Islam and Muslims in mainstream Western media tend to be negative and hostile (Poole and Richardson 2006). Various studies have examined the specific relationship between media and Islam (Ahmed 1993; Runnymede Trust 1997); the representations of Muslim minorities in the West (Allen 2005; Poole 2002) and others on Muslims and Islam in the global media (Poole and Richardson 2006; Zelizer and Allan 2002). Ideologically, these constructions can be traced back the expansion of Western imperialism where a dichotomy of 'West' versus 'East' was constructed (Said 1978).The following suggested reading list provides a starting point for researchers that are interested in exploring issues of representation and minority groups. This is not an exhaustive list but provides some of the fundamental texts that help us to understand the relationship between one minority group in the West (i.e. Muslims) and their representations in the media.The reading list is constructed in the following way. First, it presents key cultural theory (i.e. Orientalism) and relates this to issues of 'race'. Second, it examines the link between media research on minority groups and representations of Muslims/Islam. Finally, it provides some background knowledge on Muslims/Islam within the West.Suggested textsCultural theorySaid, Edward 1978. Orientalism. London, UK: Penguin (republished, 2003 and 2005).Edward Said's Orientalism (1978) is a theory that has transformed the ways in which power relations between West and East can be understood. This explores the ideas that have become embedded in Western culture through history that justify imperialism/colonialism on the basis that the West is viewed as superior to the East. Within the book, Said offers three major claims. First, he describes Orientalism as an objective, disinterested and esoteric set of ideas, the overall function of which is to serve political ends. These, for example, provided an ideological justification for Orientalist scholars to allow Europeans to take over Oriental lands. Second, Said looks at how these tools are important in helping Europe to define its image and to establish and maintain opposites and others. On this basis, Europe was given its own cultural and intellectual superiority over Islamic cultures, and this led the West to see the Islamic culture as static both in place and time. Third, Said points out that Orientalism has produced a false description of Islamic cultures, including a belief that that it is possible to unconditionally define the essential qualities of a whole Islamic culture and the people within it. The qualities of this culture are usually defined in negative terms.The following link provides a summary by Said on the new edition of Orientalism: http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,12084,1010417,00.html (last accessed 24 June 2008)Ferguson, Robert 1998. Representing 'Race': Ideology, Identity, and the Media. London, UK: Arnold.The operations of ideology in the media are also discussed in Representing 'Race'. Ferguson argues that the study of 'race' and the media cannot be seriously undertaken without engaging with theories of ideology and without an awareness of contemporary theoretical work, such as approaches to Orientalism, hegemony and critical discourse analysis. Ferguson also highlights the danger of accepting at face value socially constructed and ideologically charged notions such as 'race'. The book also provides a useful summary and critique of Orientalism and applies various concepts to case studies within the media.For a good analysis of how hegemony, representation and notions of 'race' are intertwined that draws upon Ferguson's work, see the following: Can Gramsci's theory of hegemony help us to understand the representation of ethnic minorities in western television and cinema? By Reena Mistry at http://www.theory.org.uk/ctr‐rol6.htm (last accessed 24 June 2008).Media and 'race'Cottle, Simon 2000. Ethnic Minorities and the Media: Changing Cultural Boundaries. Buckingham, UK: Open University Press.This key text brings together international researchers who have investigated some of the latest issues, debates and examples informing the field of ethnic minorities and the media. It provides a useful opening chapter that reviews the developments within this field. It also explores changes in media representations as well as different approaches that examine discourse, production and identity and debates within broader media theory such those about the media' role as the public sphere.Van Dijk, Teun 1991. Racism and the Press. London, UK: Sage.Van Dijk notes that most white people have very little contact with ethnic minorities and that their attitudes towards ethnic groups are therefore influenced on this basis by the media. He states that the media play a central role in the reproduction of racism in Western countries. Using discourse analysis, his book investigates the nature of the existence of racism through an analysis of statements on racial/ethnic relations found within the Dutch and British press. Van Dijk links the idea of 'primary definers' to the notion that the media constitute an 'elite' in society. Whilst accepting that the media represent conflicts over these ideas that include the voices of other social actors, he argues that in terms of race and ethnicity, an ethnic consensus is prevalent here. Van Dijk notes that the media constitute a cultural elite, and as the experts in matters of 'formulation' (and re‐formulation), the media produce the dominant discourse environment of a racist society.A collection Van Dijk's work on racism, discourse analysis and media can be found on the following web site: http://www.discourses.org Representations of Islam/muslims in the mediaPoole, Elizabeth 2002. Reporting Islam: Media Representations of British Muslims. London, UK: I.B. Tauris.Poole examines the claim that Muslims are negatively represented in the British press. She argues that media images of Muslims are informed by official definitions of Islam that serve elite interests and that these change over time to suit political purposes. Orientalist discourses, it is argued here for example, maintain the view of Islam as a coherent, trans‐national monolithic force that has been engaged in a confrontational relationship with the West throughout history. The book makes clear and concise connections between theory and representation and provides excellent examples to illustrate this.Poole, Elizabeth and John Richardson (Eds) 2006. Muslims and the News Media. London, UK: I.B. Tauris.This book examines the role and representations of Muslims in the news media in context of the current discussions of the 'War on Terror'. It includes chapters by both academic authorities and media practitioners and demonstrates how theory can be exemplified in practice. Furthermore, it is set in both a British and international context and recognizes similarities and differences present within coverage from around the globe. From a media perspective, the book clearly explores the connections between national/global context, content, production and different audiences (Muslim and non‐Muslim) and looks also at how Muslim media is organized and structured.Muslim minorities in the WestModood, Tariq 2006. Multicultural Politics: Racism, Ethnicity and Muslims in Britain. Edinburgh, UK: Edinburgh University Press.In Multicultural Politics, Tariq Modood explores how much of the 'blame' for the failure of multiculturalism has been attached to Islamic culture's incompatibility with the 'democratic' principles of the West. Arguing that the old 'racial' division of black–white has been complicated by factors such as cultural racism and the rise of Islamophobia, the book moves to chart these developments within the British context whilst also paying attention to global political developments. The book has an impressive range of topics covered such as 'race', racism, Islamophobia, the multicultural debate and even summarizes broader relevant cultural theory.Films, videos and on‐line sourcesVisual sources are an excellent teaching method that can be employed to explain theories of 'race' and media representation. Rather than concentrate on 'actual' films, videos online material that may considered Islamophobic the following provides academic and more critical sources that may be useful for teaching issues of Islam, Muslims, minority representation and even 'race'.Edward Said: On Orientalism (1998)In this documentary, Said talks about the context within which his book was conceived, its main themes and how its original thesis and ideas still relate to a contemporary understanding of 'the Orient' that is represented in the mass media and wider public politics.A brief version of the documentary can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwCOSkXR_Cw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjlRR‐qRkcc (last accessed 26 June 2008)Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People (2008)Race, the Floating Signifier: Featuring Stuart Hall (2006)Stuart Hall discusses the concept of 'race' and how race is represented and naturalized in the media. This interview gives relevant examples to help to understand the concept of mediated representations. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cxBOdBoxpg&feature=related (last accessed June 26 2008)A documentary supported by the Media Education Forum based on academic research on how Muslims/Islam/Arabs are represented (and treated as a homogenous group) by Hollywood. It builds upon media representations of various minority groups and then looks specifically at similarities and differences in Arab portrayalsThe trailer and a brief version of the documentary can be found at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko_N4BcaIPY http://www.democracynow.org/2007/10/19/reel_bad_arabs_how_hollywood_vilifies (both last accessed 26 June 2008)Online sourcesRace, racism and ethnic minority affairs http://www.cre.gov.uk/ The home page for the Commission for Racial Equality provides up to date information on news and current affairs. It also provides links to a variety of other relevant sources form the media to black history groups. http://www.irr.org.uk The Institute of Race Relations (IRR) was established as an independent educational charity in 1958 to carry out research, publish and collect resources on race relations throughout the world. This website contains links to academic research, policy research and also media stories that are relevant to anyone interested in the area of 'race' and ethnicity. It also published the highly respected journal 'Race and Class'. http://www.islamophobia‐watch.com/islamophobia‐watch/ The above link also provides useful information on examples of racist and Islamaphobic sources that maybe useful for teaching or illuminating theories. I have purposefully not included the original links to many of these because they are, in my opinion, racist. http://www.guardian.co.uk/race The Guardian has a link to a database of back issues of relevant race articles. These include information on media representations and provide links to a variety of other sources as well as events/topics such as 9/11 and Asylum Issues. http://www.johnpilger.com/ This site contains articles on a variety of opinions from the respected author John Pilger. Much of this is relevant to issues of 'race' and ethnicity. http://www.insted.co.uk/islam.html The above links to a full text of the commission's 2004 report, plus also some extracts from it, including Islamophobia and Race Relations and Debate and Disagreement. http://www.fairuk.org/ Useful range of recent newspaper articles and several valuable fact sheets.Sample SyllabusModule justificationIt is clear that as issues of race, ethnicity and religion are as crucial to the 21st century as at any time in human history. We need to build clear understanding of these topics as well as an awareness of how they have evolved into present debates. Many of these debates and issues have invoked the use of racial, ethnic or national terminology but the discussion is not always fashioned around theories of 'old' racism but around concepts of 'new' racism.Whilst traditional notions of racism may have been challenged, these have been replaced in the West by fears of minority cultures, especially fear of Muslims. Following the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, the subsequent War on Terrorism has in some quarters been debated in terms of a clash of civilisations invoking representations of the 'Others' and based on historical conceptions of the 'Orient'.Furthermore, the European community as a whole is now debating issues of asylum seekers and refugees in what could be argued to be ethnic and racial terms. Thus, there is a need for a module that examines issues of race and ethnicity by linking media representations with theoretical and historical considerations.Section 1 Theories of 'race', racism and the 'other'This reading looks at how the concept of 'race' has been ideologically constructed. This will be done by examining race theory and applying this to historical and contemporary examples.Donald, James 1992. Cultural Identity. London, UK: Sage/Open University.Dyer, Richard 1997. White. London, UK: Routledge.Fryer, Peter 1984. Staying Power: History of Black People in Britain. London, UK: Pluto Press.Gilroy, Paul 1993. Small Acts: thoughts on the politics of black cultures. London, UK: Serpent's Tail.Gilroy, Paul 1987. There Ain't No Black In The Union Jack. London, UK: Hutchinson.Hiro, Dilip 1991. Black British, White British, 2nd edn. London, UK: Grafton Books.Mason, David 1995 Race and Ethnicty in Modern Britain. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.Modood, Tariq 1997 Ethnic Minorities in Britain: Diversity and Disadvantage. London, UK: PSI.Solomos, John 1993. Race and Racism in Contemporary Britain. Basingstoke, UK: MacMillan.Solomos John and Les Back 1996. Racism and Society. Basingstoke, UK: MacMillan. Possible Seminar discussion Is racism about class or colour? Would you consider yourself racist? Section 2 'Race' history and imperialismThis reading examines how representations of race and culture are mediated through ideological power and explain this through historical and contemporary examples.Bhabba, Hommi 1990. Nation and Narration. London, UK: Routledge.Fanon, Frantz 1986. Black Skin: White Masks. London, UK: Pluto.Gandhi, Leela 1998. Postcolonial Theory: A Critical Introduction. Edinburgh, UK: Edinburgh University Press.Said, Edward 1978. Orientalism: Western Conceptions of the Orient. London, UK: Penguin Books.Said, Edward 1997. Covering Islam. London, UK: Vintage.Section 3 Islam, Islamophobia and cultural racismThese readings look at how constructions of religion in popular media are increasingly racialised and consider at the case study of Western media representations of Islam and Muslim communities.Ahmed, Akbar 1992. Postmodernism and Islam. London, UK: Routledge.Anthias, Floya and Yuval‐Davis, Nira 1992. Racialized Boundaries. London, UK: Routledge.Ballard, Roger (Ed.) 1994. Desh Pradesh, The South Asian Presence in Britain. London, UK: Hurst and Co.Conway, Gerald 1997. Islamophobia: A Challenge for Us All. London, UK: Runnymede Trust.Modood, Tariq 2006. Multicultural Politics: Racism, Ethnicity and Muslims in Britain. London, UK: I.B. Tauris.Said, Edward 1978. Orientalism: Western Conceptions of the Orient. London, UK: Penguin Books.Said, Edward 1997. Covering Islam. London, UK: Vintage.Note * Correspondence address: Department of Media and Cultural Studies, University of Sunderland, St Peters Campus, SR6 ODD. Email: amir.saeed@sunderland.ac.uk
AbstractThe purpose of this research was to adapt Antonak and Harth's (1994) Mental Retardation Attitudes Inventory for the Kuwaiti culture and to investigate its four‐dimensional structure. The study also aimed at identifying a unidimensional subset of items besides examining the quality of the identified items and the overall inventory. The 34 ‐item adapted inventor y was administered to 56 4 college students. Item analysis indicated that 29 items have had good psychometric characteristics. However, the exploratory factor analysis, cross‐correlations of scale and item scores, and correlations among scales did not support the four‐dimensional structure of the adapted inventory. Further, the sample was split into two random halves. A uni‐dimensional subset of 20 items was identified in one sample by iterative factor analyzing the item data and discarding items with small loadings. The other sample was used to cross‐validate uni‐dimensionality of the identified items. Analysis indicated that scores of the 20‐item inventory have high Cronbach coefficient alpha, and high stability and generalizability coefficients. Partial support for the validity of the scores had been ascertained by comparing the scores of male and female students, and by regressing the inventor y scores on indicators of familiarity with individuals with mental retardation. Findings were discussed with reference to Kuwaiti culture.Over the last two decades, inclusion has internationally become a critical part of the reform efforts to improve the delivery of services to individuals with Mental Retardation (MR). This trend focuses on increasing the opportunities for the placement of these individuals in the same social and educational set tings as individuals without MR. The new arrangements for providing services have created challenges to people without disabilities concerning acceptance, integration, and inclusion of individuals with MR into the mainstream of society (Praisner, 2003). Many researchers (e.g. Priestly, 1998; Yazbeck McVilly & Parmenter, 2004) have convincingly argued that these challenges have their roots in the societal norms and values that concurrently developed throughout the unfolding history of the meaning of MR. As Priestly (1998) noted, although people with differences have existed in all societies, the degree to which they were integrated or excluded varied according to predominant cultural perceptions. Yazbeck, McVilly and Parmenter (2004) suggested that people's attitudes toward individuals with MR are socially constructed and are acquired through experience over time.Individuals with MR are often judged by people based on their disability instead of their whole lives and what they may accomplish and experience during their life (Blatt, 1987). Consequently, People may rely on false generalization and develop negative attitudes towards individuals with MR. Makas, Finnerty‐Fried, Sugafoos, and Reiss (1988) noted that for nondisabled persons, positive attitude toward people with disability is usually conceptualized as being 'nice' and 'helpful', whereas for a person with a disability, the attitude would be dispensing with the category of disability entirely. A study of community attitudes in one state of Australia found that up to 86% of respondents reported feeling 'uncomfortable' when interacting with individuals with disabilities (Enhance Management, 1999). Another study (European Commission, 2001) found that 40% of Europeans reported feeling 'uneasy' in the presence of people with disabilities.Attitudes manifest themselves as positive or negative reactions toward an object, driven by beliefs that impel individuals to behave in a particular way (Yuker, 1988). They comprise a complex of feelings, desires, fears, convictions, prejudices, or other tendencies learned through varied experiences that give rise to a set or readiness to act toward a person in a certain way (Chaiken & Stangor,1987). This means that attitude is not behavior, but the precondition of behavior. In addition, Myers, Ager, Kerr, and Myles (1998) identified three types of attitudes that influence how non‐disabled people interact with, and include or exclude people with disabilities: (1) A preparedness to engage with people as consumers, neighbors, or friends; (2) a lack of awareness about individuals with MR; and (3) a wariness or hostility regarding the idea of community integration.Research has shown that the third type of attitudes, which represents negative and non‐acceptance of individuals with MR is commonly observed (Gething, 1994; Schwartz & Armony‐Sivan, 2001). Such negative attitudes in a society may present people with MR as a burden on the welfare system. Moreover, people might not see individuals with disabilities as possessing a valuable social role or possessing the same abilities and characteristics that the majority of people possess. Tus, individuals with MR may not be accepted or included in society and may often be treated badly. In turn, Wolfensberger (1988) indicated that individuals with MR, being in a devalued position, would behave badly as they think that this is what is expected of them.As integration of persons with MR is increasingly becoming a global reality, Kuwait has designed social policy aimed at promoting acceptance and inclusion of people with disabilities into the mainstream of society. To implement the policy of integration, the Kuwaiti government is continually forming inclusive services for individuals with MR. The recent policy of inclusion (law 13/96), which has been adopted in 1996, asserts that people with disabilities have a fundamental right to live and grow within their local communities. This law has spawned an expanded system of services to encourage people with disabilities to live like people without disabilities. Inclusion policies give individuals with MR the right to be involved in the same situations as people without MR. For example, more individuals with MR, for example, are being employed. Moreover, most children with Downs syndrome now attend Kindergarten and are included in social programs for children in the general population. The general goal of all types of services provided for individuals with MR is to improve their participation in society.Although the Kuwaiti government has shown a growing interest in the integration of individuals with MR, the chances of these individuals being able to integrate into mainstream society would depend on the attitude of others, such as students, teachers, coworkers, social workers, professionals, towards them. These attitudes, as found in many Western studies (Antonak & Harth, 1994; Gordon, Tantillo, Feldman & Perrone, 2004) are, for the most part, negative, which may contribute to negative outcomes on the part of individuals with MR (Byon, 2000). According to Wright (1983), disability situations are vulnerable to fundamental negative attitudes, and this would seem to be even truer in the culture found in Kuwait.In Kuwaiti culture, disability has stigmatizing effect on members of the immediate and extended family; families tend to keep members with MR out of the sight of other people. This contributes to social exclusion of people with MR. There is also the traditional common belief that disability is related to (1) God's willing that the parent should have a child with a disability, (2) God is punishing the parent, (3) God is testing the parent, or (4) God is selecting the parent for an unknown reason. Commonly, persons with MR have been considered burdensome and shameful, because they are incapable of contributing to traditional social obligations and roles.While those traditional beliefs still exist, the law 13/96 was legislated to support the integration of persons with MR into various aspects of life. Consequently, we expect that people in the society would react to this trend with frustration, anger, or refusal. Usually, people in Kuwait have little or no information about individuals with MR; thereby uninformed determinations, such as stereotypes, reflect their attitudes toward these individuals. According to Blatt (1987), a stereotype will fill in the cracks and unanswered questions in a situation with which people are not familiar. Langer (1989) in her theory of 'mindfulness' also shows that stereotype is 'premature cognitive commitments' that leads people to make judgments without enough information and reflection.Moreover, the society labels given to individuals with MR are often accompanied with stigma and negative connotations. This situation makes it difficult for those individuals to be included into society and be accepted for what they actually are and not for what others assume them to be. According to Biklen and Bogdan (1977), this type of discrimination is called 'handicapism' and is defined as'…a set of assumptions and practices that promote differential and unequal treatment of people because of apparent or assumed physical, mental, or behavioral differences' (p.206). These perceptions may prevent individuals with MR from being accepted, and they might be viewed, based on Erikson's theory, as a pseudo species, or as less than human (Smith, 1981).Furthermore, professionals', leaders', and students' views and beliefs about the integration of individuals with MR into society may result in slowing the process of inclusion and discouraging people from accepting these individuals as what they are. For example, though senior staff in Kuwait's Ministry of Social Affairs succeeded in including children with Downs syndrome into public kindergarten, no other effort has been made since 1996 to integrate other children with disabilities into inclusive educational settings. More critical is that, while leaders make efforts toward inclusion, they continue to support the permanent residence of individuals with MR in social welfare institutions and urge the government to provide free health, social and educational services for the residents. Ahmad (2004) found that between 1992 and 2002, there was an increase in the number of children, and males and females adults with MR who live in the Social Welfare Institution for permanent care. The number of residents with MR has increased from 223 to 296.According to Philips (1992), leaders' and professionals' beliefs about individuals with MR could have commenced with the industrial revolution that brought with it the practice of classifying people who were different, and who were not able to pursue personal dreams or act as the industrial society required. Leaders and professionals may perceive individuals with MR, as Blatt (1987) stated, blessed innocents or surplus population that is unnecessary and expendable. These beliefs may never give the individuals with MR an adequate opportunity to present themselves and their abilities to others.Praisner (2003) suggested that leaders' attitudes are the key factor in successful inclusion. Due to leadership position, leaders' and professionals' attitudes about inclusion either could result in increased opportunities for individuals with MR to be served in different settings or increased efforts to support the segregated special education services. According to Goodlad and Lovitt (1993), leaders and professionals have the decision to develop an inclusive setting, if they (1) make and honor commitments, (2) do what they say in formal and informal settings, (3) express interest in inclusion, (4) act and make their actions known, and (5) organize their staff and their physical surroundings to implement inclusive programs. As Praisner (2003) stated, the success of inclusion depends on how leaders exhibit behaviors that advance the integration, acceptance, and success of individuals with disabilities in general settings.Researchers (e.g., Horne, 1985) have also shown that students' positive attitudes may increase their willingness to work with individuals with MR, and lead to removal of barriers to integrate them into society. The positive attitudes of students may help to encourage the establishment of policies and the allocation of resources to increase the integration of individuals with MR into different settings in the society (Yazbeck, et al., 2004).To enhance the policy of inclusion in Kuwait, society needs to evaluate some of its structures and change people's attitudes to fit the needs of individuals with MR instead of making these individuals fit society's structures. Helping individuals with MR to be included into society and establish socially valued roles would not be difficult if the attitudes of society are less restrictive and less resistant to change.As Kuwait continues to develop social and educational policy about inclusion, researchers must pay attention to the connection between integration and attitudes. The provision of educational and social opportunities for individuals with MR can be legislated by Kuwait's government, but acceptance from other people cannot be ensured without knowing people's beliefs and thoughts about persons with MR.Developing an understanding of the attitudes that is predominant in society, which in turn influences the actions of its members, is critical if we plan for social changes and for evaluating the effectiveness of public policy on promoting an inclusive society (Schwartz & Armony‐Sivan, 2001). Given that there are negative attitudes toward people with MR, particular care must be taken to monitor changing social attitudes toward these individuals to identify any serious impediment to the progress of their inclusion in different settings: schools, workplace, and the wider community.Research that is relevant to individuals with disabilities (e.g. Geskie & Salasek, 1988; Antonak & Harth, 1994) has revealed the need for researchers to investigate the attitudes of people toward MR. Wolfensberger (1983) suggested that the key to changing how people are valued socially is to change the perceptions people have about individuals who may differ from the norm. Research, however, has indicated that the investigation of attitudes toward individuals with MR requires a psychometrically sound instrument. It is crucial to conduct research to gather accurate information about these attitudes; it would clarify people's awareness of persons with MR, and assist in evaluating intervention programs and developing appropriate course work for special education fields. Further, it would inform public policy decisions, funding priorities, and service delivery, which in turn, enhance the likelihood of achieving successful integration and improving qua lit y of life for persons with MR (Antonak & Harth, 19 94; Schalock, 1990). Accurate measurement of attitudes could also lead to early detection of negative attitudes, such as personal prejudices, misconceptions, and irrational fears of professionals, social workers, and teachers when they first get involved in disability work settings. Furthermore, it would help in providing a baseline for monitoring changes in their attitudes over time (Byon, 2000).Changing attitudes would help in supporting efforts of individuals with MR to become autonomous (Philips, 1992), and help to decrease the resistance of others to allow people with MR to make decisions about their own lives and to be independent (Schalock, 1990). As the history of the deinstitutionalization movement has shown, becoming autonomous and independent are not as simple as releasing people from state facilities and hoping they survive on their own. Autonomy and independence are based upon choice‐making, and choice‐making must be taught to people with MR, as they have never been allowed to make their own choices and do not know how to rationally choose for themselves.However, as Crutcher (1990) noted, personal choice is based on opportunity, and opportunity is accessible only when society decides it should be. Therefore, in order for individuals with MR to have the opportunity to make their own decisions and be successfully included in society, special effort must be taken to change peoples' attitudes towards them.Moreover, a psychometrically sound instrument of attitudes helps researchers to assess with known precision respondents' feelings about individuals with MR (affective aspect of attitudes), and their conceptions about them (cognitive aspect of attitudes). On the affective side, there are feelings of approval or disapproval of individuals with MR in the society. On the cognitive side, there are beliefs, knowledge, and expectations that affect people's behavior towards individuals with MR. The affective and cognitive aspects affect the respondents' opinions of what services should be provided for individuals with MR and what policy should be adopted. These also assist in the design, implementation, and evaluation of social intervention program and strategies geared toward removing barriers to integration (Geskie & Salasek, 1988).The present study focused on adapting, for use in Kuwait, the Mental Retardation Attitude Inventory‐Revised (MR AI‐R) of Antonak and Harth (1994). The MRAI‐R was chosen because of the limitations of the MR attitudes' instruments in the Gulf States, and in particular the lack of such an instrument in Kuwait. After reviewing literature, it seemed that there was only one measure of attitudes; an inventory developed by Qaryauti (1988). Despite the claimed appropriateness of Qaryauti's scale, we decided to use the MRAI‐R of Antonak and Harth for several reasons. First, Qaryauti's scale was based on Western instruments that Antonak and Harth criticized and motivated them to construct the MRAI‐R. In contrast, Antonak and Harth constructed the MRAI‐R based on a review of more than 50 years of the attitude literature, and developed their inventory on the most available valid instrument.Second, by reviewing the items of the MRAI‐R and Qaryauti's scale, it was clear to us that the MRAI‐R is more consistent with the requirements of the law 13/96 that was mandated in Kuwait to assure the right of individuals with MR to be included into public schools, workplace, and the wider community (see Table 1). Third, the MRAI‐R, unlike Qaryauti's scale, incorporates several components of attitudes: (1) the integration‐segregation of individuals with MR in various school programs, workplace, and community; (2) the willingness of people to be associated with individuals with MR (Social Distance); (3) the rights of individuals with MR to be included in schools, communities, and the workplace (Private Rights); and (4) the derogatory beliefs of people about the moral character and social behavior of individuals with MR. Of the 22 items in Qaryauti's scale, 13 were related to derogatory beliefs, six to social distance, and only three to private rights and integration‐segregation.Fourth, many transcultural researchers have used the MRAI‐R in populations as diverse as the United States, Australia, and Korea. In the US, Ward (1998) used the MRAI‐R to explore relationships between empathy and attitudes among 200 parents and adult consumers with developmental disabilities. Also, Yozwiak (2002) utilized the MRAI‐R to examine the beliefs and attitudes of 210 community members toward a child with MR who was a witness to a sexual abuse case. In an Australian study, Yazbeck and others (2004) used MRAI‐R to examine differences in attitudes between students and professionals in disability services, and persons in the general community (N=492). In Korea, Byon's study (2000) used the MRAI‐R to investigate the effect of social desirability on attitudes toward MR, and to compare the relationships between attitude measures (both direct and indirect measures) and behavioral outcome indicators. Obviously, findings from a large number of studies using the MRAI‐R contribute to its validity. In contrast, we failed to find any study in which Qaryauti's scale was used.Based on the above arguments, it seems that the MRAI‐R would be useful in needs assessments, especially in schools and mental health clinics. For example, when the ministry of education decides to implement the inclusion policy in schools, there would be a need to assess attitudes of teachers and students towards students with MR. The results of such assessment would help in designing programs that improve attitudes as needed. The MRAI‐R can also be useful for social workers, professionals, and researchers who work in a variety of primary social welfare settings. It helps them to identify and target those people who are the most in need of training and preparation to change their attitudes toward MR. In a wider scale, non‐profit organizations can use results of assessing attitudes in advocating the rights of those individuals.In general, the primary usage of the MRAI‐R could be: (1) screening for early identification of negative attitudes; (2) assessing attitudes of specific groups toward persons with MR; (3) pre‐ or post‐ measurement in intervention studies; and (4) helping researchers who aim at studying the effects of attitudes on different variables in the life of people with MR (i.e. job satisfaction, life satisfaction, family relationship, social support), or the relationship between attitudes and demographic variables (i.e. gender, age, marital status, employment, educational status, familiarity with individuals with MR).Following the recommendation of Antonak and Livneh (1988) that researchers should use the existing instruments and stop creating new ones, the purpose of the present study is to develop an Arabic inventory of attitudes toward individuals with MR by adapting the MRAI‐R to be suitable for use in Kuwait. Specifically, the study aimed at: (1) revising the MRAI‐R items to make them suitable to Kuwait's culture; (2) investigating the suitability of the four‐factor‐structure of the MRAI‐R for measuring attitudes toward individuals with MR in Kuwait; (3) selecting a uni‐dimensional subset of items, if the four‐factor‐structure was not confirmed; and (4) examining the psychometric characteristics of the adapted inventory.We decided to carry out this study on college students for various reasons: (1) college students are prospective educators or professionals who will be either dealing with people with MR or making decisions that affect their lives; (2) college students in Kuwait play an active role in social change and in changing public opinions;(3) they are representative cross‐section of Kuwaiti society; (4) a sample of college students is more easily acquired than a sample from the general population.
Background of the research This study intends to analyses the involuntary resettlement of an indigenous Dayak community due to the implementation of the Bakun Dam Project in Sarawak, Malaysia. The significance of this research is that it raises important questions on the impact of development imposed by the state government of Sarawak on the indigenous people who have been regarded as in need of change and to be brought closer to urbanization vis-à-vis modernization through resettlement. Involuntary resettlement due to development projects or infrastructure improvements is not a singular phenomenon and in this context it is often argued that development projects provide employment to the local population and enforce development. However, a dam project also displaces local people from their homes and traditional livelihood. This research focuses on the forced displacement of the indigenous communities at Sg. Asap resettlement because of the implementation of the Bakun Hydro-electric Project (BHP). It is viewed as an involuntary resettlement as the indigenous communities who were residing within the area of the planned BHP had no choice but to move to the resettlement. Their villages and native lands were claimed by the state government for the implementation for the BHP. Thus, the whole problem is focused on the question of why is the resettlement that is promised as a development program for the people by the state government of Sarawak being regarded as forced displacement. In this research, forced displacement is observed at three different levels. First, prior to resettlement, potential settlers are faced with the critical decision of abandoning their homes and livelihoods, causing emotional distress. Secondly, after moving to the new settlement, settlers are often confronted with inadequate compensation for their loss of natural resources, social heritage and land, adding misery to their already distressed situation. Thirdly, resettling people into an area without any supportive resources, i.e. resources whose, purpose is to improve the lives of the settlers compared to their previous situation, fails to accomplish the very purpose of such resettlement. Research objectives and Questions This research utilizes Michael Cornea's analysis, the Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction (IRR) Model (2000), which brings to the main objective of this research that is to examine the outcomes of involuntary resettlement of the indigenous people. This research compares the situation confronted by the settlers in Sg. Asap resettlement to that definition of "involuntary population resettlement" advanced by Michael Cernea (1998). In this definition, there are two sets of distinct but related processes: displacement of people and dismantling of their patterns of economic and social organization, and resettlement at a different location and reconstruction of their livelihood and social networks. Other than that, the objectives of this research are: to observe if involuntary resettlement planned for meeting the labor needs for the oil palm estates is a catalyst for socio-economic development for settlers. And for policy recommendations, the sub-objectives are: •To subsequently evaluate the problems of accessing resources. •To study to what extent the involuntary resettlement has affecting the social and power structures. •To show the level of changes in social and power structure influencing livelihood strategies. •To examine the most effective network that has provided the people a platform to generate their livelihood. This research details the process and impact of the forced and involuntary displacement faced by the settlers. Factors highlighted include the indigenous people's coping mechanism and strategy in dealing with various issues related to land rights and usage, disagreement and differences in the new social structure, competition over limited natural resources and changing power structure and relations. Issues such as the problems within the household because of the changing family structure and changing role of elderly, men and women in the domestic unit are also highlighted in this research. Most important, this research focuses not only at the displacement issue but also illustrates how settlers rebuild and restructure their life and livelihood. Therefore, based on important concepts, livelihood, coping strategies and power structure, research questions raised are: 1.How do settlers cope with the fact of being involuntarily resettled and what do they do to deal with unanticipated consequences of the social changes that occur? 2.How do settlers manage the new social structure, conflict over limited resources and changing power structures and relations within their own community? 3.Which strategies currently used by these settlers have the potential to build a sustainable livelihood in the new settlement? Theoretical background This research takes the approach of regarding resettlement first and foremost as a catalyst for social change. However, resettlement in the context of 'force' or 'involuntary,' certainly does not ensure positive changes. Dessalegn (1989) defined resettlement in a different context: land settlement, colonisation, or transmigration, all referring to the phenomenon of people distribution, either planned or 'spontaneous'. Accordingly, 'resettlement as in Ethiopia implies moving people or people moving to new locations; colonization as in Latin America implies opening up or reclaiming lands for utilization; and transmigration is favoured by those writing on the Indonesian experience and the word suggests cross-ocean or cross island relocation' (Dessalegn, 1989:668). Palmer refers to resettlement as 'a planned and controlled transfer of population from one area to another' (1979:149). Tadros (1979:122), in analyzing resettlement schemes in Egypt, applied the United Nations definition of human settlement as: 'development of viable communities on new or unused land through the introduction of people' and further defined resettlement in two models: spontaneous and paternalistic. The spontaneous model leaves full scope for individual initiatives, and no support is provided by national or international organisations. No attention is paid to the proper place and function of the settlement within the national context. In the paternalistic model, technical support such as education, tools, equipment and other assistance is provided to the settlers (Tadros, 1979:122). The above definitions can be used in a different fashion for this research, thus the term 'forced' or 'involuntary resettlement'. In reality, despite the good intentions for developing communities, resettlement can also 'under develop' communities in the sense that such communities face greater hardship compared to life before resettlement. To this extent, the working definition of 'resettlement' in this research is a poorly planned resettlement through a forced, involuntary relocation of communities onto unused land that is inadequate for communities to develop a productive and fully functional socio-economic system. This research has adapted the concepts proposed by Michael Cernea (1998), looking at involuntary resettlement in general. The concept of involuntary resettlement (in this research also termed as forced resettlement), which is the comprehensive concept most often used in the current social science literature, integrates 'displacement' and 'resettlement' into one single term, in which the emphasis on involuntariness directly connotes the forced displacement. The usual description of 'involuntary population resettlement' consists, as mentioned earlier, of two sets of distinct but related processes: displacement of people and the dismantling of their patterns of economic and social organization, and resettlement at a different location with reconstruction of their livelihood and social networks. Resettlement refers to the process of the physical relocation of those displaced, and to their socio-economic re-establishment as family/household micro-units and as larger communities. Displacement implies not only physical eviction from a dwelling, but also the expropriation of productive lands and other assets to make possible an alternative use of the space. This is not just an economic transaction or a simple substitution of property with monetary compensation. Involuntary displacement is a process of unravelling established human communities, existing patterns of social organization, production systems and networks of social services. Overall, forced displacement of communities causes an economic crisis for most or all of those affected, entails sudden social disarticulation, and sometimes triggers a political crisis as well (Cernea, 1998:2-3). This research investigates the implications of resettlement and the reconstruction of the livelihood of the affected settlers. Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction Model (IRR) provides important variables to explore these issues further. Several important variables in the IRR model are utilised to create an independent framework for this research, and is explained in the following section. As Cernea explained, the IRR is a model of impoverishment risks during displacement, and of counteractions to match the basic risks where the multifaceted process of impoverishment was deconstructed into its fundamental components. The components are: landlessness, joblessness, homelessness, marginalisation, food insecurity, increased morbidity and mortality, loss of access to common property assets, and community disarticulation. This analytical deconstruction facilitates understanding of how these sub-processes interlink, influence, and amplify each other. Reconstruction, then, is the reversal of the impoverishment processes, and can be understood and accomplished along the same variables, considered in a holistic, integrated way (Cernea, 2000:5; 2003:40). IRR focuses on the social and economic contact of both segments of the process: the forced displacement and the re-establishment. The model captures processes that are simultaneous, but also reflects the movement in time from the destitution of displacement to recovery resettlement (Cernea, 2000:18). There are three fundamental concepts at the core of the model: risk, impoverishment and reconstruction. Each is further split into sets of specifying notions or components (as mentioned above) that reflect another dimension, or another variable of impoverishment or reconstruction (for example, landlessness, marginalisation, morbidity or social disarticulation). These variables are interlinked and influence each other; some play a primary role while others play a derivative role in either impoverishment or reconstruction (largely as a function of given circumstances). The conceptual framework captures the disparity between potential and actual risk. All forced displacements are prone to major socio-economic risks, but they are not fatally condemned to succumb to them. Cernea further explains that in this framework the concept of risk, as stated by Giddens (1990), is to indicate the possibility that a certain course of action will trigger future injurious effects – losses and destruction. Following Luhman (1993), the concept of risk is posited as a counter-concept to security: the higher the risk, the lower the security of displaced populations (Cernea, 2000:19). The model's dual emphasis – on risks to be prevented and on reconstruction strategies to be implemented – facilitates its operational use as a guide for action. Like other models, its components can be influenced and 'manipulated' through informed planning to diminish the impact of one or several components, as given conditions require or permit. That requires considering these variables as a system, in their mutual connections, and not as a set of separate elements. The model is also flexible as a conceptual template, allowing for the integration of other dimensions, when relevant, and for adapting to changing circumstances (Cernea, 2000:20). This model can be linked with other conceptual frameworks, to achieve complementary perspectives and additional knowledge (Cernea, 2000:21). There are four distinct, but interlinked, functions that the risks and reconstruction model performs: A predictive (warning and planning) function A diagnostic (explanatory and assessment) function A problem-solution function, in guiding and measuring resettlers´ reestablishment A research function, in formulating hypotheses and conducting theory-led field investigations For this research, the function falls under the third function, the problem-resolution. As Cernea explained, the problem-resolution capacity results from the model's analytical incisiveness and its explicit action orientation. The IRR model is formulated with an awareness of the social actors in resettlement, their interaction, communication, and ability to contribute to resolution. The model becomes a compass for strategies to reconstruct settlers´ livelihoods (Cernea, 2000:22). The IRR model clearly points out the results of social change and social disorganisation caused by involuntary resettlement. For the purpose of analysis, the two major variables used for the framework are: loss of access to common property assets and; social and community disarticulation, give a crucial foundation to exhibit the implications of forced displacement. Both of the major variables have been linked to understand the problems that are occurring in the community and households (shown as dependent variables - the coping mechanisms, the way settlers manage risks and the type of resources that people engage to strategise their livelihood). Each component respectively points out the results of change caused by involuntary resettlement i.e. competition over forest resources, state land and living space, and; dismantling of traditional power structure, communal structure and family structure. Although the central theme of the theoretical framework is forced displacement, the framework is expanded to the investigation of coping mechanisms, power structure and relations, and the way settlers strategize their livelihood. The research framework has aimed clearly at the impact of involuntary resettlement which is concluded in this research as causing the changes and social disorganization in the social structure of the settlers. However, the framework also extends to another level for the investigation of the strategies of rebuilding and restructuring of settlers. Main research findings With regard to the perspective to develop the indigenous people through resettlement program, as shown in this research, there are more losses than gains being achieved especially on the settlers' side. What they have left behind (history, livelihood, rights and identity) at their natural environment cannot be retrieved, and uncompensated. And it is also a fact, as proven in this research that the uncompensated losses continue to be the sole grievances of settlers and the factor of causing continuous displacement amongst settlers. This research concludes that as much as the involuntary resettlement has brought many new challenges to the Kenyah-Badeng, many of these challenges are beyond their capability to manage. The underlying problem is settlers were not actively involved in designing their future in the new settlement from the very beginning the project was proposed. The settlers were receiving diminutive information about the resettlement program, and very limited public platform for them to participate or to voice out their concerns and suggestions before its implementation. The factor that causes their continuous displacement is the non-existence of natural resources and land (other than the three acres given to them as part of the compensation) for them to generate income (remember that most of them are farmers without any skill useful to work in non-agricultural activities). Their life in the former village was hard but they were free to explore as much resources as possible, and they owned their native land. In the resettlement, they are as much strangers to the place as to the way of life they are faced with at the new settlement. In other words, settlers simply do not know how to behave appropriately in radically changed social situations because they are not equipped with necessary living tools. The study of the displacement of the Kenyah-Badengs is concluded in three important aspects as follows: Power structure and relations - In power structure and relations, kinship has always been an important aspect that became the reference for any struggle over leadership issue. Kinship is viewed on a larger scale that includes not only blood relation, but also aspects such as others who came from the same root, indicating that kinship in that term was very much related to sharing of the same history of settlement, migration and culture. It has been proposed that kinship was one crucial aspect that binds this community together, but not likely to be true at the new settlement. The power structure in the Kenyah-Badeng community at the resettlement stand as a separate system, failed to bind the people together, no orders from the leader and not accepting orders by the people. However, they carry out the norm of being as peaceful community, as they have always been. Coping through family network – Because of the failure of power structure and relations, the Kenyah-Badeng become family/household oriented in their livelihood strategies. The family network proves to be the most important coping mechanism for such challenging social environment. The family network provides a platform for its members to generate income, employment, social and moral support, education, and security in general. Livelihood strategies – With the absence of promised resources, settlers are faced with many problems with regards to economic aspects at the new settlement. Their agriculture knowledge is insufficient to success them for employment in town. They mainly work on their allocated three acres of land with other problems tagged along as the lands are located at sloppy and slumps area, as well as faced with low grade soil. For their agriculture productions, they are faced with marketing problem because of the established sellers who refused to allow them to get into the network. This research also humbly suggesting an alternative for settlers to improve their livelihood based on the available resources at the resettlement with the assistance of the state government, at least to initiate strategies for marketing. Settlers need "retooling" in many aspects of agriculture knowledge as that is what they have known best to build their livelihood. Government agencies should assist in terms of skill training related to effective methods to produce quality agriculture productions on their three acres of land. Horticulture should be encouraged on their three acres plot and this method has been carried out by the settlers in their swidden agriculture (slash and burns) at their former village areas. At the new settlement, the prospect of horticulture on pesticide free and organic food can be very encouraging. Methods The information and data for this research were obtained through formal and informal interviews, household survey, household in-depth interviews, and secondary data from available sources in prints, documents and internet. Questions for the interviews were formulated first based only on the research questions. At the field site, questions were expanded and added after numerous trial interviews with key informants to improve the questions before the real interviews were conducted. There were 55 household surveys, and from this survey, 20 households were selected randomly for the household in-depth interviews. The head of households were both male and female. Outline of the thesis This research is organized in chapters as the following summary: Chapter 1 provides the background information of the research area i.e. descriptively introduces Belaga, the region where Bakun Hydroelectric Project (BHEP) was implemented, the implementation of BHEP and the reaction of the local inhabitants. The resettlement in Sg. Asap, and the composition of the settlers are also discussed in this chapter. Chapter 2 touches the historical perspective of the Kenyah-Badeng focuses on their livelihoods at Long Geng, their former village before they resettled at Sg. Asap. This chapter also includes a brief history of their migration and settlement to Long Geng, and also the political structure in Long Geng. Chapter 3 discusses the power structure and relations of the Kenyah-Badeng. This chapter draws on the first stage of displacement i.e. processes of losing common property and space with prominent issues such as compensation, land rights and the expected involvement of local leaders in the whole process of the resettlement as highlights of the discussion. Brief history of land legislation in Sarawak based on the interpretation of Native Customary Land and native's rights over ancestral land based on literature reviews is illustrated in this chapter. The purpose of this illustration is to understand the background and general problems of land identification within the Kenyah-Badeng community prior to payment of compensation. Chapter 4 focuses on the discussion of the coping mechanisms employed by the settlers in handling crucial issues pertaining to their livelihood at the resettlement. In fact, this chapter continues the discussion of the stages of displacement highlighting the other two stages by discussing in-depth the situation of "loss of access to common property and space" and "social and community disarticulation". The headings of objectives outlined by State Planning Unit, Sarawak in the development plan of the resettlement are utilized as the base to explain the cause of the displacement and to illustrate the reality at present life of the Kenyah-Badeng. Chapter 5 focuses on the livelihood strategy in which family network is important as the platform for pooling resources. Departing from forced displacement, this chapter illustrates the emergence of coping reaction amongst the settlers by analyzing the family network discovered within the households interviewed in this research. Chapter 6 highlights the changing livelihood of the settlers highlighting the significant of wage employment where remittance is crucial to support their family who are living at the resettlement. The current perspective of settlers towards education and their willingness to invest into their children's education is also discussed in this chapter. Chapter 7 summarizes the research findings and concludes the research.