Metalinguistic discourses on translanguaging and multimodality

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-91
Author(s):  
Busi Makoni
Keyword(s):  
Management Strategy ◽  
Identity Management ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Politics Of Identity ◽  
Communicative Practices ◽  
Black African ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Skin Bleaching ◽  
Social Meanings

Abstract This article explores metalinguistic discourses of black African immigrants (BAIs) in Johannesburg on how they mobilize multilingual and multimodal resources in their communicative practices to pass as South Africans (SAs), concealing their identities as non-SAs to avert violent xenophobic attacks. Drawing data from semi-structured interviews and group discussions with BAIs, the article investigates how BAIs report on creatively, strategically using translanguaging and multimodality in performance of ingroup membership as local black SAs, blurring the boundaries between “outsiders” and “insiders.” BAIs use passing as a social identity management strategy, to negotiate their putative identity and resist ascription of the foreigner-outsider categorization and attendant social meanings. Besides language(s), BAIs use modes of corporeal practice (embodiment, clothing semiosis, skin-bleaching) as legitimating markers of belonging. The article argues that using passing unsettles the distinction between local/insider/citizen and migrant/outsider/non-citizen – concepts framed around a nation-state – revealing tensions, contradictions, and complexities in the politics of identity in Johannesburg.

scholarly journals Constructing multilingua franca scales

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-242
Author(s):  
Busi Makoni
Keyword(s):  
Language Use ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
African Immigrants ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Communicative Practices ◽  
Black African ◽  
Negotiation Strategies ◽  
Language Varieties ◽  
Host Nation

Using notions of scale and space, this study explores how Black African immigrants (BAIs) experience communication and negotiate, shape and reshape their social identities through language use in Johannesburg (South Africa) – a city characterised not only by complex multilingualism but also by quotidian violence. Drawing from qualitative interviews and group discussions, an analysis of BAIs’ metalinguistic discourses on their communicative practices as they move across spaces suggests that they view Johannesburg as a layered space characterised by dissimilar scales of interaction. Utilising negotiation strategies predicated on variegated scales, BAIs make space for home and host nation language varieties using forms that function as ‘multilingua francas,’ thereby resisting and unsettling the dominant local scales based on regimented ethnolinguistic boundaries.

Reframing Xenophobia in South Africa as Colour-Blind: The Limits of the Afro Phobia Thesis

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 433-444
Author(s):  
Amanuel Isak Tewolde
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Conflict Theory ◽  
Black African ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Online Newspaper ◽  
Close Proximity ◽  
Realistic Conflict Theory

Many scholars and South African politicians characterize the widespread anti-foreigner sentiment and violence in South Africa as dislike against migrants and refugees of African origin which they named ‘Afro-phobia’. Drawing on online newspaper reports and academic sources, this paper rejects the Afro-phobia thesis and argues that other non-African migrants such as Asians (Pakistanis, Indians, Bangladeshis and Chinese) are also on the receiving end of xenophobia in post-apartheid South Africa. I contend that any ‘outsider’ (White, Asian or Black African) who lives and trades in South African townships and informal settlements is scapegoated and attacked. I term this phenomenon ‘colour-blind xenophobia’. By proposing this analytical framework and integrating two theoretical perspectives — proximity-based ‘Realistic Conflict Theory (RCT)’ and Neocosmos’ exclusivist citizenship model — I contend that xenophobia in South Africa targets those who are in close proximity to disadvantaged Black South Africans and who are deemed outsiders (e.g., Asian, African even White residents and traders) and reject arguments that describe xenophobia in South Africa as targeting Black African refugees and migrants.

From “Secret” to “Sensitive Issue”: Shifting Ideas About HIV Disclosure Among Middle-Aged and Older Rural South Africans in the Era of Antiretroviral Treatment

2021 ◽  
pp. 089826432110202
Author(s):  
Enid Schatz ◽  
Ifeolu David ◽  
Nicole Angotti ◽  
F. Xavier Gómez-Olivé ◽  
Sanyu A. Mojola
Keyword(s):  
Older Persons ◽  
Antiretroviral Treatment ◽  
Hiv Disclosure ◽  
Death Sentence ◽  
Treatment As Prevention ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Middle Aged ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Rural South ◽  
South Africans

Objective As HIV shifts from “death sentence” to “chronic condition,” disclosure of HIV status to intimate partners and family is a significant component of both prevention and treatment adherence. While disclosure is closely considered in many studies, few examine middle-aged and older persons’ (age 40+) perspectives or practices. We trace older rural South Africans’ views on HIV disclosure to their partners and family members in a high prevalence community over a period of extensive antiretroviral treatment (ART) rollout. Methods Community focus group discussions (FGD) conducted in 2013 and 2018 show shifts in older persons’ thinking about HIV disclosure. Findings Our FGD participants saw fewer negative consequences of disclosure in 2018 than in 2013, and highlighted positive outcomes including building trust (partners) as well as greater support for medication collection and adherence (family). Discussion Particularly as the epidemic ages in South Africa and globally, tracing changes in older persons’ views on disclosure is an important step in developing messaging that could enhance treatment as prevention and ART adherence.

scholarly journals In Their Own Words: Parents and Key Informants’ Views on Nutrition Education and Family Health Behaviors

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (15) ◽  
pp. 8155
Author(s):  
Katherine E. McManus ◽  
Adrian Bertrand ◽  
Anastasia M. Snelling ◽  
Elizabeth W. Cotter
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
Health Behaviors ◽  
Nutrition Education ◽  
Stress Reduction ◽  
Family Health ◽  
High Body Mass Index ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Poverty Level ◽  
Black African ◽  
Key Informants

Parents, health professionals, and communities are integral in the development of nutrition behaviors that reduce children’s risk for high body mass index (BMI) and chronic disease. The aim of this study was to conduct formative evaluations with key health informants and parents to understand the specific strategies that families use at mealtimes to promote their family’s health, along with the barriers they face in attending current nutrition education programming. Focus groups (in English and Spanish) were conducted with parents (n = 22; 63.64% Black/African American, 13.64% Black but not African American, 18.18% Hispanic/Latinx) whose household was located in a community where 50% of residents’ gross income was ≤185% of the federal poverty level. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six key informants with expertise in family health and nutrition. Inductive thematic analysis was used to identify themes across interviews. Six general themes emerged from the interviews including perceptions of health, relationships, health behaviors, facilitators, barriers, and desired changes. Across the six themes, participants responded with suggestions for community-based health promotion programs such as incorporating a broader definition of health to better address the individual and systemic barriers that perpetuate health inequities and make healthy eating difficult. Participants identified stress reduction, health literacy, and cooking knowledge as areas of interest for future programming.

scholarly journals Exploring the potential for introducing home monitoring of blood pressure during pregnancy into maternity care: current views and experiences of staff—a qualitative study

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. e037874
Author(s):  
Lisa Hinton ◽  
James Hodgkinson ◽  
Katherine L Tucker ◽  
Linda Rozmovits ◽  
Lucy Chappell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Maternity Care ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Home Monitoring ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Self Monitoring ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Registration Number ◽  
In Pregnancy

ObjectiveOne in 20 women are affected by pre-eclampsia, a major cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity, death and premature birth worldwide. Diagnosis is made from monitoring blood pressure (BP) and urine and symptoms at antenatal visits after 20 weeks of pregnancy. There are no randomised data from contemporary trials to guide the efficacy of self-monitoring of BP (SMBP) in pregnancy. We explored the perspectives of maternity staff to understand the context and health system challenges to introducing and implementing SMBP in maternity care, ahead of undertaking a trial.DesignExploratory study using a qualitative approach.SettingEight hospitals, English National Health Service.ParticipantsObstetricians, community and hospital midwives, pharmacists, trainee doctors (n=147).MethodsSemi-structured interviews with site research team members and clinicians, interviews and focus group discussions. Rapid content and thematic analysis undertaken.ResultsThe main themes to emerge around SMBP include (1) different BP changes in pregnancy, (2) reliability and accuracy of BP monitoring, (3) anticipated impact of SMBP on women, (4) anticipated impact of SMBP on the antenatal care system, (5) caution, uncertainty and evidence, (6) concerns over action/inaction and patient safety.ConclusionsThe potential impact of SMBP on maternity services is profound although nuanced. While introducing SMBP does not reduce the responsibility clinicians have for women’s health, it may enhance the responsibilities and agency of pregnant women, and introduces a new set of relationships into maternity care. This is a new space for reconfiguration of roles, mutual expectations and the relationships between and responsibilities of healthcare providers and women.Trial registration numberNCT03334149.

scholarly journals The Role of Religious Fundamentalism in the Intersection of National and Religious Identities

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susilo Wibisono ◽  
Winnifred Louis ◽  
Jolanda Jetten
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Religious Identity ◽  
National Identities ◽  
Religious Fundamentalism ◽  
Religious Movements ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Religious Identification ◽  
National Identification ◽  
The Way

Indonesia has seen recent expansions of fundamentalist movements mobilising members in support a change to the current constitution. Against this background, two studies were conducted. In Study 1, we explored the intersection of religious and national identity among Indonesian Muslims quantitatively, and in Study 2, we qualitatively examined religious and national identification among members of moderate and fundamentalist religious organisations. Specifically, Study 1 (N= 178) assessed whether the association of religious and national identity was moderated by religious fundamentalism. Results showed that strength of religious identification was positively associated with strength of national identification for both those high and low in fundamentalism. Using structured interviews and focus group discussions, Study 2 (N =35) examined the way that self-alignment with religious and national groups develops among activists of religious movements in Indonesia. We found that while more fundamentalist activists attached greater importance to their religious identity than to any other identity (e.g., national and ethnic), more moderate activists represented their religious and national identities as more integrated and compatible. We conclude that for Indonesian Muslims higher in religious fundamentalism, religious and national identities appear to be less integrated and this is consequential for the way in which collective agendas are pursued.

scholarly journals Implementing English-medium instruction

2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-153
Author(s):  
Kari Sahan
Keyword(s):  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
State University ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Language Preference ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Engineering Programs ◽  
English Medium Instruction ◽  
University Department

Abstract As part of the trend toward internationalization of higher education, governments and universities have introduced policies to encourage the expansion of English-medium instruction (EMI). However, top-down policies do not necessarily translate to teaching and learning practices. This article provides a case study examining the implementation of undergraduate EMI engineering programs at a state university in Turkey to explore the gaps that exist between national- and institutional-level EMI policies and classroom-level practices. Data were collected through policy documents, classroom observations, semi-structured interviews with teachers, and focus group discussions with students. The findings suggest that the implementation of EMI varies across classrooms, even within the same university department. Despite policies that envision one-language-at-a-time instruction, the EMI lecturers in this study varied in terms of language preference and teaching practice in their EMI lectures. Implications are discussed with respect to policy planning, teacher training, and the expansion of EMI across university contexts.

scholarly journals Sensemaking and identity management amidst major organizational change

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Madeline Pringle
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Student Teaching ◽  
Identity Management ◽  
Theoretical Work ◽  
Organizational Leaders ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
Management Processes

Organizational change is inevitable and its impacts will affect all members, albeit to different degrees. These changes also bring about uncertainty, especially as it pertains to one's organization-based identities. However, when studying change and identity, organizational communication scholars have often missed studying the interplay of one's many organization-based identities and how these are made sense of and managed amidst major organizational change. This thesis employs a phronetic-iterative methodology to analyze 16 semi-structured interviews with U.S. graduate students to understand how they have made sense of and managed their organization-based (i.e., graduate student, teaching assistant/instructor, department, university) identities after the COVID-19-induced transition to fully online education in Spring 2020. Analysis of this data suggested that participants used two types of ideal self discursive resources to make sense of and manage these identities, while also experiencing their sensemaking and identity management processes in two distinct stages. Additionally, participants revealed the importance of organizational places as it pertained to making sense of this change and its impacts. With these findings, this thesis extends theoretical work surrounding sensemaking, identity, and place, especially as it pertains to organizational change and providespractical recommendations for organizational leaders in academia to assist some of their highly impacted and identity-precarious populations--graduate students.

scholarly journals Worldwide Ethnic Distribution of the G Protein β3 Subunit 825T Allele and Its Association with Obesity in Caucasian, Chinese, and Black African Individuals

1999 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 1921-1930
Author(s):  
WINFRIED SIFFERT ◽  
PETER FORSTER ◽  
KARL-HEINZ JÖCKEL ◽  
DAVID A. MVERE ◽  
BERND BRINKMANN ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
G Protein ◽  
Young Male ◽  
Normal Weight ◽  
Allele Frequencies ◽  
Gene Encoding ◽  
Black Africans ◽  
Black African ◽  
South Africans ◽  
825T Allele ◽  
C825t Polymorphism

Abstract. Recently, it was demonstrated that one allele (825T) of the gene encoding the G protein β3 subunit (GNB3) is associated with hypertension in Germans. This study investigates a possible association with obesity in young male Germans, Chinese, and black South Africans with low, intermediate, and high 825T allele frequencies, respectively. In each of these three distinct cohorts, the 825T allele frequency was increased significantly in overweight (body mass index [BMI] ≥25 kg/m2) and obese individuals (BMI >27 kg/m2) compared to those with normal weight. The 825T allele frequencies in these three BMI groups were, respectively, 29.5, 39.3, and 47.7% in Germans, 46.8, 53.9, and 58.6% in Chinese, and 83.1, 87.7, and 90.9% in South Africans. In each of these three distinct groups, the 825T allele was significantly associated with obesity with odds ratios between 2 and 3. More urban than rural black Africans were overweight despite similar 825T allele frequencies in both populations, which underscores the role of both genetic and environmental factors. BP values in young male whites increased significantly with increasing BMI values but were independent of the C825T polymorphism, suggesting that hypertension associated with the 825T allele could be a consequence of obesity. Genotyping of 5254 individuals from 55 native population samples from Africa, the Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia, and New Guinea demonstrated highest 825T allele frequencies in black Africans (82%) and intermediate values in east Asians (47%). It is anticipated that high frequencies of the 825T allele in Africans and Asians may contribute to an obesity and hypertension epidemic if Westernization of lifestyles continues.

scholarly journals Mapping the Internal and External Environments in Empowering Semanggi Batik Craftsmen in Surabaya

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-22
Author(s):  
Susi Hardjati ◽  
Ananta Prathama ◽  
Kalvin Edo Wahyudi
Keyword(s):  
Swot Analysis ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Online Marketing ◽  
City Government ◽  
Government Support ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Production Scale ◽  
Document Collection ◽  
The City

Batik Semanggi is one of the typical batiks in Surabaya which has economic value for the community. However, the competitiveness of the clover batik business is relatively low. This study aims to identify the internal environmental conditions (strengths-weaknesses) and external (opportunities-threats) of the clover batik craftsmen as the basis for formulating a strategy to increase competitiveness. The study used a qualitative approach with data collection techniques focus group discussions (FGD), semi-structured interviews, observation and document collection. Informants were determined using a purposive method. The data analysis uses interactive models and SWOT analysis. The results showed several strengths that can encourage the floating of clover batik, namely the ability to make a capable batik, iconic distinctive motifs and organic batik technology. The opportunities that arise, namely export opportunities, support of the city government, support of other elements of society, and online marketing opportunities. While weaknesses include the number of craftsmen, low online marketing capabilities, motives not yet registered as intellectual property rights, limited production, and marketing volumes, traditional tools, and low capital. The threat that arises namely, the emergence of other motifs as a competitor batik, and batik printing production that offers cheaper prices with a larger production scale. The map of strengths and weaknesses and threats above are very useful as a material for formulating strategies in empowering clover batik craftsmen.

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