scholarly journals Theorizing the Religious Habitus in the Context of Conversion to Islam among Polish Women of Catholic Background

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Krotofil ◽  
Anna Piela ◽  
Katarzyna Górak-Sosnowska ◽  
Beata Abdallah-Krzepkowska
Keyword(s):  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Conversion Process ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Conversion To Islam ◽  
New Religion ◽  
Depth Interviews

Abstract This article explores the conversion processes of Polish women of Catholic background to Islam. Data from participant observation of mosque-based, women-only weekend gatherings for converts and in-depth interviews with 29 Polish female converts to Islam are presented to illustrate the dialectic between the persistence and transformation of religious habitus. Our analysis demonstrates that in the conversion process, Catholic habitus remains pervasive, and shapes converts’ engagement with the new religion; however, some elements of it become reflexive and change. We make a case for extending the discussion on habitus transformation by drawing attention to what we term a “translation” of religious beliefs and practices. Women in our study translate the system of Islamic practices and beliefs into a specific Catholic logic that is more intelligible to them and, in the process, recognize some of the power dynamics inherent in the religious field.

The Religious Conversion Process Among the Sidāma of North-East Africa

Africa ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 72 (4) ◽  
pp. 598-627 ◽  
Author(s):  
John H. Hamer
Keyword(s):  
East Africa ◽  
Closed System ◽  
Religious Conversion ◽  
Conversion Process ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Reciprocal Exchange ◽  
North East ◽  
New Religion ◽  
Exchange Relations

AbstractThis article analyses the conversion process and the experiences of the Sidāma, in being proselytised by Protestant missionaries in an attempt to integrate them into the modernising Ethiopian state. The conversion process is considered in terms of reasons for accepting or rejecting the new religion. A minority of Sidāma are shown to have changed from old beliefs and practices, partly because of the ease of moral reinterpretation and secular incentives, but primarily because of dissatisfaction with reciprocal exchange relations with indigenous spirits and a desire to transcend the finality of death. In advancing this proposition it rejects the possibility of Sidāma beliefs as constituting a closed system of cosmology. Though Islam is also present in the region, for political and economic reasons it has been less attractive to prospective converts than Christianity.

scholarly journals Track-Change Diplomacy: Technology, Affordances, and the Practice of International Negotiations

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 531-545 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Adler-Nissen ◽  
Alena Drieschova
Keyword(s):  
Communication Technology ◽  
Word Processing ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
International Negotiations ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Political Struggle ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Technology Affordances ◽  
Depth Interviews

AbstractHow does technology influence international negotiations? This article explores “track-change diplomacy,” that is, how diplomats use information and communication technology (ICT) such as word processing software and mobile devices to collaboratively edit and negotiate documents. To analyze the widespread but understudied phenomenon of track-change diplomacy, the article adopts a practice-oriented approach to technology, developing the concept of affordance: the way a tool or technology simultaneously enables and constrains the tasks users can possibly perform with it. The article shows how digital ICT affords shareability, visualization, and immediacy of information, thus shaping the temporality and power dynamics of international negotiations. These three affordances have significant consequences for how states construct and promote national interests; how diplomats reach compromises among a large number of states (as text edits in collective drafting exercises); and how power plays out in international negotiations. Drawing on ethnographic methods, including participant observation of negotiations between the European Union's member states, as well as in-depth interviews, the analysis casts new light on these negotiations, where documents become the site of both semantic and political struggle. Rather than delivering on the technology's promise of keeping track and reinforcing national oversight in negotiations, we argue that track-change diplomacy can in fact lead to a loss of control, challenging existing understandings of diplomacy.

Generative tools enhance creative and ethical research with children

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alane Sanders
Keyword(s):  
Young People ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Adult Child ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Public High School ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Creative Methods ◽  
Research With Children ◽  
Thoughtful Reflection ◽  
Depth Interviews

Purpose Qualitative researchers working with young people consistently face challenges in trying to ethically gain insight into their inner thoughts and worlds. The purpose of this paper is to examine how the use of generative tools in conjunction with qualitative interviewing with young people can enhance creativity and reflexivity, while mitigating adult-child power dynamics. Design/methodology/approach This paper draws upon ethnographic research conducted by the author examining the interplay between emotion, communication, and schooling at a public high school. Participant observation, use of generative tools to make collages representing each student’s experience, and in-depth interviews guided by the student-created visuals were triangulated to more fully understand the students’ experiences. Findings Generative tools foster reflexivity in both researcher and participants, lesson adult-child power dynamic concerns, and foster creativity without the requirement of drawing ability. Integrating the collaging process into in-depth interviews enabled students to privilege their primary thoughts, experiences, and concerns related to the issues being studied, mitigating concerns over adults overpowering and controlling the focus of the interview. Originality/value Generative tools can complement and enhance time-honored qualitative methods to alleviate ongoing concerns about ethical and accurate research with young people. Researchers are encouraged to embrace creative methods to engage young people in ethical and thoughtful reflection on and sharing of their experiences. Creative methods are also useful in empowering young people to imagine their world otherwise creating new possibilities for the future.

The Names of Seljuk’s Sons as Evidence for the Pre-Islamic Religion of the Seljuks

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-70
Author(s):  
Richard Dietrich
Keyword(s):  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Tenth Century ◽  
Specific Information ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Religious Context ◽  
Conversion To Islam ◽  
Islamic Religion ◽  
Naming Practices

Although early sources for Seljuk history do not give specific information on the Seljuks’ religious beliefs and practices before their conversion to Islam, the names of the sons of the dynasty’s namesake – Mikail, Israil, Musa, Yunus, Yusuf – have long been a source of speculation on this subject. By comparing the names of Seljuk’s sons with the naming practices of regional Muslim, Jewish and Christian elites in light of the religious context of Transoxiana up to the late tenth century, it is possible to reach a plausible conclusion regarding the Seljuks’ religion before their conversion to Islam.

Power in the Parish

2019 ◽  
pp. 111-131
Author(s):  
Brett C. Hoover
Keyword(s):  
Race And Ethnicity ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cultural Work ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Ethnic Communities ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Race Ethnicity ◽  
Depth Interviews

Catholic parishes in the United States are complex organizations (where multiple communities coexist and interact). Relying on participant observation, in-depth interviews, and a case study approach, this chapter explores three parishes in Southern California that showcase the complexity of interactions among different racial and ethnic communities. These parishes are shared in various configurations by white, Latino, Black, and Asian parishioners, and this chapter illuminates the power dynamics of race and ethnicity as they work themselves out in American life. In shared parishes, the cultural work of constructing Catholic identity necessarily involves deploying distinct cultural expressions of Catholicism shaped by broader power dynamics of race, ethnicity, and language. This chapter lays bare this process as parishes illustrate power-in-action, with parish interactions variously producing, perpetuating, and challenging existing power dynamics and race relations.

scholarly journals Ethnic Contestation in Regional Extension: Local Elite in Pringsewu Regency, Lampung Province, Indonesia

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Irsan Idris Yusuf ◽  
Bartoven Vivit ◽  
Reevany Bustami ◽  
Ricky Ricardo
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Identity ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Regional Autonomy ◽  
Regional Institutions ◽  
Social Resistance ◽  
Local Elite ◽  
Depth Interviews

This paper examines the power dynamics between central and regional institutions since the Reform was introduced and the era of regional extension began. Specifically, it analyzes the so- called ethnic contestation in Pringsewu Regency located within the province of Lampung, Indonesia. It is found that since Reform, the efforts to build regional autonomy have spread significantly. However, this phenomenon of regional extension1 has witnessed the interplay of the interests of political elites and the exploitation of ethnic issues, which in some cases has resulted in inter-group conflicts. This paper traces the ways in which ethnically-linked issues are being constructed, manipulated and spread within this game of power. It also examines issues of ethnic identity and boundaries. Connecting to the larger conceptual underpinnings of theory of resistance from Scott (1985), Tsing (1998) and Abu-lughod (1990), this contestation is also arguably a manifestation of social resistance. Using the qualitative approach, the data is obtained through in- depth interviews and participant observation; hence, insights and inner meanings can be used to explicate events within this phenomenon.

Do we form or deform? Qualitative Investigation in Public Hospitals of Madrid

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Jesús Gómez Camuñas ◽  
Purificación González Villanueva
Keyword(s):  
Participant Observation ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Public Hospitals ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Business Growth ◽  
Small Hospital ◽  
Student Learn ◽  
Depth Interviews

<div><i>Background</i>: the creative capacities and the knowledge of the employees are components of the intellectual capital of the company; hence, their training is a key activity to achieve the objectives and business growth. <i>Objective</i>: To understand the meaning of learning in the hospital from the experiences of its participants through the inquiry of meanings. <i>Method</i>: Qualitative design with an ethnographic approach, which forms part of a wider research, on organizational culture; carried out mainly in 2 public hospitals of the Community of Madrid. The data has been collected for thirteen months. A total of 23 in-depth interviews and 69 field sessions have been conducted through the participant observation technique. <i>Results</i>: the worker and the student learn from what they see and hear. The great hospital offers an unregulated education, dependent on the professional, emphasizing that they learn everything. Some transmit the best and others, even the humiliating ones, use them for dirty jobs, focusing on the task and nullifying the possibility of thinking. They show a reluctant attitude to teach the newcomer, even if they do, they do not have to oppose their practice. In short, a learning in the variability, which produces a rupture between theory and practice; staying with what most convinces them, including negligence, which affects the patient's safety. In the small hospital, it is a teaching based on a practice based on scientific evidence and personalized attention, on knowing the other. Clearly taught from the reception, to treat with caring patience and co-responsibility in the care. The protagonists of both scenarios agree that teaching and helping new people establish lasting and important personal relationships to feel happy and want to be in that service or hospital. <i>Conclusion</i>: There are substantial differences related to the size of the center, as to what and how the student and the novel professional are formed. At the same time that the meaning of value that these health organizations transmit to their workers is inferred through the training, one orienting to the task and the other to the person, either patient, professional or pupil and therefore seeking the common benefit.</div>

The Impact of Secularism on Religious Beliefs and Practices

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 163
Author(s):  
Adibah Binti AbdulRahim
Keyword(s):  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Practical Aspect ◽  
The West ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Religious Worldview ◽  
Political Economic ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT Secularism is the most serious challenge of modernity posed by the West. Its main ideology is to liberate man from the religious and metaphysical values and expel religion from the practical aspect of man’s life. It clearly presents its materialistic viewpoint which is cut off from Divine, Transcendent or Supernatural principles and does not refer to and is isolated from Revelation. In terms of its intensity and scope as well as its discernable effects upon people’s mind, the repercussion of secularism is so pervasive and universal. It gives a great impact on every facet of life including individual and family lives as well as educational, political, economic and social-cultural realm. Most importantly, secularism affects the very tenets of traditional religious beliefs and practices. This paper tries to focus on the danger of secularism and its principles which are contradict to the religious worldview.  

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