“They said we ruined the character and our religion”: authenticity and legitimation of hijab cosplay

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hounaida El Jurdi ◽  
Mona Moufahim ◽  
Ofer Dekel
Keyword(s):  
Religious Identity ◽  
Religious Affiliation ◽  
The Body ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Youth Subculture ◽  
Visual Impact ◽  
And Performance ◽  
A Site ◽  
The Way

Purpose This research is positioned at the intersection of youth subculture consumption and religious affiliation, through the study of observant Muslim women involved in the highly engaging and codified activity of cosplay. Given authenticity is central to the cosplay visual impact and performance, this study aims to understand the way hijab cosplayers negotiate tensions between authentic body performativity and the observance of religious dressing codes. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative interpretive approach was used to address the research questions. In-depth semi-structured online interviews were conducted with 25 members of a hijab cosplayers from South East Asia. Findings The concept of authenticity emerged as multifaceted for hijab cosplayers, where they manage three different aspect of the authentic cosplay performance as follows: authenticity as a cosplayer (social dimension of authenticity), authenticity to the character (personal dimension of authenticity) and authenticity to their religious identity (religious dimension of authenticity). The subsequent malleable authenticity is used to legitimate cosplay as an acceptable performative practice from a religious and from subcultural view. Originality/value The research highlights how tensions between identity and performativity of the body are negotiated. More specifically, the study contributes to the understanding of the way hijab cosplayers reconcile tensions between religious identity and the performativity of the body. Given the role of the body as a site for negotiating identity, this study provides important insights in the tensions and strategies at the intersection of authenticity, embodiment and religious identity in youth cultures.

scholarly journals Service quality at the London 2012 games – a paralympics athletes survey

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Bamford ◽  
Benjamin Dehe
Keyword(s):  
Service Quality ◽  
Single Case ◽  
The Body ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Sporting Events ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Content Type ◽  
London 2012 ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Mega Event

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on aspects of service quality at the London 2012 Paralympic Games, from a rather unusual perspective, the athletes. To date there has been little evidence captured about athlete’s satisfaction at sporting events, and specifically about their perceptions of the service quality provided. Design/methodology/approach – Unique “full” access to the London 2012 Paralympics allowed to the collection of data directly from the athletes. The study reports the questionnaire findings from a sample of 250 respondents. Findings – From this study an operational assessment and performance framework has been generated composed of ten criteria and 73 items or sub-criteria, which can be used as a benchmarking tool to plane, design and compare future sport mega-event. Moreover, the study evidence based the high quality of the 2012 Paralympics Games, as he athletes rated, on a five point Likert scale, 64 items in the “very satisfied” category, a very positive set of feedback for the Games organisers. Research limitations/implications – The methodology applied was appropriate, generating data to facilitate discussion and draw specific conclusions from. A perceived limitation is the single case approach; however, this can be enough to add to the body of knowledge where very little evidence has been captured so far and where the objectives were to explore the Paralympics games service quality and performance. Practical implications – This research provides a tangible evidence base to support future sport event decision makers, planners and designers in this highly complex “arena”. In any system there are always areas for improvement, these are highlighted within the paper for further investigation. Originality/value – This is the first paper to identify and synthesize aspects of sport mega event service quality from the athletes viewpoint and informs how well designed, organised and managed the London 2012 Games were from a primary user perspective. The paper makes a defined contribution by developing evidence based recommendations for this important yet under researched area.

Faith and spirituality in older people – a Jewish perspective

2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 114-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sonia Douek
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Religious Affiliation ◽  
Jewish People ◽  
Psychological Needs ◽  
Systematic Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
Health And Social Care ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Way

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the role that faith and spirituality play for Jewish people as they age and examine how this is expressed and supported by a health and social care environment. Design/methodology/approach – This is a case study based on work at Jewish Care and supported by other Jewish networks. It also builds on qualitative research on Ageing Well carried out in 2012. Findings – As people age they have a need to connect with their community. Faith-based communities are ready made and often the first point of call for Jewish people. The way in which people express their faith or spirituality may not manifest itself in practice but be more about inclusion and connection. Life circumstances will determine people’s faith, identity and approach to spirituality – e.g. Holocaust survivors. There is a feeling that religious affiliation and the way it is expressed has polarised in the community which means that older people often do not connect with current ways of expressing or connecting to their faith. Research limitations/implications – This is not a systematic research but examines through practice different approaches to supporting people as they age via a faith-based provision. Practical implications – The approach could be replicated by other faith-based providers but also the approach and lessons should be considered by more generalist providers so that they ensure they meet the needs of the individual receiving their services. The inclusion principle reminds the author that care in a vacuum will not support the emotional and psychological needs of people. Social implications – Divisions within a faith group opportunities for younger people to learn from their older peers reminder of more established values around faith. Originality/value – Identifying the way in which faith is often an expression and connection to community and can reduce social isolation. The role that faith-based communities play in connecting and valuing people as they age. The reminder that ritual can be not only reassuring to people as they age but provide structure and purpose to a person’s life.

scholarly journals Reframing Habitat

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Larry Asakawa ◽  
Jhalak Kara Miller
Keyword(s):  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Visual Media ◽  
The Body ◽  
Video Recordings ◽  
Marine Habitats ◽  
Pacific Waters ◽  
Scientific Analysis ◽  
Human Perceptions ◽  
And Performance ◽  
A Site

In 2016, filmmaker Larry Asakawa and dancer/media artist Jhalak Kara Miller collaborated in Hawai‘i to create a video dance installation and performance called Habitat. Asakawa and Miller, conceived and then subsequently joined with other artists to produce a performance score for the installation, based on solo dances and video recordings that each undertook, produced, and filmed. Habitat explored the interconnections among humans and marine mammals as they relate to the controversial sonar testing activities in Pacific waters. The Habitat performance modalities included visual media, sound, and movement as tools for an embodiment process that might offer human communities a deeper awareness and understanding of the body in a holistic ecosystem. Somatic disciplines that include meditation and dance offer theoretical paradigms to understand the body as a site of knowledge production. Throughout the creative process, the artists ask how personal experiences in these marine habitats may be effectively translated through live embodied performance captured on digital video and then reframed in a gallery video dance installation? Grounded in movement practice, the artists also inquire how the blurry edges of somatic intelligence, feeling, and sensing through the body might focus our human perceptions, go beyond scientific analysis, and inform our intellectual minds to remember to care for the planet we live on?

Portrait of the Daughter of Charity : Safeguarding the Execution of Moral Management

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rose-Marie Peake
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Women Religious ◽  
Religious Identity ◽  
The Body ◽  
Survival Strategy ◽  
Christian Women ◽  
Devotional Practices ◽  
Moral Management ◽  
The Way ◽  
Daughters Of Charity

The chapter turns to the body of members of the Daughters of Charity to examine the ways the directors managed the morality of the sisters. The chapter argues that the way the sisters were trained to become good Daughters and Christian women was an important survival strategy for the Company. The chapter opens with an analysis of the delicate position of the sisters as active women religious in avoidance of enclosure which would have made their vocation impossible. The subsequent sections discuss the ways the directors aimed to manage the sisters’ spiritual position by controlling their behaviour in public space, education, and devotional practices in order to negotiate an orthodox religious identity and avoid enclosure.

Philosophical connections between the classical and the modern notion of corruption

2017 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-100
Author(s):  
Michel Dion
Keyword(s):  
Transition Period ◽  
Adam Smith ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
The Body ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Conditioning Factors ◽  
Classical Notion ◽  
Historical Periods ◽  
The Way

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to circumscribe the various philosophical connections between the classical and the modern notion of corruption from Enlightenment to post-modernity. Design/methodology/approach The paper analyzed to what extent the classical notion of corruption (Plato, Aristotle and Cicero) still influenced the way philosophers perceived the phenomenon of corruption during the Enlightenment (1625-1832), the transition period (1833-1900) and the post-modernity (1901 onward). Taking those historical periods as reference points, the author will see how literature about historical, social and political conditioning factors of corruption could convey the presence/absence of the classical or the modern notion of corruption. Findings The paper finds that the classical notion of corruption implies the degeneration of human relationships (Plato and Hegel), the degeneration of the body-and-mind unity (Aristotle, Pascal and Thomas Mann) or the degeneration of collective morality (Cicero, Locke, Rousseau, Hume and Kant). The modern notion of corruption as bribery was mainly introduced by Adam Smith. Nietzsche (and Musil) looked at corruption as degeneration of the will-to-power. The classical notion of corruption put the emphasis on the effects rather than on the cause itself (effects-based thinking). The modern notion of corruption as bribery insists on the cause rather than on the effects (cause-based thinking). Research limitations/implications In this paper, the author has taken into account the main representatives of the three historical periods. Future research could also analyze the works of other philosophers and novelists to see to what extent their philosophical and literary works are unveiling the classical or the modern notion of corruption. Originality/value The paper presents a philosophical and historical perspective about corruption. It sheds light on the way philosophers (and sometimes novelists) deal with the issue of corruption, whether it is from an effects-based or from a cause-based perspective.

Identifying macro-environmental critical success factors and key areas for improvement to promote public-private partnerships in infrastructure

2014 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 383-402 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas Wibowo ◽  
Hans Wilhelm Alfen
Keyword(s):  
Critical Success Factors ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Gap Analysis ◽  
Private Investment ◽  
The Body ◽  
Public Private Partnerships ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Critical Success ◽  
And Performance

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify macro-environmental critical success factors (CSFs) and key areas for improvement for public-private partnerships (PPP) in infrastructure development, using Indonesia as a case study. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology includes the definition of CSFs based on the United Nations for Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific's self-assessment diagnostic tool and a survey on importance and performance attributes, the application of gap analysis (GA) and importance-performance analysis to prioritize areas needing urgent improvements, and the use of inter-rater agreement analysis to examine to what extent the ratings tend to converge on the same conclusions regarding importance and performance. Findings – Out of 40 possible success factors, a total of 16 are identified as CSFs in the context of Indonesia. GA suggests that no performance ratings exceed importance ratings for the identified CSFs, indicating the need for remedial actions. The factors requiring immediate improvements are all associated with commitments: to policy continuity, financial transparency, and corruption eradication. Practical implications – Although the paper discussing a specific country, the proposed approach is replicable and adaptable in different country contexts. Indonesia's experience can also be of value to governments facing similar problems in encouraging private investment in infrastructure. Originality/value – The paper contributes to the body of knowledge on PPP in infrastructure development by focussing exclusively on macro-environmental CSFs and Indonesia's PPPs, which are both rarely discussed in the existing literature.

Factors determining hotel activity outsourcing. An approach based on competitive advantage

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (8) ◽  
pp. 2006-2026 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomás F. Espino-Rodríguez ◽  
Juan Carlos Ramírez-Fierro
Keyword(s):  
Competitive Advantage ◽  
Negative Relationship ◽  
Strategic Positioning ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Results ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
Activity Performance ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Way

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the levels of the main hotel outsourcing activities to identify the factors that determine the use of external suppliers for these activities. Design/methodology/approach A model was developed that analyzes the relationship between competitive advantage and outsourcing and how the relationship between competitive advantage and activity performance is affected by whether an activity is outsourced or not. Moreover, the study builds a matrix called “outsourcing and competitive advantage” where each of the activities can be placed. The study was carried out with a representative sample of hotels in a tourist destination, analyzing 12 activities from different departments in the hotels. Findings The study results indicate that there is a positive relationship between the competitive advantage of an activity and its outcome. In addition, the findings show that the relationship between competitive advantage and activity performance is stronger when the activity is developed internally than when it is outsourced. The study supports a negative relationship between the degree of outsourcing an activity and its competitive advantage. In addition, the findings showed that a change in the way of managing the outsourcing is determined by its performance. Practical implications This study aims to help managers make decisions about outsourcing by considering the perspective of the competitive advantage. Each hotel can situate the activities in the matrix created and compare itself to the sector mean for a strategic positioning of the outsourcing. Originality/value Most studies analyze asset specificity as a key variable; however, the competitive advantage has not been used in previous studies, in spite of being a better defined variable in the literature. This study classifies the activities into core and non-core and establishes their relationship with outsourcing. It also studies how the way of managing an activity (outsourcing or in-house) moderates the relationship between competitive advantage and performance. These aspects have not been analyzed in the literature..

When talent management goes wrong

2014 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 24-26
Keyword(s):  
Core Competency ◽  
Talent Management ◽  
Employee Motivation ◽  
Workplace Relationships ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Sweet Spot ◽  
Content Type ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Job Role ◽  
The Way

Purpose – This paper aims to address the following issues. The transactional view of workplace relationships has been challenged by discoveries of human behavior by neuroscience. Human beings are wired to have emotions and perceptions, and a workplace is no exception. Reframing the issue through a simple-yet-powerful framework, fundamentals of talent management can be restored, paving the way for a meaningful design of organizations. Design/methodology/approach – Using rigorous in-depth secondary research about current talent practices, the report offers a novel framework to unlock the drivers of employee’s motivation and performance. The framework serves as a diagnostic leadership tool to identify breakdowns and foster a meaningful conversation to restore the organization back to equilibrium. A holistic alternative that is agnostic to the rank of the employee, job role and geography offers promise over the current practice of dealing with employee issues in fragmented manner. Findings – The proposed framework helps identify the sweet-spot that lies at the intersection of three fundamental drivers: employee’s preferences on the type of work; employee’s core competency; and activities that are value-adding to the organization. The sweet-spot is the employee’s emotional wallet that the organizations must proactively capture to unlock the true drivers of motivation and performance. The proposed framework serves as a diagnostic tool to meaningfully tackle breakdowns and restore organizations to equilibrium. The sweet-spot provides the clue to design an effective organizational structure identify the enablers and catalyst that can unlock employee motivation and performance. Originality/value – Despite new organizational complexities, the fundamental focus for talent management is to unlock the value of its resource. Despite the pristine appeal of this fundamental tenet of talent management, it is ironic that HR has drifted its focus from its core. Reframing the issue through a simple-yet-powerful framework, fundamentals of talent management can be restored, paving the way for a meaningful design of organizations. This is a paradigm shift for talent management to get back to basics of what really matters to the organizations.

Export competitiveness and concentration analysis of major sugar economies with special reference to India

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 687-715 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheetal Sheetal ◽  
Rajiv Kumar ◽  
Shashi Shashi
Keyword(s):  
Special Reference ◽  
Comparative Advantage ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Sugar Industry ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Body ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Export Competitiveness ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Concentration Levels

PurposeThis paper seeks to examine the export competitiveness and concentration level of the 15 top sugar exporting countries over the last 18 years (2001–2018) with special reference to India.Design/methodology/approachFirst, the paper utilizes a review based approach and explains the structures of major sugar economies in context to protected and unprotected perspectives. Subsequently, empirical research was carried out to assess the competitiveness level of sugar using Revealed Comparative Advantage (RCA) approach and Hirschman Herfindahl Index.FindingsThe study found structural changes in cane or beet sugar, and molasses over the time period between 2006 and 2015. Further, the findings confirmed that despite the stringent regulations in European Union, the United States of America, Guatemala, Mexico, Thailand, China, and India, the comparative advantage is high up to seven to nine sugar categories. Besides, despite the indulgent regulations in the Colombia, Brazil, and Canada, the comparative advantage is only consistent up to two to three sugar categories.Research limitations/implicationsThis study provides an overview of competitiveness patterns of 15 sugar exporting countries and further compare their comparative and concentration levels. In this context, in future, it would be interesting to study the macro-economic and firm and industry-specific factors which may strengthen the study findings.Practical implicationsThis study suggests that the sugar export of few countries (i.e. Mexico and Canada) is restricted up to their trade pacts and free trade zones which is restricting the competitiveness level and performance. Accordingly, such countries need to enlarge their business boundaries to foster their export competitiveness level. Rational subsidies and governmental assistance in diversification schemes in terms of products' range and sustainable processes can make India a consistent exporter in more categories.Originality/valueAlthough, the previous studies attempted to examine the sugar industry with particular country context, this study enlarge the body of knowledge through simultaneously examining the sugar export scenario of fifteen sugar exporting countries and providing a broad comparative view of their competitiveness and concentration levels.

scholarly journals On Being Consumed: The Martyred Body as a Site of Divine—Human Encounter in the Letters of Ignatius of Antioch

Religions ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 637
Author(s):  
Peter-Ben Smit
Keyword(s):  
The Body ◽  
Second Century ◽  
Human Being ◽  
Religious Traditions ◽  
Literary Heritage ◽  
A Site ◽  
The Way

The manner in which humans and the divine are brought into communion with each other, a key aspect of many religious traditions, is frequently, if not always, material (or sacramental) in character. Meals and food play an important role in this; such meals can include the consumption of the deity (theophagy), as well as the consumption of the human being by the deity. This paper takes its cue from the discussion of constructions of divine–human communion and explores this subject in the letters of Ignatius of Antioch (early second century CE). It shows how in the literary heritage of this bishop, the body as the physical site of martyrdom is of key importance, in particular due to its consumption in the Roman arena. This martyrdom is the way in which Ignatius hopes to enter into perfect communion with the divine. The body thus becomes, in its annihilation, the instrument through which divine–human communion is established. As this all relates to a case of martyrdom, Ignatius’ ideas about the body are also subversive in character: the punishment of his body is, through his theological imagination, transformed into a means of achieving Ignatius’ goal in life: attaining to God.

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