scholarly journals Disruptive Norms: Assessing the Impact of Ethnic Minority Immigration on Nonimmigrant Voter Turnout Using a Complex Model

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 422-442
Author(s):  
Thomas Loughran ◽  
Edward Fieldhouse ◽  
Laurence Lessard-Phillips ◽  
Lee Bentley
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minority ◽  
Voter Turnout ◽  
Ethnic Diversity ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Complex Model ◽  
Civic Duty ◽  
Majority Population ◽  
Spatial Composition ◽  
The Impact

This article explores whether introducing an external group into a population with different characteristics to the existing population may lead to behavioral change. Specifically, we test whether introducing ethnic minority immigrants with varying levels of civic duty (commitment to voting) norms into a previously homogenous nonimmigrant ethnic majority population influences voter turnout among the nonimmigrant majority group. The findings have been produced using a complex agent-based model (“the voter model”) where the parameters and characteristics have been developed through the extensive synthesis of existing findings from real-world social science research on voter turnout. The model adopts the KIDS (“Keep It Descriptive Stupid”) approach to this form of modeling complex systems. The model puts a particular emphasis on exploring the dynamic social aspects that influence turnout by focusing on the role of networks and spatial composition factors such as ethnic diversity and levels of internal and external immigration. It uses an approach based on aggregative neighborhood dynamics to go beyond existing static models of the influence of social norms on voting similar to the classic approach of Schelling. The main findings from this article suggest that, other factors being equal, increased levels of immigration lead to a small but significant increase in turnout among the nonimmigrant population and show that higher levels of civic duty among immigrants lead to higher levels of turnout among nonimmigrants over time. This challenges the popular belief that increased immigration and diversity in a specific community will always lead to lower turnout levels.

Classical Greek Oligarchy

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Simonton
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Power Sharing ◽  
Majority Population ◽  
New Development ◽  
The Face ◽  
Changes Over Time ◽  
Client Relations

This book thoroughly reassesses an important but neglected form of government in ancient Greece, the “rule of the few.” The book challenges scholarly orthodoxy by showing that oligarchy was not the default mode of politics from time immemorial, but instead emerged alongside, and in reaction to, democracy. It establishes how oligarchies maintained power in the face of potential citizen resistance. It argues that oligarchs designed distinctive political institutions—such as intra-oligarchic power sharing, targeted repression, and rewards for informants—to prevent collective action among the majority population while sustaining cooperation within their own ranks. To clarify the workings of oligarchic institutions, the book draws on recent social science research on authoritarianism. Like modern authoritarian regimes, ancient Greek oligarchies had to balance coercion with co-optation in order to keep their subjects disorganized and powerless. The book investigates topics such as control of public space, the manipulation of information, and the establishment of patron–client relations, frequently citing parallels with contemporary nondemocratic regimes. It also traces changes over time in antiquity, revealing the processes through which oligarchy lost the ideological battle with democracy for legitimacy. This book represents a major new development in the study of ancient politics. It fills a longstanding gap in our knowledge of nondemocratic government while greatly improving our understanding of forms of power that continue to affect us today.

scholarly journals On the Discursive and Methodological Categorisation of Islam and Muslims in the West: Ontological and Epistemological Considerations

Religions ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 501
Author(s):  
Fethi Mansouri
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Religion And Politics ◽  
The West ◽  
Research Agendas ◽  
Muslims In The West ◽  
The Impact

This article reflects on the ethical and epistemological challenges facing researchers engaged in contemporary studies of Islam and Muslims in the West. Particularly, it focuses on the impact of the constructions and categorisations of Muslims and Islam in research. To do this, it considers the entwinement of public discourses and the development of research agendas and projects. To examine this complex and enmeshed process, this article explores ideological, discursive and epistemological approaches that it argues researchers need to consider. In invoking these three approaches alongside an analysis of a collection of recent research, this article contends that questions of race, religion and politics have been deployed to reinforce, rather than challenge, certain essentialist/orientalist representations of Islam and Muslims in the West in research. As this article shows, this practice is increasingly threatening to compromise, in a Habermasian communicative sense (i.e., the opportunity to speak and be heard for all concerned), the ethical and epistemological underpinnings of social science research with its emphasis on inclusion and respect.

scholarly journals Doing Less with More: Cohorts, Education and Civic Participation in America

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Horowitz
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Civic Participation ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Birth Cohorts ◽  
School Students ◽  
College Degrees ◽  
Geographic Space ◽  
The Impact

Decades of social science research demonstrate the impact of education on civic participation. However, prior scholarship generally assumes that the returns to education do not change over time or geographic space. Absolute educational effects are not always plausible; as more individuals obtain a college degree, there are a greater number of qualified individuals competing for the same social resources. The present study tests the impact of education on civic participation, and whether this effect changes as the number of college-educated individuals increases over birth cohorts. The present findings suggest that in some cases, a college degree's impact on civic participation declines as more individuals obtain college degrees. The findings challenge commonly held assumptions about the effect of higher education on civic participation. Furthermore, the findings suggest that while sending an individual to college may increase civic participation, encouraging all high school students to go to college may undercut the benefits of college attendance.Keywords: higher education, cohorts, civic engagement, volunteering

The Determinants of Program Success and Failure

1981 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 433-464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harold Wolman
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Evaluation Research ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Program Performance ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Program Success ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACTRecent social science research – particularly evaluation research and cost-benefit analysis – has produced a substantial and very useful literature on the impact of public policy and on the relationship of program inputs to outputs and outcomes. However, the explicit focus of these analytic techniques on impacts and outcomes does not systematically yield useful information on why programs have been successes or failures. Policy-makers faced with an evaluation of program success or failure obviously need to know something about the why question if they are to make needed adjustments in the program or carry the lessons of one program to other areas. This article attempts to present a comprehensive framework for explaining and understanding program performance. It is meant to have two uses and to serve two clienteles. First, it presents for social scientists a set of research questions to guide research into the determinants of program performance. Second, it provides public policy-makers with a set of action questions which should be asked and answered appropriately in the actual formulating and carrying out of public policy, as a means of enhancing the chances of program success. The framework is divided into two parts, the formulating process and the carrying out process, although these two processes may overlap considerably, both in time and in terms of substantive concerns. Program success may be impeded by problems or inadequacies in one or more of the components in either the formulating stage or the carrying out stage or in both.

scholarly journals A New Model for Industry–Academic Partnerships

2019 ◽  
Vol 53 (4) ◽  
pp. 703-709 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary King ◽  
Nathaniel Persily
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Data Access ◽  
Private Companies ◽  
Consumer Privacy ◽  
The Social ◽  
Charitable Foundations ◽  
Academic Partnerships ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACTThe mission of the social sciences is to understand and ameliorate society’s greatest challenges. The data held by private companies, collected for different purposes, hold vast potential to further this mission. Yet, because of consumer privacy, trade secrets, proprietary content, and political sensitivities, these datasets are often inaccessible to scholars. We propose a novel organizational model to address these problems. We also report on the first partnership under this model, to study the incendiary issues surrounding the impact of social media on elections and democracy: Facebook provides (privacy-preserving) data access; eight ideologically and substantively diverse charitable foundations provide initial funding; an organization of academics we created, Social Science One, leads the project; and the Institute for Quantitative Social Science at Harvard and the Social Science Research Council provide logistical help.

Policy analysis by academics

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marleen Brans ◽  
David Aubin ◽  
Valérie Smet
Keyword(s):  
Policy Making ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Relevant Research ◽  
Education Policies ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Research Programmes ◽  
Structural Interfaces ◽  
Policy Problems ◽  
The Impact

Through their policy relevant research outputs and integration in policy networks, Belgian academics ‘speak truth to power’ (Wildavsky 1979) or ‘make sense together’ (Hoppe 1999) in political and public debates about policy problems and options. At the turn of the millennium, the federal and regional governments have moved to institutionalizing policy relevant research in what are called interuniversity research pillars, and middle to long term research programmes, thematically organised along the priorities decided by the respective governments. Next to these structural interfaces, there are other access points for academics to bring their expertise to policy-making. Sectoral academic experts maintain multiple relationships with knowledge brokers. They are welcome guests in opinion sections of the written and spoken media and hold positions in the strategic advisory bodies of different governments. Several of them are also active in think tanks, or act themselves as consultants in commercial university spin-offs. This chapter analyses the structural and individual access of academics to policy-making in Belgium. The empirical material is based upon documents analysis and budget information, on a study of knowledge utilisation in labour market and education policies in Belgium, and on a recent survey on the impact of social science research on Flemish policy-makers.

scholarly journals Dependency, History, and Scholarship: An Interview with Professor Stanley J. Stein

2010 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 379-392
Author(s):  
Vincent Peloso
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Social History ◽  
Latin American ◽  
American History ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
National Endowment ◽  
Latin American History ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Impact

Stanley J. Stein, Walter Samuel Carpenter III Professor of Spanish Civilization and Culture and Professor of History, Emeritus, at Princeton University, is a lifelong Latin Americanist. Together with his late wife Barbara, herself an accomplished bibliographer and historian of the region, Professor Stein wrote several books and articles that put their stamp on methods of writing the social history of modern Latin America, specifically on the impact of colonialism and industrialism in Mexico and Brazil in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It is fair to say that no one who studied Latin American history over the last 35 years would have failed to engage the slim, elegantly written synthesis, The Colonial Heritage of Latin America: Essays on Economic Dependence in Perspective (1970). Recipients of grants and fellowships from the Social Science Research Council, the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, singly or together, the Steins were honored for their path-breaking studies with the CLAH Robertson and Bolton prizes, the Conference on Latin American History Distinguished Service Award (1991), and the American Historical Association Award for Scholarly Distinction (1996).

Political Issues and the Vote: November, 1952

1953 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 359-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angus Campbell ◽  
Gerald Gurin ◽  
Warren E. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Presidential Election ◽  
Party Identification ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
List Type ◽  
University Of Michigan ◽  
Political Issues ◽  
Carnegie Corporation ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

In March, 1952 the Carnegie Corporation made available to the Social Science Research Council a research grant to support a major study of factors influencing the popular vote in the 1952 presidential election. Under the sponsorship of the Council's Committee on Political Behavior this project is currently being carried out by the Survey Research Center of the University of Michigan.The study was developed around six major objectives:1. To identify the voters and non-voters, Republicans and Democrats, within four major geographical areas, in regard toa. socio-economic characteristics;b. attitudes and opinions on political issues;c. perceptions of the parties and the candidates.2. To compare these groups to the corresponding groups in the 1948 presidential election.3. To trace the resolution of the vote with particular attention to the undecided and changing voters.4. To study the impact of the activities of the major parties on the population.5. To analyze the nature and correlates of political party identification.6. To analyze the nature and correlates of political participation.

scholarly journals Dependency, History, and Scholarship: An Interview with Professor Stanley J. Stein

2010 ◽  
Vol 66 (03) ◽  
pp. 379-392
Author(s):  
Vincent Peloso
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Social History ◽  
Latin American ◽  
American History ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
National Endowment ◽  
Latin American History ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Impact

Stanley J. Stein, Walter Samuel Carpenter III Professor of Spanish Civilization and Culture and Professor of History, Emeritus, at Princeton University, is a lifelong Latin Americanist. Together with his late wife Barbara, herself an accomplished bibliographer and historian of the region, Professor Stein wrote several books and articles that put their stamp on methods of writing the social history of modern Latin America, specifically on the impact of colonialism and industrialism in Mexico and Brazil in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. It is fair to say that no one who studied Latin American history over the last 35 years would have failed to engage the slim, elegantly written synthesis, The Colonial Heritage of Latin America: Essays on Economic Dependence in Perspective (1970). Recipients of grants and fellowships from the Social Science Research Council, the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, singly or together, the Steins were honored for their path-breaking studies with the CLAH Robertson and Bolton prizes, the Conference on Latin American History Distinguished Service Award (1991), and the American Historical Association Award for Scholarly Distinction (1996).

scholarly journals How do traditional Māori values affect the sustainability of Māori tourism businesses?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Adam Ransfield
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Business Sustainability ◽  
Tourism Product ◽  
Kaupapa Māori ◽  
The Impact

<p>The Māori economic asset base has seen significant growth over the past 100 years. Research estimates the Māori economy to be valued at 50 billion (NZ Foreign Affairs & Trade, 2018). While this figure represents the Māori economy, Māori tourism makes a significant economic contribution to this asset base. When considering the different aspects of the New Zealand tourism product, a key aspect that sets New Zealand tourism apart from other destinations is the unique Māori culture. This cultural aspect is a key motivating factor for international tourists intending on visiting New Zealand.  Māori tourism businesses offer a range of tourism products and services that are embedded in, and informed by Māori values. When incorporated in business, many of these traditional Māori values align closely to the three pillars of business sustainability. Literature on Māori tourism, Māori values and business sustainability provide some insight into this phenomenon. However, little is known about how these three components interrelate. Ultimately very little is known about how traditional Māori values impact the business sustainability of Māori tourism businesses. The aim of this thesis is to investigate whether Māori tourism businesses incorporate traditional Māori values into their business and if so, how does the application of these values affect the sustainability of Māori tourism businesses.  Developed from an interpretive social science research paradigm aligned with Kaupapa Māori research, this thesis assesses the impacts of the incorporation of Māori values on the business sustainability of Māori tourism businesses. Semi-structured interviews were selected as an appropriate method of data collection. 12 respondents from eight Māori tourism businesses were interviewed and their responses along with an analysis of the wider literature enabled the researcher to answer the overarching research question – how are traditional Māori values affecting the business sustainability of Māori tourism businesses?   Key research findings include the following: the importance of hiring Māori, developing cultural capacity of staff and stakeholders, preventing cultural misappropriation, providing opportunities for local communities, the relationship of Māori with the land, the importance of sustainable relationships, the impact of climate change on Kaitiakitanga, and the importance of making a profit – but not at the detriment of culture and the environment. The findings identified that to have the ability to implement sustainable practices requires financial sustainability.  This thesis makes a contribution to the literature on Māori values, Māori tourism and business sustainability by providing a greater understanding of which Māori values are applied by Māori tourism businesses and how these values impact business sustainability. In particular, this thesis has done something that previous literature has not, that is, it has attributed the specific effects of individual Māori values against the pillars of business sustainability. This gives the indication of which values have the greatest impact on business sustainability. Finally, in accordance with Kaupapa Māori research, this thesis has provided a practical contribution to the Māori tourism industry. This contribution is in the form of recommendations made to enhance the business sustainability of Māori tourism businesses.</p>

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