scholarly journals Drivers and Barriers towards Social Farming: A Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (24) ◽  
pp. 14008
Author(s):  
Concetta Nazzaro ◽  
Anna Uliano ◽  
Giuseppe Marotta

Social farming (SF) spread across Europe in recent decades. It represents an expression of agriculture diversification and performs a social function expressed through vulnerable individuals’ social inclusion. As a result, SF is able to generate positive externalities and thus contribute to social wellbeing. Despite benefits, SF faces several issues related to its dissemination. Although in recent years scholars have been approaching this topic, much remains to be researched. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate, through a systematic review, drivers and barriers related to the spread of this phenomenon. Results showed that factors such as the lack of information on SF, farmers’ mental limitations and the lack of economic resources, as well as excessive bureaucratization, could hamper the spread of SF. On the other hand, ethical production, new income sources, sustainable rural development and new employment opportunities can encourage the dissemination of such practices. In order to overcome the barriers and emphasize the drivers pointed out by this study, the role of policymakers is essential, as they should promote information and training activities for farmers and consumers in order to increase awareness of SF social value and encourage a collective approach to SF practices.

2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (12) ◽  
pp. 1471-1518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna K. Forsman ◽  
Johanna Nordmyr

Research on the role of information and communication technology (ICT) use for active aging is limited. The aim of this systematic review is to investigate the link between Internet use and mental health among older adults. The review was conducted based on searches in 9 electronic databases (2002-2014). A meta-synthesis approach was applied, examining quantitative (18) and qualitative (14) studies. The findings from the synthesis of quantitative statistical data indicate an overall positive association between Internet use and mental health and its psychosocial covariates in later life. The psychosocial links between Internet use and mental health identified from the qualitative data were (a) enhanced interpersonal interaction at individual level, (b) increased access to resources within the community, and (c) empowered social inclusion at society level. The results highlight the multi-level psychosocial links between Internet use and mental health, which may be applied in initiatives targeting healthy aging in various settings.


2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vibha Kaushik ◽  
Christine A. Walsh ◽  
Diana Haefele

<p>As a consequence of international migration, a large number of workplaces are becoming linguistically diverse. This creates challenges for the workplace integration of immigrants and increases the risk of their social exclusion. A systematic review was conducted to determine the effects of linguistic diversity on social integration of immigrants within the workplace. Articles were identified by reviewing abstracts in electronic databases using key words related to linguistic diversity, social integration, immigrants and workplace. The search yielded ten peer reviewed articles, published in English, between 2000 and 2014. Information was extracted and synthesized from both quantitative and qualitative studies. The studies in this review were found to be concerned on three key areas of investigation: (1) social integration or social inclusion/exclusion, (2) social interaction and inter-group perception, and (3) accent discrimination. Smooth social and professional assimilation and the equality of opportunities for the immigrants were considered as the determining factors of their complete social integration in the workplace. Most studies in this review established a connection between social integration and local language skills; some also identified that factors such as racial discrimination and ethnicity based stereotyping contributed to social exclusion of immigrants, particularly when the studies involved visible minorities. The review enhances our understanding of challenges of complete social integration faced by immigrants and reinforces the need to invest in policies and program aimed at preventing marginalization of immigrants. However, due to limited number of studies identified by this review and the variation in findings, further research is necessary to investigate the role of linguistic diversity in the workplace integration of immigrants in immigrant receiving countries.  </p>


2019 ◽  
pp. 121-143
Author(s):  
Riccardo Resciniti ◽  
Federica De Vanna

The rise of e-commerce has brought considerable changes to the relationship between firms and consumers, especially within international business. Hence, understanding the use of such means for entering foreign markets has become critical for companies. However, the research on this issue is new and so it is important to evaluate what has been studied in the past. In this study, we conduct a systematic review of e-commerce and internationalisation studies to explicate how firms use e-commerce to enter new markets and to export. The studies are classified by theories and methods used in the literature. Moreover, we draw upon the internationalisation decision process (antecedents-modalities-consequences) to propose an integrative framework for understanding the role of e-commerce in internationalisation


2014 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Kopasker

Existing research has consistently shown that perceptions of the potential economic consequences of Scottish independence are vital to levels of support for constitutional change. This paper attempts to investigate the mechanism by which expectations of the economic consequences of independence are formed. A hypothesised causal micro-level mechanism is tested that relates constitutional preferences to the existing skill investments of the individual. Evidence is presented that larger skill investments are associated with a greater likelihood of perceiving economic threats from independence. Additionally, greater perceived threat results in lower support for independence. The impact of uncertainty on both positive and negative economic expectations is also examined. While uncertainty has little effect on negative expectations, it significantly reduces the likelihood of those with positive expectations supporting independence. Overall, it appears that a general economy-wide threat is most significant, and it is conjectured that this stems a lack of information on macroeconomic governance credentials.


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