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Sociology
Sociology Arkive
Year Alpha and Beta
2015-16 and 2016-17
Year Gamma Arkive
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Society has neither structure nor shape nor there
are dignitaries such as President or Chair or Prime Minister or
Chancellor; it is, therefore, as open, as shapeless but as
real as the Universe itself, which contains everything and enables
their very existence within the bounds of its own laws that are
invisibly at work without fail. The Universe can simply be seen as
the expression of liberty and so can society be seen as mirroring
this. From that liberty of the Universe and Society we seek the laws
that set the perimeter of that expression of liberty which concerns
humanity so that we find the shape, size and contents of equality
and then go about seeking to achieve that equality for without
equality liberty does and cannot exist. And because we have not
achieved equality we find all societies in the world are doing
nothing but bleeding for the wounded liberty and thus, gasping
equality with it because it cannot be. One cannot exist without the
other: if one is hurt both bleed. In ordinary everyday terms:
liberty and equality can be said as being: soul-mates. Or the other
way to look at liberty and equality is to say: no one can say where neurology
begins and ends and cardiology ends or begins for both reach and cover the
entire physiology: Liberty and Equality are like that so that it is impossible
to separate them; neither can live alone nor separately. They are one as two or
two as one. The purpose of sociology is to bring them both to life in one as one
as two or two as one. The purpose
of sociology is to bring them both to life: liberty and equality so
that both exist equally, one being the other or being one together
and in them humanity finds its home at homeostasis, which is now,
thus, made of natural justice, where purpose and meaning are planted
and harvested, through human endeavours of creativity, imagination,
ingenuity and work. The Humanion.
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At the
British
Sociological
Association’s
Work
Employment
and Society
Conference
2018 in
Belfast:
September
12-14:
Legislation
on
Increasing
Flexible
Working Has
Failed: New
Research
Finds
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|| September 13: 2018 || ά. Research presented at the British
Sociological Association
Conference in Belfast has found
that there has been no
significant overall increase in
the number of employees working
flexibly since the legislation
came into effect in 2014.
Researcher Ms Joanna Wilson from
the University of Manchester
analysed survey data from a
sample of up to 24,736 UK
employees. She found that when
comparing the same people in
2010 and 2015, there was little
change in the uptake of flexible
working; those working flexible
start and finish times, fewer
hours or from home.
In 2010, 44.1% of all employees worked flexibly and by 2015 the
figure was 44.3%. While there
were small changes in some
areas, such as, decreases in the
use of term- time working and
job shares and increases in the
use of flexi-time and home
working, with the exception of
the increase in home working,
these changes were not
statistically significant. Ms
Wilson said that the
Conservative-Liberal Democrats
coalition had brought in a
statutory right for staff to
request flexible working in June
2014.
The British Sociological
Association’s Work, Employment
and Society Conference takes place on September 12-14 at the Europa Hotel, Belfast.
“The extension of the right to request flexible working to all
employees, regardless of caring
responsibilities, was aimed at
increasing its use in the hope
that this would lead to the
creation of better paid and
better quality flexible jobs,
thus, helping close the gender
pay gap.” she said.
“On the whole, the use of flexible working in the UK appears to
have changed very little from
2010 to 2015 and there is no
early evidence of an increase
since the extension of the right
to request legislation in 2014.”
She said that the findings,
might, reflect a limitation of
the legislation, that employees
must be employed for at least
six months before having the
right to request and that not
all employees, might, in fact be
aware of their right to request
flexible working.
"Many employers, may, remain sceptical about the benefits of
flexible working and under the
legislation are able to refuse
requests providing they have a
valid business reason, such as,
a burden of additional costs, an
inability to reorganise work
amongst existing staff or a
detrimental effect on ability to
meet customer demand.
Barriers, such as, negative line manager attitudes and a cultural
presumption against flexible
working in organisations, may,
also, exist to dissuade
employees from submitting a
flexible working application in
the first place and those
employees, who have applications
approved, may, experience a
stigma associated with working
flexibly, which has been found
to lead to limited career
progression."
The research, also, found that: i: Part-time flexible work
continues to be predominantly
used by women, with little sign
of change; ii: Flexi-time was
more likely among employees in
the largest firms, those working
in a management role, those in
the public sector and those
educated to degree level and
iii: Homeworking was less likely
in the public sector compared to
the private sector. It was,
also, up to three times more
likely to be used by those
educated to degree level.
Ms Wilson used data from the Understanding Society survey, which is
a nationally-representative
study of the UK population
containing information on
various aspects of the
respondents’ lives, including,
working conditions. The survey
is a rolling panel study,
meaning that the same households
participate in the survey each
year.
The above focuses on the more formal use of flexible working, that
which leads to changes in the
employment contract as opposed
to informal flexible working,
where an employee, may, alter
their working time or place on
an ad hoc basis to accommodate
medical appointments for
example.:::ω.
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The Sociology of Why More Girls are Not Studying Mathematics and
Physics: It is in the Culture of Misogyny in All Spheres of Society
That Keeps on Beating and Tearing Down at the Confidence of Women
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|| August 27: 2018: Rachel Cassidy: Sarah Cattan and Claire
Crawford: IFS Writing || ά. The gender composition of those staying
in education beyond school leaving age has been one of the most
dramatic changes in education over the last 50 years: from a
situation of significant under-representation, girls took 22% more A
levels than boys this year and are over a third more likely to go to
university. Indeed, these gaps are now so large that the
under-representation of men in higher education, especially, those
from poorer white families, has become a topic of significant policy
interest in recent years.
Yet, against this backdrop of female success, there remain areas in
which women are significantly under-represented. The A level results
released last week confirmed that girls were still less likely to
take science, technology, engineering and maths A levels than boys:
despite receiving 55% of A levels overall this year, girls received
just 43% of A levels awarded in STEM subjects. This is not the case
for all STEM subjects: girls are just as likely as boys to take
chemistry and more likely to take biology. The most striking gaps
are in physics and maths: girls accounted for 39% of this year’s
maths A levels, 28% of further maths A levels and just 22% of all
physics A levels.
This matters because these A levels are important routes into
studying STEM subjects at university and into STEM careers: an
under-representation of women in maths and physics at A level leads
to an under-representation of women in careers, that use these
subjects. This is important for society, for example, some research
suggests that workplace diversity can aid innovation. These choices,
also, matter for the individuals themselves: having a maths A level
appears to bring financial rewards in the labour market and both
subjects can open doors to potentially lucrative university degrees.
For example, recent IFS research suggests that, compared to the
average female graduate five years after graduation, women with a
maths degree earn 13.4% more, those with an engineering degree earn
09.7% more and those with an economics degree, another subject in
which girls are significantly under-represented and for which maths
is often a gateway subject, earn 19.5% more.
The fact that fewer girls study maths and physics at A level is not
because they are less well prepared: attainment in maths and physics
GCSE is very similar for girls and boys. Moreover, the gender gap in
the likelihood of taking maths and physics A level is very similar,
if, we focus only on students, who achieved top grades at GCSE and
so are likely to be the best prepared for A level study. For
example, among pupils, who achieved grade A or A*, equivalent to
grades 07-09 under the new system, in GCSE maths in 2010, 37% of
girls compared to 51% of boys took maths A level. Among those, who
achieved grade A or A* in GCSE physics, just 13% of girls compared
to 39% of boys took physics A level.
So, why do so few girls choose to study maths and physics? As part
of a pilot study for a new project investigating why girls are
under-represented in maths and physics, funded by the STEM Skills
Fund, we surveyed just under 300 girls across 40 schools, who were
predicted to achieve at least grade 07, at least grade A, in either
maths, physics or combined science at GCSE. We, also, surveyed their
teachers. The aim was to understand what drives girls’ A level
choices, including, why they, may or may not, opt for maths or
physics. These findings were summarised in a recent IFS report.
The gender gap in maths and physics does not seem to arise because
girls don’t find maths and physics interesting or because they don’t
understand or value the prospects offered by a STEM career. So, what
else is going on? Confidence seems to be a big part of the issue,
particularly, when it comes to physics. We found that, despite their
high predicted grades, about half of the girls in our sample agreed
or strongly agreed with the statements ‘I, often, worry that it will
be difficult for me in physics classes’ or ‘I worry I will get poor
grades in physics’.
The figures were about half that for maths. Teachers, also, cited a
lack of confidence as the biggest factor affecting the gender gap in
pursuing STEM subjects to A level: 80% agreed or strongly agreed
that ‘these girls are just as able but not as confident in their
ability to learn STEM subjects as boys’. This chimes with research
by the OECD and others, suggesting that a lack of confidence amongst
girls, might be, an important determinant of gender differences in
attainment in STEM subjects or the decision to pursue STEM careers.
Perhaps more challenging from a policy perspective is the fact that
being one of the only girls in a physics class at school or
university or indeed in a STEM job, seems to be a major factor
putting off some girls. Two thirds of the girls we surveyed viewed
STEM jobs as male dominated and a similar proportion of teachers
agreed or strongly agreed that ‘these girls don’t want to feel
discouraged from pursuing STEM subjects at A level because many of
their female peers do not’. The fact that girls attending single-sex
schools are more likely to study these subjects than girls in
mixed-sex schools supports this idea.
This raises a tricky issue: if, girls’ hesitations about studying
and working in male-dominated environments are an important
determinant of their decision not to study maths or physics at A
level, then interventions, that attempt to encourage one or two
girls in a school to change their behaviour, may not, be enough.
What, may be, required are interventions, which send a strong signal
to girls that not just they but, also, a significant number of their
peers, are being encouraged to pursue physics and maths. But even
this alone, may not, be enough: after all, girls attending single
sex schools are still less likely to take maths and physics than
boys. So, what is likely to work? That is exactly what we hope to
explore in future research.
: In this new observation and report, Rachel Cassidy, Post-doctoral
Fellow, Sarah Cattan, Associate Director and Claire Crawford,
Research Fellow, look in detail at the results of a study, conducted
in partnership with the STEM Skills Fund, which seeks to understand
the barriers that stop girls from taking maths and physics at
A-level. The observation ‘Why don’t more girls study maths and
physics?’ and report 'How can we increase girls’ uptake of maths and
physics A-level?' were published online yesterday:
Caption: These are some of the
economist-minds working at The New
Economics Foundation: Here, Women
outnumber men, for a change but the
rest of the spectrum of the
economic, business, finance and
trade fileds women are still
struggling as a minority at the
lower down ranks!
:::ω.
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The Sociology of Fear: How People View Crime Depends on the Politics
of When They Were Growing Up |
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|| August 11: 2018:
University of Southampton
News || ά.
A new study, published in the
British Journal of
Criminology, by Oxford
University Press and
supported by University of
Southampton research,
indicates that the different
political periods in which
people ‘came of age’ has an
important influence on their
perception of crime, even,
decades later. For over
forty years, researchers
have sought to understand
the causes and implications
of people’s fear of crime.
But to date, no studies have
been able to take into
account whether the
political period in which a
cohort grew up had a
meaningful effect on their
emotional responses to
crime.
The political context the
respondents grew up in
during the ages of 15 to 25
is the time, when people
form key opinions and are
most sensitive to social
events. Researchers analysed
data on fear of crime and
anti-social behaviour from
the British Crime Survey in
England and Wales spanning
30 years. In doing so, they
were able to estimate the
net effects of individual
aging, the historical period
in which the survey was
conducted and the political
generations the respondents
belonged to. This study
comes from a project,
examining the long-term
effects of Thatcherism on
crime at the University of
Sheffield, the University of
Southampton and Sciences Po.
The researchers found a
strong relationship between
a respondent’s current crime
fears and their political
generation. For example,
those, who grew up under the
leadership of Margaret
Thatcher, 1979-1990 or John
Major, 1990-1997, expressed
the greatest level of worry
about domestic burglary, the
same generation, that
witnessed a dramatic rise in
property crime during the
1980s.
Meanwhile, the
Wilson:Callaghan generation
expressed the highest levels
of worry about robbery and
mugging, which was a key
concern for politicians,
policy makers and
journalists at the time.
Responses to anti-social
behaviours tell a similar
story. People, who grew up
during the Blair and Brown
governments, from the late
1990s to 2010, reported the
highest level of concern
about local problems, such
as, vandalism, teenagers
loitering and noisy
neighbours; such problems
were heavily emphasised and
legislated against during
this political period.
Professor Will Jennings,
from the University of
Southampton, said, “Our
study finds that people's
fear of crime is a function
of their formative years.
Generations experience crime
and criminal justice policy
agendas in different ways,
often, shaped by the
prevailing political and
public debate around crime
at the time.
The generation, that grew up
in the 80s and 90s under the
Thatcher and Major
governments, also, a time of
rapid rises in property
crime, tend to be most
concerned about burglary.
The New Labour generation,
that grew up under Blair and
Brown, on the other hand, is
more likely than other
generations to be concerned
about anti-social
behaviour.”
Overall, this study shows
that citizens have a greater
propensity to fear the
crimes, that were the focus
of political debate during
their youth and this effect
persists into adulthood. The
results show that crime
fears can linger and that
the processes by which
people form their political
values can cast a long-term
influence on their attitude
about crime.
“The pronouncements leading
politicians make about crime
can have a lasting impact on
the crime fears of young
adults. Political and
popular debates about crime,
that are prevalent in one’s
youth appear to impact the
fears those individuals
report through adulthood and
into middle age.” said one
of the paper’s authors, Mr
Stephen Farrall.
“In this respect, our
narratives of crime and
disorder tell us something
important about the enduring
influence of our political
history and the stories we
hear about crime.”
The Paper:
Political Socialisation,
Worry about Crime and paper
Anti-social Behaviour: An
Analysis of Age, Period and
Cohort Effects’ is available
online:::ω.
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|| April 06: 2018 || ά. The
Humanion was first published on
September 24, 2015 and has been
run, since that day, on a
complete voluntary basis without
any 'formal' or 'constituted'
manner or form and, it was run
on as a Human Enterprise, which
is an idea of Humanics, in
which, ownership is replaced by
belongingship and, thus, in a
Humanical Society, no one owns
anything but everyone belongs to
the whole as the whole belongs
to everyone lawfully and equally
and, it neither believes in nor
makes money but human utilities,
needs, aspirations, creativity,
imagination and dreams are
served without money, where
everyone works and creates for
all others as all others create
and work for all others, thus,
bringing in meaning and purpose
to life along with it come
natural justice, equality and
liberty, that establish a true
civilisation within the Rule of
Law. And in one word, this
system of human affairs
management is called, Humanics
and a society that runs itself
in humanics is called a
humanical society. Today, we
have begun the process of
'constituting' this Human
Enterprise, which does not exist
in the current system, but the
next closest thing to it, that
exists in the UK Law is Social
Enterprise. Therefore, today,
Friday, April 06, 2018, we are
beginning Regine Humanics
Foundation, that is the
'Agency', that will lead, run,
manage and develop everything,
that The Humanion has been
trying to do.
Regine
Humanics Foundation is
established by the Thinker,
Author, Poet, Novelist,
Playwright, Editor of The
Humanion, Festival Director of
London Poetry Festival and a
Humanicsxian: hu: maa: neek:
tian: One, that believes in,
lives and exists by Humanics, Mr
Munayem Mayenin, of London,
England, United Kingdom. Mr
Mayenin says, ''Humanics is a
vision; people, may, call it,
utopia, we, call it our
Humanicsovicsopia; Humanics.
Humanics is our philosophy, our
faith, our conviction, our
resolution, our way of existing,
thinking, being and doing: to
seek and try to do so in the
determination that all we must
do and be is to exist to advance
the human condition.
People, readers and agencies and
organisations, from all across
England, Scotland, Northern
Ireland, Wales and the whole of
the United Kingdom and
Australasia, Africa, Asia,
Europe, North and South America,
from all walks and strata of
life, have supported our
endeavours, supported The
Humanion and The Humanion Team,
who volunteered their time to
run things, since the beginning
of The Humanion and long before
that, when other things, that
are now part of The Foundation,
were developing. Nothing has
changed in terms of the nature
and value of what we have been
seeking to do.''
''But the founding of The
Foundation brings it all in a
solid foundation so that we can
keep on building this 'vision'
so that it keeps on going
regardless of who come to take
the vision-mission of The
Foundation forward. The
Foundation runs along with time
and along with the flowing
humanity. This is the dream,
this is the vision, this the
hope in founding this
Foundation. And, in this, we
hope and invite all our readers,
supporters, well wishers and all
agencies and organisations to
support our endeavours to build
something, a Human Enterprise,
which we are in the process of
registering as a Social
Enterprise, as a Community
Interest Company, working for
the common good of the one and
common humanity. No one makes or
takes profit out of The
Foundation, which now runs The
Humanion and everything else,
that is part of it. The
Foundation, once registered,
will have an Asset Lock, which
means that in any event, should
The Foundation dissolve itself,
all its existing assets shall go
to a similar Social Enterprise.
Therefore, we invite everyone to
support The Foundation, support
The Humanion in whatever way
they can. And, there are endless
number of ways people and
organisations can support The
Foundation and The Humanion.''
::: ω.
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For Stories Published in
Sociology in || April || May || June ||
Sociology Arkive Q-Beta 2018
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Humanical Perspective of Sociology
Imagine, a tiny village in the wide expanse of a valley of a
mountain that overlooks two countries on its either side beneath
almost an infinite sky hanging down with a display of wonderful
skyscapes: open fields and valleys, rivers and lakes, hills and
groves marking the map with nature's bounties. Through that tiny
village go parallel a high way and a railway line linking the
wider world to the village, stopping at the tiny railway station
with white sign boards marking the station that is lamped with
old Victorian lanterns. There is the station office and there is
a tiny cafeteria served by a very old man of almost 90. There is
a primary school, secondary school, which feed into colleges and
universities that are in the wider world, two small markets,
connected to the wider market and its chain, a mosque, a temple,
a church, a pagoda, a synagogue, linked and connected to the
wider spheres of faiths. There are playing fields, farmlands
where people are living and going about their business of life.
All this is connected to this: social interactions of people,
among and between them through established rules and customs and
through and by organisations, institutions and structures that
they have developed to support them in living life which is to
be able to imagine, create and live. To be useful to others as
well as oneself and one's family and community. So the Station
Master sells tickets, the Station Porter goes up and lights up
those old Victorian Lanterns at dusk and puts them off when the
trains stop for the day, the old man who did not have to work
still gets up at three o'clock in the morning to open his cafe
which his family asks him to stop doing but he does so that the
people for the early dawn train would find warmth and can have a
drink, the Doctor goes about seeing her patients, the chemist
goes about offering medications to people, the religious persons
go about doing their parts in the 'temples' mentioned, the
primary and secondary school teachers go about teaching, the
farmers and fishermen go about fishing, the cafes and
restaurants go about serving people, the social, political and
cultural spheres work on. The study of all this is to understand
how this network of people and organisations and the culture
that they help create work, develop and run on and this study is
the domain of sociology which means it cannot be done properly
unless it has an eye in the depth of understanding the
political, economical and jurisprudential philosophy and
the management systems that they have created that go towards
creating and enabling that culture to which Sociology tries to
offer its lights. On a humanical perspective sociology is a tool
to understand the inner striving of humanity to create peace and
stability through which life is supported, enabled and nurtured
which means to achieve natural justice, liberty and equality for
only which establishes the due process of law in which the rule
of law is the 'nature' of society and the people who live in it
being purposeful and useful to wider life while being able to
support and develop their own, being at liberty, being at
equality and protected by the same laws that protect everyone
else equally and at all times.
Munayem Mayenin: Editor: Posted on: November 14, 2015 |
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