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Remembrance of contact past: when intergroup contact meta-cognitions decrease outgroup tolerance
Get PDFPositive intergroup contact reliably reduces prejudice, yet little is known about the meta-cognitive processes involved in recalling prior contact experiences and their impact on outgroup tolerance. The present research examined whether contact interventions that rely on the recollection of past contact experiences can be susceptible to ease of retrieval effects, and the potential impact on intergroup attitudes. Specifically, we tested whether manipulating the number of contact memories participants were asked to recall (5 vs 1) impacts on outgroup tolerance, and whether this effect is contingent upon participants’ prior contact experiences. Results of two experiments (N = 220) revealed a moderated mediation effect of contact recollection on outgroup tolerance via perceived ease of retrieval, dependent upon levels of prior contact. Recalling more (5) versus fewer (1) contact memories was perceived as more difficult and this in turn decreased tolerance, specifically for individuals low in prior contact. Countering this negative indirect effect, however, recalling more contact experiences had a positive direct effect. Therefore, greater cognitive effort appears to act as a suppressor of the positive effect of contact recall. Our findings provide insight into meta-cognitive processes involved in recalling autobiographical contact memories, and the resulting impact on intergroup relations
Ethnic ties, organized opposition and voter defection in authoritarian elections
Get PDFExisting studies of ethnic voting mainly focus on democratic elections. In electoral autocracies, politically subordinate ethnicity can help citizens coordinate against the incumbent. However, we argue that collective action will be constrained when the group grows large, as it becomes costly for its members to form common behavioural norms and carry out effective sanctions through shared ethnic ties under authoritarian repression. Drawing on unique historical surveys in Taiwan, we study how Taiwanese ethnicity and local ethnic demography jointly induced voters’ defection against the hegemonic KMT regime. We find that the pro-defection or anti-incumbent effect of Taiwanese ethnicity fell as the share of Taiwanese citizens in a township increased. However, the relative size of the Taiwanese group no longer undermined pro-defection ethnic voting after the KMT lifted the ban on opposition parties. Our results illustrate that formal organizations play a critical role in sustaining the informational salience of ethnicity in the elections
How does having a good ear promote instructed second language pronunciation development? Roles of domain-general auditory processing in choral repetition training
Get PDFGrowing evidence suggests that auditory processing ability may a crucial determinant of language learning, including adult second language (L2) speech learning. The current study tested 47 Chinese
English-as-a-Foreign-Language students to examine the extent to which
two types of auditory processing, i.e., perceptual acuity and audiomotor integration, related to improvements in the comprehensibility
and nativelikeness of L2 speech following two weeks of choral repetition training (i.e., shadowing). All participants’ pronunciation proficiency became significantly more comprehensible over time, and the
degree of improvement in the nativelikeness of pronunciation was tied
to the ability to remember and reproduce sounds (i.e., audio-motor
integration). The findings suggest that robust auditory-motor integration may play a key role in the acquisition of advanced-level L2 pronunciation proficiency (i.e., comprehensible and nativelike speech)
Multilingual repertoires and identity in social media: Syrian refugees on Facebook
Get PDFAims and Objectives/Purpose/Research Questions
This study explores the linguistic resources used on Facebook (FB) by six resettled Syrian
refugees in the UK. It investigates the multilingual varieties and scripts employed, their
discursive functions and their role in the construction of identity/ies.
Design/Methodology/Approach
The study employs descriptive linguistic and discourse-centred online ethnographic approaches.
These are complemented with insights from interviews with the informants.
Data and Analysis
The data set consists of 2,036 FB posts. Multilingual posts were subjected to a two-stage
analysis: the first identified the affordances of new technologies for Arabic/English bilinguals –
describing the function of different languages and scripts. The second stage employed a thematic
analysis to frame a subsequent investigation of the stances taken by posters to construct identities
and boundaries between themselves and others.
Findings/Conclusions
The study reveals how FB supports the construction and negotiation of multidimensional, complex
personae, particularly in countering mainstream/media representations. It is a platform on which
posters are able to display bilingual creativity.
Originality
This article demonstrates the affordances of social media for newly settled Syrian refugees
engaging in transnational networks. It identifies, as yet, unreported bilingual creativity in
varieties of Arabic and English, particularly the use of a previously unidentified script, Englarabic. It ties this analysis to the study of identity performance and negotiation, and reveals
the contested status of those now living in a new nation.
Significance/Implications
The study reveals how Syrian refugees employ complex linguistic repertoires in CMC. We argue
that SM platforms afford a creative, ideological space for bilingual refugees as they negotiate
their multiple identities online following resettlement. The study identifies linguistic innovation,
particularly in the use of code-switching and Englarabic. It has implications for all those
researching multilingual CMC creativity and identity, as well as those involved in understanding,
planning for, and experiencing refugee (re)settlement
Towards a new political economy of Turkish Capitalism: three worlds
Get PDFPolitical economists investigating Turkey’s turbulent path of late currently work from within three different characterizations of Turkish capitalism: authoritarian neoliberalism, crony capitalism, and state capitalism. This article critically reviews these competing visions and identifies directions for future research. I argue that, fundamental differences aside, these approaches together illustrate the indispensability of a political economy perspective for comprehending Turkey’s current predicament, in particular its authoritarian turn and ongoing systemic crisis. Yet meeting the potential of this research program also requires resisting rigid macro conceptualizations and aiming instead for empirically rich analyses of nuts-and-bolts phenomena such as changes in the class map, sectoral regimes, and challenges of development, with a view to identifying feasible strategies of renewal post-AKP
The impact of price promotions on sales of unhealthy food and drink products in British retail stores
Get PDFWe study the health impact of food and beverage price promotion strategies – multi-buy offers and price
discounts, typically biased towards unhealthy product categories – in British consumer retail. We are the
first to employ econometric models from the marketing literature to analyse the impact of price promotions
with a focus on population health. Our dynamic, reduced form demand model incorporates endogenous
inventory (stock piling), consumption rates imputed from repeat purchases and allows for unobserved
household heterogeneity. We find that removing price discounts is more effective for reducing purchase
volume compared to removing multi-buy offers for 10 out of 12 food and drink groups, particularly those
products for which price reduction is more common than multibuy. We find that price promotions induce
consumption – and waste –through behavioural effects, associated with increased household inventory
(stockpiling)
Language, digital resources and the sustainable development goals
Get PDFIn September 2015 the United Nations (UN) adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) offering an internationally agreed blueprint for economic, environmental and social development. However, those people most in need and specifically targeted by the SDGs face significant barriers in accessing information and knowledge about the goals and about sustainability in a language or medium that they can understand. Drawing on previous research on the UN’s language policy and practice in general, and on analyses of UN reports and resolutions on multilingualism, information policy and practice in relation to the SDGs, this chapter examines the current status of multilingualism and information transfer within and outside the Organisation. It identifies significant linguistic and digital/media barriers, arguing that the UN and its member states must plan in linguistically more plural and inclusive ways by developing a tri-sectoral communication network strategy. This strategy should involve civil society and the public and private sectors to facilitate knowledge transfer and increase participation, thereby ensuring that “no one is left behind”
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