1,721,169 research outputs found
Il fumetto tra interprofessionalità e lavoro emozionale dei professionisti sanitari
No full textWithin the framework of advancing the competencies of healthcare professionals via educational initiatives that incorporate innovative methodologies, this paper presents an exploration of utilizing comic strips in a professional master’s program as a conduit for introspection on interprofessional dynamics and the enhancement of certain communicative competencies. This study engaged fourteen nurses, whose ages ranged from 35 to 55 years and who were employed in hospital environments in Northern Italy, through their participation in the creation of comic strips and a concluding interview. The research was conducted over the period from November 2022 to May 2023. The examination of the findings, which
included graphic representations and interview data, uncovered a daily professional existence marked by discord and paradoxes, yet unified under a shared professional designation
The Social Genres of Comics. Impact and Innovation of Comics in Social Sciences
Full text linkThis book analyzes social research and genres of comics from cross-cultural perspectives. It disentangles the impact of comics in understanding social, cultural and political issues and considers the challenges they may raise from an ethical point of view. In nine case studies focused on topics such as migration, science and technology innovation, urban sociology and criminology, the book aims to answer the following questions: How can the comic medium help understand research’s narratives? To what extent can comics can be incorporated within traditional social research steps? What body of knowledge is being created by research-based comics? How can they represent social class without eliminating it or reproducing its stereotypes and how they deconstruct, without removing the “color line” the cultural difference or the naturalization of gender corporality? What are the barriers (theoretical and methodological) that researchers might encounter using comics to communicate sensitive topics? What are the main ethical considerations researchers must consider? While, at first glance, comics-based research seems to be tied mostly to Sociology, Anthropology and Geography, it also is relevant to a host of other disciplines including cultural studies, feminist studies, environmental studies, disability studies, science and technology studies, critical race studies, queer studies and animal studies. This book will also facilitate international and interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers with an interest in exploring the utility and limitations of the graphic medium
Frame functions in finite-dimensional quantum mechanics and its Hamiltonian formulation on complex projective spaces
No full textThis work concerns some issues about the interplay of standard and geometric (Hamiltonian) approaches to finite-dimensional quantum mechanics, formulated in the projective space. Our analysis relies upon the notion and the properties of so-called frame functions, introduced by Gleason to prove his celebrated theorem. In particular, the problem of associating quantum states with positive Liouville densities is tackled from an axiomatic point of view, proving a theorem classifying all possible correspondences. A similar result is established for classical-like observables (i.e. real scalar functions on the projective space) representing quantum ones. These correspondences turn out to be encoded in a one-parameter class and, in both cases, the classical-like objects representing quantum ones result to be frame functions. The requirements of U(n) covariance and (convex) linearity play a central role in the proof of those theorems. A new characterization of classical-like observables describing quantum observables is presented, together with a geometric description of the C*-algebra structure of the set of quantum observables in terms of classical-like ones
The notion of observable and the moment problem for ∗ -algebras and their GNS representations
No full textWe address some usually overlooked issues concerning the use of ∗ -algebras in quantum theory and their physical interpretation. If A is a ∗ -algebra describing a quantum system and ω: A→ C a state, we focus, in particular, on the interpretation of ω(a) as expectation value for an algebraic observable a= a∗∈ A, studying the problem of finding a probability measure reproducing the moments {ω(an)}n∈N. This problem enjoys a close relation with the selfadjointness of the (in general only symmetric) operator πω(a) in the GNS representation of ω and thus it has important consequences for the interpretation of a as an observable. We provide physical examples (also from QFT) where the moment problem for {ω(an)}n∈N does not admit a unique solution. To reduce this ambiguity, we consider the moment problem for the sequences {ωb(an)}n∈N, being b∈ A and ωb(·) : = ω(b∗· b). Letting μωb(a) be a solution of the moment problem for the sequence {ωb(an)}n∈N, we introduce a consistency relation on the family {μωb(a)}b∈A. We prove a 1-1 correspondence between consistent families {μωb(a)}b∈A and positive operator-valued measures (POVM) associated with the symmetric operator πω(a). In particular, there exists a unique consistent family of {μωb(a)}b∈A if and only if πω(a) is maximally symmetric. This result suggests that a better physical understanding of the notion of observable for general ∗ -algebras should be based on POVMs rather than projection-valued measure
Soil Water Availability and the Renewal of Oak Forest Stands in a Coastal Mediterranean Area: an Experimental Study
No full textthis study was aimed to assess the causes of the structural decline in the renewal rate of a
pristine oak forest close to Rome (central Italy) by analyzing long-term measurements of the water budget in open and fenced areas. Despite dry climate conditions in the area, long-term soil moisture measurements at 100 cm soil depth indicated that an enough large amount of water is available to oaks during the whole year. Moreover, while trees did not suffer from water deficit during summer, they may experience root asphyxia during rainy years. The analysis of the water budget clarified that, even during exceptionally-dry years, oak renewal was not limited by dry climate conditions. Instead, overgrazing due to the high demographic pressure determined by wild boars which eat almost exclusively oak acorns and deer which eat the leafs of young plants was one of the most important factors affecting oak renewal
Conclusion
No full textThe social genres of comics represent a novel epistemological and meth-odological configuration within the field of social sciences, one that goesbeyond a mere medial shift and instead necessitates a redefinition of theboundaries of scientific knowledge, its form, its publics, and its purposes.The convergence between visual narrative and scientific representation,between panel and theory, between drawing and method, opens anunprecedented space of hybridity and experimentation that challengesboth canonical research paradigms and entrenched hierarchies betweenexpert knowledge and lived experience (Della Puppa & Moretti, 2024;Grüning & Scavarda, 2025). Addressing the impact and innovation ofcomics within social sciences does not simply mean highlighting the medi-um’s potential for dissemination or its role in making complex conceptsmore accessible. Rather, its impact and innovation lie in the comic’s capac-ity to intervene in knowledge production processes, to redefine the coordinates of scientific subjectivity, and to expand the epistemic scope of social inquiry. Comics, thus, are not merely a communication medium, but a cognitive and political device that acts upon both the object and the subject of research (Della Puppa & Moretti, 2024; Moretti, 2023). What renders comics socially and scientifically innovative is their inherently relational, dialogical, and performative nature
Social Research and Genres in Comics: An Introduction
No full textIn recent decades, comics have become a vibrant object of academic
inquiry, crossing disciplinary boundaries and gaining legitimacy within
fields such as cultural studies, media theory, education, and health human-
ities (Chute, 2011; Griffin, 2019). Despite this, much of the scholarly
work has tended to focus on the formal features of comics—visual gram-
mar, multimodal narration, and genre typologies—or on the analysis of
iconic figures and mainstream productions (Groensteen, 2008; Eisner,
1996; McCloud, 1994). This edited collection instead aims to offer a dis-
tinct and timely perspective by examining comics through the lens of
social genres, a conceptual framework that foregrounds the entanglements
between comics and the socio-political realities they narrate, reflect, and
contest
Understanding comics-based ethnographies and ethno-graphic novels in qualitative research: An introduction
Full text linkIn recent years, there has been a growing debate in the social sciences about the use of «alternative scripts» such as comics and graphic novels. This introduction to the special issue considers the use of comics in ethnographic research and the contributions and challenges posed by this method. It discusses the evolution of comicsbased research methods and situates them within the broader context of the social sciences, reflecting on how comics can be used at different stages of the research process, including data collection, analysis and dissemination. The introduction also reflects on the advantages and limitations of comics compared to other established visual methodologies, focusing on the practical and ethical challenges of comics in ethnography and highlighting areas where comics offer unique opportunities
Illustrative Storytelling and Social Sciences: Reconsidering Boundaries, Extensions, and Meanings of Qualitative ResearchBoundaries, Extensions, and Meanings of Qualitative Research
No full textComics are increasingly recognized as a flexible and multimodal medium capable of eliciting, constructing, analyzing, and disseminating qualitative data. Far from being merely illustrative or humorous, comics offer complex visual-narrative forms that can reflect and critique social realities, stimulate reflexivity, and engage diverse audiences. This approach highlights the scientific, ethical, and epistemological implications of using comics in research, particularly in relation to representation, positionality, and the visual construction of meaning. Comics can serve as tools for pedagogy, public sociology, and participatory inquiry, especially in areas such as health, gender, and digital cultures. From autoethnography and zine-making to the co-production of illness narratives, comics-based research encourages an inclusive, affective, and visually literate rethinking of qualitative inquiry. By situating comics within broader debates on methodological innovation, this perspective invites scholars to embrace the transformative potential of graphic storytelling in the social sciences
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