Transcultural categorization in contextualized domains

[Available at http://InformationR.net/ir/18-3/colis/paperC16.html]Introduction. This study takes classifications of musical instruments from three different cultural regions to show that the model of knowledge organization in use is not appropriated for cultural integration. Method. The set of categories used for the analysed instruments have been taken from previous work of M. Kartomi and M. López-Huertas. Analysis. The selected categories have been processed according to the concept theory developed by Dalhberg as a departure point. Categories from the three cultures are compared according to their meaning in order to see if there are matches or not and the degree of each of them. Results. From a total set of fifty-four categories, twenty-two are fully shared (40.7%), five partially shared (9.2%) and seventeen (31.4%) not shared by the three regions. There is a significant set of interchangeable or essential categories for the studied area. Citation order is problematic because it is not shared by any of the three cultures, resulting in different schemas although the shared categories are high. It is much affected by cultural values. Conclusions. It has been demonstrated with real data how culture affects categorization and citation order. The considerable number of shared categories suggests that it is possible to build integrated intercultural system

Quality of Life Research and Methodology: Developing a Measure for Alaska Native Peoples

Quality of life (QOL) is often complicated by global measures that ignore the uniqueness of culture and context. The research is inundated with Western influence and colonized approaches, and indigenous ways of knowing are often overlooked and devalued. Diverse methodologies are a first step in stakeholder collaboration; mixed-methods research and Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) are a means of capturing the lived realities and worldviews of indigenous populations. These approaches allow for Alaska Native (AN) voice to be present in all aspects of the research process. A culturally relevant and sound measure of QOL for AN peoples must incorporate the voice of the stakeholders and the indigenous knowledge and traditional values that contribute to the beautiful and invaluable cultures of AN peoples

The Rhetoric of Health and Medicine as a “Teaching Subject”: Lessons from the Medical Humanities and Simulation Pedagogy

The rhetoric of health and medicine has only begun to intervene in health pedagogy. In contrast, the medical humanities has spearheaded curriculum to address dehumanizing trends in medicine. This article argues that rhetorical scholars can align with medical humanities’ initiatives and uniquely contribute to health curriculum. Drawing on the author’s research on clinical simulation, the article discusses rhetorical methodologies, genre theory, and critical lenses as areas for pedagogical collaboration between rhetoricians and health practitioners

Gendered plants and plant categorization by gender: Classificatory and “storied” knowledge in trás-os-montes, portugal

Background: An anthropomorphizing process arises out of classification systems, whereby analogy is drawn between the social differences of gender and the morphological and biological characteristics used to designate or classify plants. On the other side, it is observed that men and women categorize plants differently on the basis of their practices and knowledge. This paper addresses two assumptions: the consistent cognitive mechanisms of attributing gender to plants in classifications and the local differentiation of knowledge and social variability of categorization of plants based on gender. Methods: The data presented results from research carried out in Portugal in two rural villages, using participant observation, structured ethnobotanical interviews and free pile sorting task (79 interlocutors; among them 11 local experts). A literature review provided some examples from studies conducted in other contexts, which have been used to analyze and discuss our findings. Results: Gender differentiations are present in plants naming and identification. Plants morphologically similar can take different designations or have the same name with gender variations depending on people’s perceptions of female or male features. The survey conducted in these Portuguese case studies shows also a gender variability of knowledge, although knowledge about plants is usually quite shared. Conclusions: The mechanism of plant differentiation using gender attributes seems to be transcultural. However, the plant classification by gender must be explained from a local standpoint and knowledge about plants should be understood as a “storied knowledge”.The data presented were collected in the project “Ethnobotany of the Northeastern Region of Portugal: local knowledge, plants and uses”, founded by FCT - Fundação Ciência e Tecnologia, Portugal (References: - POCTI/ANT/48629/2002; POCI/ANT/59395/2004). The Frazão-Moreira personal data from Wadane (Mauritania) were gathered in the micro-project “Arabic gum. From caravans to the local appropriation in Mauritanian oasis modernity”, included in “Portuguese castles abroad. Heritage and cultural cooperation between Portugal and Arab-Islamic countries”, founded by FCT (Reference: POCTI/ANT/48629/2002; Silva 2013).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Development and validation of the achieved capabilities questionnaire for community mental health (ACQ-CMH)

A presente Tese de Doutoramento, intitulada “Desenvolvimento e Validação do Questionário das Capacidades Alcançadas para a Saúde Mental Comunitária (QCA-SMC)” consiste numa investigação que procura contribuir para a avaliação e inovação dos programas comunitários de saúde mental, através de uma nova medida baseada no referencial teórico das capacidades e construída de forma colaborativa. Assim, foram definidos dois objetivos principais, nomeadamente: desenvolver uma medida inspirada na abordagem das capacidades, através de um processo colaborativo entre académicos e utilizadores de serviços; validar a medida construída, analisando as qualidades psicométricas e a estrutura fatorial. Para atingir estes objetivos, foram desenhados estudos e etapas sequenciais com amostras independentes. O primeiro estudo consiste na construção colaborativa do questionário e abrange diversas fases, como a realização de focus group para a recolha dos dados; a constituição de um steering committee composto por 3 utilizadores e 2 académico para a análise dos dados e a formulação dos itens; a análise da validade facial com um grupo de 15 utilizadores voluntários. O questionário obtido é composto por 104 itens organizados em 10 capacidades teóricas listadas pela autora Nussbaum. O segundo estudo avaliou a validade de conteúdo envolvendo um painel de 3 utilizadores, 3 profissionais de serviços e 2 académicos, reduzindo a medida para 98 itens. O processo participativo permitiu identificar indicadores relevantes e adequadamente formulados para a população em estudo. Desta forma, promoveu-se a validade ecológica do instrumento, a transformação dos papéis tradicionais de investigação e o empowerment dos/as participantes. No terceiro estudo, foi realizada uma análise fatorial exploratória que permitiu identificar uma estrutura de 6 componentes e 48 itens. Seguiram-se análises de confiabilidade (inclusive test-retest) e validade de constructo, observando a associação com escalas de qualidade de vida, recovery, empowerment e distress psicológico. Por fim, no quarto estudo, através da análise fatorial confirmatória, resultou uma solução de 43 itens e 5 dimensões. Realizaram-se análises de confiabilidade, sensibilidade e validade discriminante dos fatores, bem como de validade convergente e divergente. Estes dois últimos estudos revelaram bons resultados psicométricos do QCA-SMC, e possibilitaram uma adaptação das 10 capacidades teóricas, produzindo dimensões relevantes para o contexto que podem ser utilizadas como linhas orientadoras para avaliar em que medida os programas promovem as capacidades das/os suas/seus participantes, bem como para promover uma mudança transformativa do sistema de saúde mental. O relatório de Tese é composto por três partes principais. A primeira é a Introdução Geral, que realça a) a inovação do referencial teórico das capacidades, tendo em conta o background histórico e atual do sistema de saúde mental, bem como a interligação com a psicologia comunitária; b) a pertinência da abordagem colaborativa na investigação e avaliação na área da saúde mental. Na primeira seção também são apresentados o desenho e o contexto de investigação, os métodos e procedimentos, as medidas e análises aplicadas. A segunda parte consiste na Seção Empírica e apresenta três artigos que refletem os estudos realizados. Por fim, as Conclusões Gerais resumem e discutem os resultados e as suas implicações para uma mudança transformativa, bem como as reflexões sobre limitações e estudos futuros.This PhD Thesis, entitled “Development and Validation of the Achieved Capabilities Questionnaire for Community Mental Health (ACQ-CMH)” consists in a research work that seeks to contribute to the evaluation and innovation of community mental health programs, through a new measure based on the theoretical capabilities framework and developed through collaboration. Thus, two main aims were defined, namely: the development of a measure inspired by the capabilities approach, through a collaborative process between academics and consumers; the validation of the constructed measure, analyzing its psychometric qualities and factorial structure. To achieve these aims, sequential studies and steps with independent samples were designed. The first consists in the collaborative construction of the questionnaire and encompasses diverse phases, which focus group sessions for the data collection; the constitution of a steering committee composed of 3 consumers and 2 academics to analyze the data and to formulate the items; the analysis of the face validity with a group of 15 volunteer consumers. The obtained questionnaire is composed of 104 items organized by the 10 theoretical capabilities as listed by Nussbaum. The second study assessed the content validity involving a panel of 3 consumers, 3 service providers and 2 scholars, reducing the measure to 98 items. The participative process allowed to identify relevant and well formulated indicators for the population in study. Thus, the ecological validity of the measure, the transformation of traditional research roles, and participants’ empowerment were achieved. Then, the third study went through an exploratory factor analysis that allowed to identify a structure of 6 components and 48 items. Accordingly, reliability (including test-retest) and construct-related validity were examined, observing the association with scales of quality of life, recovery, empowerment and psychological distress. Finally, the fourth study revealed a 43 items and 5-factors solution through a confirmatory factor analysis. Accordingly, reliability, sensitivity and discriminant validity of the identified factors, as well convergent and divergent validity were tested. These last two studies showed good psychometric outputs of the ACQ-CMH, and allowed an adaptation of the 10 theoretical capabilities, producing context-specific and relevant dimensions, which may be used as guidelines for assessing the extent to which community mental health programs foster consumers capabilities, and for enhancing a transformative change towards the mental health system. The Thesis is organized by three main parts. The first one is the General Introduction, which highlights a) the innovation of the theoretical capabilities framework, taking into account the historical and current background of the mental health system, as well as the linkage with community psychology; b) the relevance of the collaborative approach for research and evaluation in the mental health field. The first section also presents the research design and context, methods, procedures, measures and analyses. The second part consists in the Empirical Section and reports three articles that reflect the studies carried out. Finally, the General Conclusions summarizes and discusses the main results and its implications for transformative change, as well as reflections about limitations and future studies

Identities and Interactions in a Transcultural Online Collaboration Project

The traditional theoretical frameworks and assumptions about intercultural technical communication are no longer adequate to describe and teach intercultural communication now frequently happening through digital networks. My dissertation proposes to use the theory of cosmopolitanism as it has been recently applied in several social science fields as a framework for pedagogical project design in order to teach intercultural communication skills applicable in the global age. The dissertation describes a transcultural online pedagogical project between Hungarian and U.S. students that I designed according to the principles of cosmopolitan theory. In this project, students were introduced to the basic tenets of cosmopolitanism and were asked to create blogs about themselves and their varied identities and languages. Students were also asked to comment on the blogs written by students in the other country. For this dissertation, I analyzed the blogs and comments created during the project to find out how students represented their identities and interacted with each other in this online learning environment. Students’ identity representations are discussed within the framework of Burke and Stets’ identity theory. The categories of student identity, sports identity, and national identity are examined in detail by applying discourse analysis with the purpose of identifying structures of expectations as delineated by Tannen. In addition, students’ rhetorical strategies in the comment section that follow the principles of cosmopolitan communication are also described. Based on the findings of this research, I conclude the dissertation by proposing a model for the cosmopolitan communication process in this globally networked learning space that is not only applicable to similar projects but can also inform the process of transforming the teaching of transcultural technical communication making it more applicable to the increasingly global and digital workplace

The Discourse of First-Year Writers at Border Sites: Discerning the Transcultural, Bilinguistic Strategies of English Language Learners in College

According to U.S. Department of Education statistics, 9.8% of students enrolled in American elementary and secondary public schools are officially classified as English Language Learners (ELL) (U.S. Department of Education, 2012). In border states and states with high numbers of immigrant populations, such as Texas, Florida, New York, California, New Mexico, and Arizona, the ELL percentage is much higher. In Texas, for example, 17% of public school students are classified as ELL (Texas Education Agency, 2012). According to U.S. Department of Education statistics, 0% of college students in public higher education institutions are English Language Learners. In truth, this is a non-statistic because the Department of Education does not track ELLs into post-secondary settings. The tacit implication is that once students matriculate into Institutions of Higher Education (IHE), the ELL distinction and characteristics no longer apply. However, those of us who work at border site IHEs know that the linguistic backgrounds and English proficiency of many Hispanic students would place them firmly in the ELL category if such categorization existed at the post-secondary level

The Discourse of First-Year Writers at Border Sites: Discerning the Transcultural, Bilinguistic Strategies of English Language Learners in College

According to U.S. Department of Education statistics, 9.8% of students enrolled in American elementary and secondary public schools are officially classified as English Language Learners (ELL) (U.S. Department of Education, 2012). In border states and states with high numbers of immigrant populations, such as Texas, Florida, New York, California, New Mexico, and Arizona, the ELL percentage is much higher. In Texas, for example, 17% of public school students are classified as ELL (Texas Education Agency, 2012). According to U.S. Department of Education statistics, 0% of college students in public higher education institutions are English Language Learners. In truth, this is a non-statistic because the Department of Education does not track ELLs into post-secondary settings. The tacit implication is that once students matriculate into Institutions of Higher Education (IHE), the ELL distinction and characteristics no longer apply. However, those of us who work at border site IHEs know that the linguistic backgrounds and English proficiency of many Hispanic students would place them firmly in the ELL category if such categorization existed at the post-secondary level

Games without Frontiers: A Framework for Analyzing Digital Game Cultures Comparatively

Currently in game studies there is a gap in frameworks for comparatively researching game cultures. This is a serious shortcoming as it ignores the transcultural and transnational aspects of games, play and their cultures. Based on Hepp’s (2009) transcultural framework, and Du Gay, Hall, Janes, Mackay and Negus’s (1997) circuit of culture, this article proposes a structure to comparatively analyze game cultures. This procedural method comprises several steps determining specific contexts of game culture and their categories for comparison. Each step is illustrated with a case example. Finally, we recommend placing game cultures on a transnational spectrum, which helps in suggesting that many digital games express both local and international characteristics

Cataloging practices through an ethnographic lens: workarounds, disagreements, and manifestations of culture

Cataloging models emphasize selective aspects of cataloging and serve the purposes of conceptual debates and theoretical developments. Many complexities, uncertainties, dilemmas, challenges, and “rare” scenarios that catalogers encounter in practice are not presented in the models. To study cataloging practices, the author presents cataloging scenarios observed from an ongoing fieldwork. Through weekly participatory observations and unstructured interviews of catalogers, the work presents cases among the diverse and complex cataloging practices, and surfaces the tensions and time involved in cataloging. This paper will focus on three themes: workarounds, disagreements, and manifestations of culture in cataloging practice. The first scenario describes a non-linear cataloging process and the different workarounds applied. The workarounds highlight the tacit knowledge of experienced catalogers. The second scenario shows catalogers’ different perspectives about the authorship of stone rubbings. Disagreements, negotiation, and compromises in cataloging process are often not documented or explained. This scenario examines cataloging contexts that we cannot observe from analyzing cataloging standards or records. The third scenario describes the proposal of a Library of Congress Demographic Group Term (LCDGT): Zhiqing, and how it was approved as a LCSH: Zhiqing generation instead. The term encompasses a combination of regional, temporal, and cultural aspects of a demographic group. In the proposal process, I identified cultural manifestations in cataloging process through observing “the missing pieces” and local adaptations. This study contributes to the knowledge organization literature by presenting cataloging scenarios that require prolonged engagement to study