‘Facebook is the Devil’: Exploring Officer Perceptions of Cyber-based Harms Facing Youth in Rural and Remote Communities

Policing research, still largely concentrated on urban contexts, is increasingly recognizing the unique features of police work in rural regions. Beyond notable differences such as lower overall levels crime and fewer (though more sporadically distributed) people, little is also known regarding rural police understandings and responses to online mediated harms, including relatively serious forms of cyberbullying, non-consensual ‘sexting’, and other forms of crime mediated online. Interviews with police officers (N = 42) here focus on their views regarding police work in response to cyber-mediated harm facing youth in rural and remote Atlantic Canada. Responses center on how rural regions play a role in mediating the nature of online conflict and police respond to such conflict. Officers highlight several related challenges, such as lack of parental support, and how some youth ‘define deviancy down’, referring to a lack of recognition regarding the harm caused by cyberbullying and non-consensual sexting (including issues related to the distribution of child pornography). Implications are discussed for research on rural policing where evidence-based practices remain lacking

Discord and Ambiguity Within Youth Crime and Justice Debates

This dissertation traces debates about youth crime and justice in Canada. On a substantive level, I ask how the social problem of youth crime and justice is constructed, focusing specifically on debates over the culpability of young offenders. I also examine debates over the degree and severity of youth crime and connect the divergent positions on this question to how young offenders are conceptualized. Related to these debates, I examine the search for solutions to youth crime. I argue that positions regarding how to address youth crime are rendered ambiguous given the creation of a hybridized youth justice context which combines various competing goals. On a theoretical level, I explore the relationship between how formulations of "deviant identities" (in this case "young offenders") are related to other areas of advocacy over a social problem. I explore the dynamics of a social problem debate which persists without resolution over an extended period of time. I also address the ways in which social context impacts upon claims made over a social problem.ThesisDoctor of Philosophy (PhD

Agnostic Interactionism and Sensitizing Concepts in the 21st Century: Developing Shaffirian Theory-Work in Ethnographic Research

In this paper, we reflect upon our experiences taking a graduate qualitative methodology course with Dr. William (Billy) Shaffir. We highlight Billy’s approach to ethnographic research and his declaration to “just do it.” Rather than just absorbing theoretical knowledge from the literature, Billy taught us to be wary of the dangers of a prior theorization and how it can distort rather than shed light on empirical investigations. Despite his belief that sociological theory is far too often abstract and removed from real-world contexts, he nevertheless provided us with a latent theoretical commitment to concept formation, modification, and testing in the field that guides our research to this day. We explore Shaffir’s agnostic and at times ironic approach to theory and demonstrate how his specific type of theory-work, derived from Everett Hughes’ and Howard Becker’s interactionist perspective on “people doing things together,” influenced how many of his students study occupations and organizations via sensitizing concepts. Billy managed to get us to think differently about how we theorize in the field and how to cultivate a playful and healthy skeptical attitude towards its application. This type of agnostic-interactionism does not dismiss theory outright, but is always vigilant and mindful of how easy it is for practitioners of theory to slip into obfuscation and reification. We conclude with a Shaffir inspired theory-work that argues for the continuing significance of an agnostic stance towards ethnographic and qualitative inquiry; one that continues to sensitize the researcher to generic social processes through which agency-structure is mediated and accomplished.  

Fandom and Coercive Empowerment: The commissioned production of Chinese online literature

This article examines how the relationship between consumers and producers of cultural products is shaped by the proprietary nature of digital platforms. Drawing on 4 years of online observation and analysis, we examine the relationship between the producers of online Chinese fiction, amateur writers, and their consumers, that is, the fan communities of readers who respond to their work. Enabled by Chinese literary websites, readers act like sponsors who provide emotional and financial incentives for writers to produce online fictions by commenting, voting, and sending money. Readers become actively involved not just because of the content of the stories but because they form strong commitments to stories and their writers, and gain reciprocity and a sense of self-determination during the interactional process. We argue that although writers are freer from state control online, they are still beholden to the whims of their fans because of what we call the commissioned production of fictions. We contribute to fan community studies by analyzing how commercialized website settings structure the strategies available to participants, how these settings affect the content of the cultural products, and how the Chinese historical and cultural contexts impact the dynamics of the online community.postprin

Costruzionismo sociale e problemi sociali: origini, modelli, orizzonti

This overview of social constructionism begins with a consideration of the influential work of Malcolm Spector and John I. Kitsuse, whose book, Constructing Social Problems, inspired a wide variety of studies addressing how social problems are “constructed.” Ensuing epistemological and methodological controversies are discussed, and three key scholarly works are reviewed for the insights they offer into exemplary analytic practice in a constructionist vein. The exemplars pivot around the notion that “understanding understandings” is essential to executing constructionist analysis and does not entail subscribing to reified conceptions of objective conditions. The chapter concludes by discussing three promising directions for extending the constructionist purview, namely, through the study of (1) cyberspace (including social media) as an emerging but essential venue for the construction of social problems; (2) claims-making in national contexts beyond the Anglo Global North, especially in countries that challenge the liberal democratic assumptions upon which constructionist scholarship usually rests; and (3) a broadened, more quotidian conception of the social spaces and forms through which social problems-related expression is advanced

Parental Technology Governance: Teenagers’ Understandings and Responses to Parental Digital Mediation

Research on parental mediation of children’s online engagements situate historically longstanding anxieties within the dynamics of present-day information communications technologies (i.e., concerns over new “cyber risks,” as well as opportunities). Yet, there remains a lack of emphasis on children’s reactions to and experiences with parental strategies and responses. In the current article, we highlight research involving semi-structured focus groups (n=35) with Canadian teenagers (n=115). We highlight themes directly related to parental digital mediation, including the role of ICTs in driving addictive behaviors, social connection, differences in parental responses between sons and daughters, and differences concerning age and birth order. Disrupting cultural discourses of young people who lack agency in relation to their use of ICTs, our discussions with teens reveal qualified support, even degrees of sympathy, for parental efforts to restrict access and use of digital technologies, but illuminate multifaceted reasons for resistance: their vital role not only for social connection but access to crucial information and knowledge

Multidisciplinary rehabilitation with a focus on physiotherapy in patients with Post Covid19 condition

There is a lack of interventions that treat the Post-Covid-19 Condition (PCC) itself. Accordingly, treatment guidelines recommend physiotherapy interventions to alleviate symptoms and enhance functioning. In cases where unimodal treatments prove ineffective, non-organ-specific multidisciplinary bio-psycho-social rehabilitation (MBR) programs are a suitable option. In a pilot observational study with assessments at the entry and end of treatment we aimed to evaluate the feasibility of a 3-week day clinic MBR program and explore its effects on physical functioning in PCC patients with fatigue and reduced physical capacity. Patient selection was based on an interdisciplinary assessment involving a physician, a psychologist and a physiotherapist. Feasibility was determined based on full participation (≥ 8 of 9 days) and maintenance of stable endurance in the 6-Minute Walk Test (6MWT). From 37 patients included in the study, 33 completed the MBR (mean age: 43 ± 12 years, 73% female). Four patients discontinued the MBR, with two of them having reported deterioration of PCC symptoms. The 6MWT showed a numerical improvement from 501 ± 97 m to 512 ± 87 m, although it did not reach statistical significance. These results support the feasibility of outpatient MBR with a focus on active physiotherapy interventions in PCC patients with fatigue. This study aligns with previous research supporting the effectiveness of physiotherapy and rehabilitation in PCC patients. However, further research is needed to address possible different treatment responses and varying treatment approaches in subgroups of PCC patients

Headache severity in patients with post COVID-19 condition: a case-control study.

Post COVID-19 conditions (PCC) present with a wide range of symptoms. Headache is one of the most frequently reported neurological symptoms by patients with PCC. We aimed to assess the prevalence of headache in patients with PCC who attended the Post-COVIDLMU outpatient department at LMU University Hospital in Munich. We hypothesized that headaches occur more frequently in patients with PCC than in the control group. Patients answered a questionnaire containing sociodemographic characteristics, their current symptoms, and prior psychiatric and somatic diagnoses, the WHO Quality of Life assessment (WHOQOL-BREF), 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS). 188 PCC patients were included in this study and compared to a control group of patients with a history of COVID-19 or a different infectious disease - but no consecutive post-infectious condition (nc=27). 115 (61%) of our PCC patients were female. The median age was 41 years. 60 (32%, p = 0.001) had a pre-existing psychiatric diagnosis. PCC was associated with worse outcomes in all four domains of the WHOQOL-BREF (p < 0.001), high levels of fatigue (FSS; p < 0.001), and a higher likeliness for symptoms of depression (PHQ-9; p < 0.001). We were able to confirm that psychiatric disorders are more frequently associated with headaches in PCC patients. Headache should be assessed and treated in the context of PCC not only by neurologists but by multi-professional teams and regarding all PCC symptoms

Persistent immune abnormalities discriminate post-COVID syndrome from convalescence

Background : Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) are key organizers of tissue immune responses and regulate tissue development, repair, and pathology. Persistent clinical sequelae beyond 12 weeks following acute COVID-19 disease, named post-COVID syndrome (PCS), are increasingly recognized in convalescent individuals. ILCs have been associated with the severity of COVID-19 symptoms but their role in the development of PCS remains poorly defined. Methods and results : Here, we used multiparametric immune phenotyping, finding expanded circulating ILC precursors (ILCPs) and concurrent decreased group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) in PCS patients compared to well-matched convalescent control groups at > 3 months after infection or healthy controls. Patients with PCS showed elevated expression of chemokines and cytokines associated with trafficking of immune cells (CCL19/MIP-3b, FLT3-ligand), endothelial inflammation and repair (CXCL1, EGF, RANTES, IL-1RA, PDGF-AA). Conclusion : These results define immunological parameters associated with PCS and might help find biomarkers and disease-relevant therapeutic strategies

Characterization of cognitive symptoms in post COVID-19 patients

Cognitive symptoms (CS) belong to the most common manifestations of the Post COVID-19 (PC) condition. We sought to objectify CS in PC patients using routine diagnostic assessments: neurocognitive testing (NCT) and brain imaging (BI). Further, we investigated possible associations of CS with patient reported outcomes (PROs), and risk factors for developing CS. Clinical data and PROs of 315 PC patients were assessed at a mean of 6 months after SARS-CoV-2 infection. 231 (73.3%) patients reported any sort of CS. Among them, 78 underwent NCT and 55 received BI. In NCT, the cognitive domains most affected were the working memory, attention, and concentration. Nonetheless, pathological thresholds were exceeded only in few cases. Neurocognitive performance did not differ significantly between patients complaining of severe (n = 26) versus non-severe (n = 52) CS. BI findings were abnormal in 8 (14.5%) cases with CS but were most likely not related to PC. Patients reporting high severity of CS scored worse in the PHQ-9, FSS, WHOQOL-BREF, were more likely to report impaired sleep, and had a higher prevalence of psychiatric diagnoses. Overall, NCT could confirm mild impairment in some but not all PC patients with CS, while BI studies were abnormal in only few cases. CS severity did not affect NCT results, but severe CS were associated with symptoms of depression (PHQ-9), fatigue (FSS), reduced quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF) and higher prevalence of psychiatric illnesses. These findings support the importance of NCT, BI, and neuro-psychological assessment in the work-up of PC patients reporting CS