Strivers 2.0: Digital Inequalities, Channel Preferences, & Opportunity Structures

Author(s):  
Laura Robinson
2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-24
Author(s):  
Matt Sheedy

The Occupy movement was an unprecedented social formation that spread to approximate 82 countries around the globe in the fall of 2011 via social media through the use of myths, symbols and rituals that were performed in public space and quickly drew widespread mainstream attention. In this paper I argue that the movement offers a unique instance of how discourse functions in the construction of society and I show how the shared discourses of Occupy were taken-up and shaped in relation to the political opportunity structures and interests of those involved based on my own fieldwork at Occupy Winnipeg. I also argue that the Occupy movement provides an example of how we might substantively attempt to classify “religion” by looking at how it embodied certain metaphysical claims while contrasting it with the beliefs and practices of more conventionally defined “religious” communities.


2021 ◽  
pp. 136078042110250
Author(s):  
Julie Schweitzer ◽  
Tamara L Mix

Employing the example of France’s civil nuclear program, we connect political opportunity structures (POSs) to mechanisms of knowledge production, identifying how opposing stakeholders generate knowledge about a controversial technology. A history of nuclear dependence in France creates a context that praises, normalizes, and rationalizes nuclear energy while stigmatizing attempts to question or contest the nuclear industry’s dominant position. Integrating Bond’s knowledge-shaping process with Coy and colleagues’ concept of oppositional knowledge, we consider how the broader social, political, and economic context influences opposing stakeholder assessments of nuclear energy. Employing qualitative semi-structured interviews, we offer unique insight into the French nuclear debate, discussing the role of POS in shaping knowledge production.


2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 207-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jesse C. Robertson ◽  
Chad M. Stefaniak ◽  
Mary B. Curtis

ABSTRACT We investigate the effects of auditor-wrongdoer reputations for performance and likeability on fellow auditors' intentions to take action in response to a questionable audit act. We also use this context to explore auditor selection of reporting outlets, when they do choose to take action. In an experiment with 181 auditors, main effects suggest that likeability reputation is a significant determinant of intention to take action, while performance reputation is marginally significant. As expected, interaction results indicate that auditors have the greatest intention to take action against less likeable, poor performers. Contrary to expectations, intention to take action against a more likeable, good performer is no lower than the mixed conditions. Thus, the influence of the two dimensions of reputation is complex. Additionally, we find auditors are more likely to whistle-blow internally than externally, and through non-anonymous outlets than anonymous outlets. Our contributions include exploring the impact of reputation on the actions of third parties, and advancing prior literature by considering the influence of wrongdoer attributes on reporting decisions and auditors' reporting channel preferences. Data Availability: Data are available from the first author upon request.


Sociology ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 003803852199920
Author(s):  
Ditte Andersen ◽  
Malene Lue Kessing ◽  
Jeanette Østergaard

This article reports on the findings from a qualitative, longitudinal study on lay perceptions of opportunity structures among young adults in Denmark. Previous research suggests that people often underestimate the extent of inequality and that rising inequality aggravates misperceptions. Our study deepens the understanding of the multi-layered processes that form meritocratic beliefs, and it identifies key factors at the macro-, meso- and micro-level. A macro-level factor that proved influential was a cultural script revolving around the Danish lay concept, social arv [social inheritance]. At the meso level, the factor of reference groups in socio-economic heterogeneous schools was instrumental for formations of inequality perceptions, but in dissimilar ways depending on micro-level subjective factors. Overall, the participants viewed the free educational system in Denmark as part of a welfare system that equalises opportunity structures in principle, while the majority simultaneously exhibited a nuanced awareness of social forces negating meritocracy in practice.


Author(s):  
Katja Schuster ◽  
Anne Margarian

AbstractMotivated by discussions of skill mismatches on local German vocational educational and training (VET) markets, this paper analyses how occupational segments of VET entry of individuals with lower and intermediate secondary school degree relate to local labor market characteristics. The econometric analysis applies data from a survey conducted with 9th graders within the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS). Considering opportunity structures and the local competition for training positions, we find that the match between occupations' skill demands and individuals' abilities tends to be specifically close in diverse and competitive urban labor markets. In non-competitive peripheral labor markets, in contrast, graduates with lower school certificates seem to have a higher likelihood of entering VET in segments that are specifically attractive for graduates with upper secondary school degree. The results on the allocation of abilities and the weight of preferences under different labor market conditions have different welfare implications from an individual, regional and general economic perspective.


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