In search of personal mobility: changing interpersonal relations in two Bamileke chiefdoms, Cameroon

Africa ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan H. B. den Ouden

Opening ParagraphIn this article I discuss the incorporation of the people of two Bamileke chiefdoms into wider economic and political systems. In doing this I will concentrate on the interactions and strategies of individuals. A number of issues will concern us: the types of relations of dependency within the chiefdoms and the possibilities for manipulating them to further individual economic, political and social mobility; the effects of the commercialisation of agriculture during both colonial and post-colonial periods; the opening up of areas outside the chiefdoms for trade and migration; the erosion of the chiefdom structure and its consequences for interpersonal relations and the possibilities for furthering individual and family interests. I will approach these problems mainly from the point of view of the changing patterns of authority and power relations.

1968 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 476-480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce M. Russett

In suggesting a basis for operational indices of the concentration of power Steven Brams' creative article “Measuring the Concentration of Power in Political Systems” (see pp. 461–475) has performed an important service to the discipline in opening up a neglected area. It is very surprising that despite all the past efforts to devise summary measures of power bases (e.g., income or military strength) so little effort has gone into summary indices for rigorously gauging their dispersion or the absence of dispersion. Having acknowledged Brams' piece as an extremely valuable stimulus for further thought, I would like now to exercise a scientific prerogative to propose a variation in the approach that should, for some theoretical purposes, prove even more useful. As Brams notes appropriately, it is indeed true that the best index “for any particular study will depend on the nature and purposes of the study.”All the versions of Brams' PC index are directed toward measuring the collective exercise of influence between different levels of decision-makers. This approach reflects an essentially deterministic point of view: the influence from any level on a mutual influence set or sets is determined by the exercise of influence on only one of its members. For example, if a has power over b, and b is in a mutual influence set with c, then c's actions vis-à-vis b are completely determined by a. As far as the PC index is concerned, this is no different from the case of a's directly influencing b and directly influencing c when b and c are not in an influence relationship. But if one takes a probabilistic viewpoint of indeterminacy, of a's predominance but less than complete control over b and c when they are in a mutual influence relationship, the relations among units at a subordinate level become interesting.


2010 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 473-496 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.J. Fuller ◽  
Haripriya Narasimhan

Since the nineteenth century, Tamil Brahmans have been very well represented in the educated professions, especially law and administration, medicine, engineering and nowadays, information technology. This is partly a continuation of the Brahmans’ role as literate service people, owing to their traditions of education, learning and literacy, but the range of professions shows that any direct continuity is more apparent than real. Genealogical data are particularly used as evidence about changing patterns of employment, education and migration. Caste traditionalism was not a determining constraint, for Tamil Brahmans were predominant in medicine and engineering as well as law and administration in the colonial period, even though medicine is ritually polluting and engineering resembles low-status artisans’ work. Crucially though, as modern, English-language, credential-based professions that are wellpaid and prestigious, law, medicine and engineering were and are all deemed eminently suitable for Tamil Brahmans, who typically regard their professional success as a sign of their caste superiority in the modern world. In reality, though, it is mainly a product of how their old social and cultural capital and their economic capital in land were transformed as they seized new educational and employment opportunities by flexibly deploying their traditional, inherited skills and advantages.


Author(s):  
Piotr Cymanow

The presented results of the studies of economic migration balance from the perspective of the people living away from their home country. There is analaysed the significance of the impact of mobility processes on the functioning of the social and economic system in the areas affected with the outflow of population. The analysis points out the dual nature of the consequences of the migration exodus – from the point of view of an individual, the migrant, and their household, and from a collective perspective of the local environment. The individual evaluation of benefits points to the economic aspects related to the possibility of professional activation of those who were previously unemployed or performed menial jobs, and – which is a natural consequence of the former – the improvement of the quality of life of all the members of the household as well as better perspectives for the future – e.g. related to education. Main threats, on the other hand, were observed in strained interpersonal relations and collapse of relationships, as well as the phenomena related to deteriorated health due to lasting detachment from the family. Evaluation of the consequences of the migration in its social dimension points to the significance of the advantages related to the reduction of poverty and the related pathologies as well as increase in the local activity. In this aspect, the main threats followed from the deteriorated demographic structure and the related risk of collapse of the pension and health pension system.


Africa ◽  
1931 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 466-474 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Q. Orchardson

Opening ParagraphBecause the African continent looks a solid block, and because most of its inhabitants are dark-skinned and woolly-haired, we are apt to treat it as if it were really homogeneous and devise some general plan for governing and educating the whole. For in one and the same man one rarely finds the capacity for both the wide and the detailed view. But how vastly different in character, customs, capacity, and life are the innumerable tribes and nations which make up Africa. Even in such a comparatively small area as Kenya, after grouping together the more similar tribes there are quite a number of divisions which, if the true interests of the people are not to be sacrificed, should have different treatment. Their future development will be different, and it is neither wise nor humane to attempt to coerce them all to a pattern, a pattern devised by a race so totally different, and without the requisite knowledge to consider what is truly best for each group of people, especially from its own point of view.


2019 ◽  
Vol 66 ◽  
pp. 260-275
Author(s):  
Victor V.  Aksyuchits

In the article the author studies the formation process of Russian intelligentsia analyzing its «birth marks», such as nihilism, estrangement from native soil, West orientation, infatuation with radical political ideas, Russophobia. The author examines the causes of political radicalization of Russian intelligentsia that grew swiftly at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries and played an important role in the Russian revolution of 1917.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 39
Author(s):  
С. И. Дудник ◽  
И. Д. Осипов

The article discusses the problems of evolution and the formation of the ideology of an enlightened monarchy in Russia. In this regard, the philosophical and political ideas of Catherine the Great, as well as their theoretical and ideological premises, are analyzed. It is noted that the philosophy of education in Russia was closely connected with the concepts of Voltaire, Didro, Montesquieu, Beccaria, Bentham, their views on natural law and human freedom, humanism and the rule of law. These concepts in the philosophy of Catherine received a specific interpretation, due to the sociocultural conditions of Russia. This was manifested in the famous work of Catherine the Great “The Nakaz”, which recognized Montesquieu's argument in favor of the autocracy, but at the same time, his point of view on the separation of powers was rejected. The specificity of the doctrine of enlightened monarchy lies in the combination of liberal and conservative values, which form eclectic forms. This was the dialectic of the supreme power, the difference between the enlightened monarchy and the ideology of absolutism. The article also notes that education in Russia is associated with fundamental socio-political reforms, processes of secularization of culture. At this time, the natural and human sciences are developing. The changes positively influenced the development of medicine, beautification of towns and public education. Also considered are the views on the autocracy of the opposition nobility intelligentsia: A. N. Radishchev and noted that his criticism of the autocracy was determined by an alternative cultural policy, proceeding from the protection of the interests of the people. The doctrine of enlightened monarchy is characterized by internal worldview inconsistency and political inconsistency, which did not allow solving the pressing social problems of the establishment of legal state, democratization of society and the abolition of serfdom.


Globus ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Bagandova ◽  

This study is devoted to the study of the features of the archetype of the Dargins, the formation of which dates back to the times of paganism and, which was imprinted by both religious ideas and historical events that had a significant impact on the worldview and worldview of the people. This work is the first attempt to analyze the archetype of the Dargins from the point of view of its inherent fatalism on the basis of proverbs, sayings and legends of the Dargin people, which represent the wealth of oral folk art and reflect the specifics of the psychological formation of the people that have been taking shape for millennia


This volume deals with the possibility of glimpsing pre-modern and early modern Egyptian scribes, the people who actually produced ancient documents, through the ways in which they organized and wrote those documents. Breaking with the traditional conception of variation in scribal texts as ‘free’ or indicative of ‘corruption’, this volume reconceptualizes scribal variation in pre-modern Egypt from the point of view of contemporary historical sociolinguistics, seeing scribes as agents embedded in particular geographical, temporal, and sociocultural environments. This volume comprises a set of studies of scribal variation, beginning from the well-established domain of scribal variation in pre-modern English as a methodological point of departure, and proceeding to studies of scribal variation spanning thousands of years, from Pharaonic to Late Antique and Islamic Egypt. This volume introduces to Egyptology concepts such as scribal communities, networks, and repertoires, and applies them to a variety of phenomena, including features of lexicon, grammar, orthography, palaeography, layout, and format.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1270
Author(s):  
Sung Il Kwag ◽  
Uhjin Hur ◽  
Young Dae Ko

Though new technologies have been applied in all industries, electric mobility technology using eco-friendly energy is drawing a great deal of attention. This research focuses on a personal electric mobility system for urban tourism. Some tourism sites such as Gyeongju, Korea, have broad spaces for tourists to walk around, but the public transportation system has been insufficiently developed due to economic reasons. Therefore, personal mobility technology such as electric scooters can be regarded as efficient alternatives. For the operation of electric scooters, a charging infrastructure is necessary. Generally, scooters can be charged via wires, but this research suggests an advanced electric personal mobility system based on wireless electric charging technology that can accommodate user convenience. A mathematical model-based optimization was adopted to derive an efficient design for a wireless charging infrastructure while minimizing total investment costs. By considering the type of tourists and their tour features, optimal locations and lengths of the static and dynamic wireless charging infrastructure are derived. By referring to this research, urban tourism can handle transportation issues from a sustainable point of view. Moreover, urban tourism will have a better chance of attracting tourists by conserving heritage sites and by facilitating outdoor activities with electric personal mobility.


2021 ◽  
pp. 174701612110082
Author(s):  
Nicole Podschuweit

This paper aims to bring into the ethical debate on covert research two aspects that are neglected to date: the perspective of the research subjects and the special responsibility of investigators towards their observers. Both aspects are falling behind, especially in quantitative social research. From a methodological point of view, quantitative forms of covert observation involve a great distance between the researcher and the research subjects. When human observers are involved, the focus is usually on the reliable application of the measuring instrument. Therefore, herein, a quantitative study is used as an example to show how the protection needs of both the observed persons and the observers can be met in practice. The study involved 40 student observers who covertly captured everyday conversations in real-world settings (e.g. in cafés or trains) by a highly standardised observation scheme. The study suggests that the anonymity of the research subjects and their trust in the observers are crucial for their subsequent consent. However, many participants showed only little or even no interest in the written information they were provided. Further, this study strongly emphasises how mentally stressful covert observations are to the observers. Almost all observers were worried in advance that the people they were observing would prematurely blow their cover and confront them. Role-playing and in-depth discussions in teams are good strategies to alleviate such and other fears and to prepare student assistants well for their demanding work in the field.


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