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Elites in Transition: Elite Research in Central and Eastern Europe
by Heinrich Best Ulrike Becker"Who rules in Eastern Europe?" became a fundamental question for western researchers and other observers after communist regimes were established in the region, and it gained further importance as state socialism expanded into Central Europe after the Second World War. A political order which, according to Leninist theory of the state and to subsequent Stalinist political practice, was primarily a highly centralised and repressive power organisation, directed, as if it were natural, researchers attention towards the highest echelon of office holders in party and state. Extreme centralisation of power in these regimes was consequently linked to an elitist approach to analysing them from a distant viewpoint. It is one of the many paradoxes of state socialism, that a social and political order which presumptuously claimed to be the final destination of historical development and to be based on deterministic laws of social evolution, which claimed an egalitarian nature and denied the significance of the individual, was per ceived through the idiosyncrasies, rivalries and personal traits of its rulers. The largest part of these societies remained in grey obscurity, onlyoccasion ally revealing bits of valid information about a social life distant from the centres of power. It is debatable whether this top-headedness of western re search into communist societies created a completely distorted picture of re ality, however, it certainly contributed to an overestimation of the stability of these regimes, an underestimation of their factual diversity and a misjudge ment of the extent of conflicts and cleavages dividing them.
Informations- und Wissensverarbeitung in den Sozialwissenschaften: Beiträge zur Umsetzung neuer Informationstechnologien
by Heinrich Best Brigitte Endres-Niggemeyer Matthias Herfurth H. Peter OhlyDie Beiträge behandeln aus verschiedenen Blickwinkeln einen durch die Begriffe Sozialwissenschaft-Informatik-Information abgegrenzten, interdisziplinären Themenkomplex. Gerade in den Sozialwissenschaften haben die qualitative Textinterpretation und die Suche nach typischen, einzelnen Fällen ihren festen Stellenwert, und automatische Informationssuche und Informationsaufbereitung sind zu unverzichtbaren Forschungsinstrumenten geworden. Dieser Band enthält eine Vielzahl von Fachbeiträgen, die im Rahmen entsprechender Spezialveranstaltungen entstanden sind oder eigens für diesen Band geschrieben wurden. Sowohl als Einführungen wie auch im Rahmen spezieller Fragestellungen werden Ansätze aus den Gebieten künstliche Intelligenz, Bilderkennung, Kommunikationsnetze, Hypertext, Szientometrie, Bibliometrie u. a., jeweils mit Bezug auf sozialwissenschaftliche Anwendung, vorgestellt.
Die Umstellung auf ökologische Landwirtschaft als Entscheidungsprozess
by Henning BestSeit Beginn der 1990er Jahre ist ein starkes Anwachsen der ökologischen Landwirtschaft zu erkennen. Ausgehend von der Theorie rationaler Handlungen (Rational Choice Theorie) wird empirisch untersucht, aus welchen Gründen sich Landwirte gegen die konventionelle und für die ökologische Landwirtschaft entscheiden. Einen zweiten Schwerpunkt bildet die Frage, wie Umweltbewusstsein in die Rational Choice Theorie integriert werden kann. Zusätzlich werden Probleme der Operationalisierung und Messung von Rational Choice Variablen diskutiert.
Damned Lies And Statistics: Untangling Numbers From The Media, Politicians, And Activists (PDF)
by Joel BestHere, by popular demand, is the updated edition to Joel Best's classic guide to understanding how numbers can confuse us. In his new afterword, Best uses examples from recent policy debates to reflect on the challenges to improving statistical literacy. Since its publication ten years ago, Damned Lies and Statistics has emerged as the go-to handbook for spotting bad statistics and learning to think critically about these influential numbers.
Images of Issues: Typifying Contemporary Social Problems
by Joel BestConstructionist theory describes and analyzes social problems as emerging through the efforts of claimsmakers who bring issues to public attention. By typifying a problem and characterizing it as a particular sort, claimsmakers can shape policymaking and public response to the problem. Th is new edition of Images of Issues addresses claimsmaking in the 1990s, featuring such issues as fathers' rights, stalking, sexual abuse by the clergy, hate crimes, multicultural education, factory farming, and concluding with an expanded discussion of the theoretical debate over constructionism.
Images of Issues: Typifying Contemporary Social Problems (Social Problems And Social Issues Ser.)
by Joel BestConstructionist theory describes and analyzes social problems as emerging through the efforts of claimsmakers who bring issues to public attention. By typifying a problem and characterizing it as a particular sort, claimsmakers can shape policymaking and public response to the problem. Th is new edition of Images of Issues addresses claimsmaking in the 1990s, featuring such issues as fathers' rights, stalking, sexual abuse by the clergy, hate crimes, multicultural education, factory farming, and concluding with an expanded discussion of the theoretical debate over constructionism.
The Satanism Scare
by Joel BestAlthough there is growing concern over Satanism as a threat to American life, the topic has received surprisingly little serious attention. Recognizing this, the editors of this volume have selected papers from a wide variety of disciplines, broadly covering contemporary aspects of Satanism from the vantage points of studies in folklore, cults, religion, deviance, rock music, rumor, and the mass media.All contributors are skeptical of claims that a large, powerful satanic conspiracy can be substantiated. Their research focuses instead on claims about Satanism and on the question of whose interests are served by such claims. Several papers consider the impact of anti-Satanism campaigns on public opinion, law enforcement and civil litigation, child protection services, and other sectors of American society.The constructionist perspective adopted by the editors does not deny the existence of some activities by 'real' Satanists, and two papers describe the workins of satanic groups. Whatever the basis of the claims examined and analyzed, there is growing evidence that belief in the satanic menace will have real social consequences in the years ahead.
The Satanism Scare (Social Institutions And Social Change Ser.)
by Joel BestAlthough there is growing concern over Satanism as a threat to American life, the topic has received surprisingly little serious attention. Recognizing this, the editors of this volume have selected papers from a wide variety of disciplines, broadly covering contemporary aspects of Satanism from the vantage points of studies in folklore, cults, religion, deviance, rock music, rumor, and the mass media.All contributors are skeptical of claims that a large, powerful satanic conspiracy can be substantiated. Their research focuses instead on claims about Satanism and on the question of whose interests are served by such claims. Several papers consider the impact of anti-Satanism campaigns on public opinion, law enforcement and civil litigation, child protection services, and other sectors of American society.The constructionist perspective adopted by the editors does not deny the existence of some activities by 'real' Satanists, and two papers describe the workins of satanic groups. Whatever the basis of the claims examined and analyzed, there is growing evidence that belief in the satanic menace will have real social consequences in the years ahead.
The Stupidity Epidemic: Worrying About Students, Schools, and America’s Future
by Joel BestCritics often warn that American schools are failing, and that our students are ill-prepared for the challenges the future holds, and may even be "the dumbest generation." We can think of these claims as warning about a Stupidity Epidemic. This essay begins by tracing the history of the idea of that American students, teachers, and schools are somehow getting worse; the record shows that critics have been issuing such warnings for more than 150 years. It then examines four sets of data that speak to whether educational deterioration is taking place. First, data on educational attainment show a clear trend: more students are getting more education. Second, standardized test scores suggest that American students are performing somewhat better; certainly most test scores do not indicate that students are getting worse. Third, measures of popular knowledge also show evidence of improvement. Fourth, there is clear evidence that IQ scores have been rising. In other words, the best available evidence fails to support claims about a Stupidity Epidemic. The essay then turns to exploring several reasons why belief in educational decline is so common, and concludes by suggesting some more useful ways to think about educational problems. The goal of this new, unique Series is to offer readable, teachable "thinking frames" on today’s social problems and social issues by leading scholars, all in short 60 page or shorter formats, and available for view on http://routledge.customgateway.com/routledge-social-issues.html For instructors teaching a wide range of courses in the social sciences, the Routledge Social Issues Collection now offers the best of both worlds: originally written short texts that provide "overviews" to important social issues as well as teachable excerpts from larger works previously published by Routledge and other presses.
The Stupidity Epidemic: Worrying About Students, Schools, and America’s Future
by Joel BestCritics often warn that American schools are failing, and that our students are ill-prepared for the challenges the future holds, and may even be "the dumbest generation." We can think of these claims as warning about a Stupidity Epidemic. This essay begins by tracing the history of the idea of that American students, teachers, and schools are somehow getting worse; the record shows that critics have been issuing such warnings for more than 150 years. It then examines four sets of data that speak to whether educational deterioration is taking place. First, data on educational attainment show a clear trend: more students are getting more education. Second, standardized test scores suggest that American students are performing somewhat better; certainly most test scores do not indicate that students are getting worse. Third, measures of popular knowledge also show evidence of improvement. Fourth, there is clear evidence that IQ scores have been rising. In other words, the best available evidence fails to support claims about a Stupidity Epidemic. The essay then turns to exploring several reasons why belief in educational decline is so common, and concludes by suggesting some more useful ways to think about educational problems. The goal of this new, unique Series is to offer readable, teachable "thinking frames" on today’s social problems and social issues by leading scholars, all in short 60 page or shorter formats, and available for view on http://routledge.customgateway.com/routledge-social-issues.html For instructors teaching a wide range of courses in the social sciences, the Routledge Social Issues Collection now offers the best of both worlds: originally written short texts that provide "overviews" to important social issues as well as teachable excerpts from larger works previously published by Routledge and other presses.
Troubling Children: Studies of Children and Social Problems
by Joel BestIncreasingly, sociologists have turned their attention to the social problems of children– in particular, of younger children. This collection reflects those recent interest. While most researchers have focused on social problems involving adolescents, this volume offers instead original case studies of problems concerning preadolescent children.The papers that Best has gathered here represent different theoretical and methodological approaches. They report on social issues in Albania, Kenya, and Japan as well as in the United States. The range of social problems they address is a wide one, from broad societal crises to decision-making within families. Topics include the effects of economic and social crises in Africa and Eastern Europe; concerns about crack use and other forms of fetal endangerment; parental decisions about spanking, toy choices, and letting children listen to rock music; schooling in day care and elementary and junior high schools; and children's perceptions of environmental crises.Troubling Children adds a new dimension to courses in social problems. It also offers a different set of perspectives for those concerned with sociology of preadolescent children and their discontents.
Troubling Children: Studies of Children and Social Problems (Social Problems And Social Issues Ser.)
by Joel BestIncreasingly, sociologists have turned their attention to the social problems of children– in particular, of younger children. This collection reflects those recent interest. While most researchers have focused on social problems involving adolescents, this volume offers instead original case studies of problems concerning preadolescent children.The papers that Best has gathered here represent different theoretical and methodological approaches. They report on social issues in Albania, Kenya, and Japan as well as in the United States. The range of social problems they address is a wide one, from broad societal crises to decision-making within families. Topics include the effects of economic and social crises in Africa and Eastern Europe; concerns about crack use and other forms of fetal endangerment; parental decisions about spanking, toy choices, and letting children listen to rock music; schooling in day care and elementary and junior high schools; and children's perceptions of environmental crises.Troubling Children adds a new dimension to courses in social problems. It also offers a different set of perspectives for those concerned with sociology of preadolescent children and their discontents.
Making Sense of Social Problems: New Images, New Issues (PDF)
by Joel Best Scott R. HarrisInternet addiction. Cell-phone-distracted drivers. Teen suicide. Economic recession. The health risks of trans fats. The carefully selected collection of case studies in Making Sense of Social Problems is designed to help students understand and critically evaluate a wide range of contemporary social issues.
Ergotherapeutische Beratungssituationen: Eine videobasierte Studie zur Interaktion von Client Reasoning und Professional Reasoning (Forschungsreihe der FH Münster)
by Laura BestLaura Best untersucht die Interaktion von Reasoning-Prozessen innerhalb ergotherapeutischer Beratungssituationen mithilfe des Einsatzes von Head-mounted Cameras und videogestützter Interviews. Sie identifiziert und erläutert sieben interaktive Reasoning-Kategorien zwischen Ergotherapeutinnen und -therapeuten und ihren Klientinnen und Klienten. Diese Reasoning-Kategorien stellt sie in vier dynamischen Interaktionsmustern dar. Die Autorin hebt die Bedeutung von Verbundenheit innerhalb der ergotherapeutischen Beratungsbeziehung hervor und sensibilisiert für die Beziehungsbedürfnisse von Klientinnen und Klienten im Beratungssetting.
A Beginner’s Guide to Social Theory
by Shaun Best`This book is accessible, as a beginner's guide should be, but without an over-simplification of the arguments. It should prove an immensely durable text for generations of students to come' - John Hughes, Lancaster University At last, a book that makes social theory for undergraduates a pleasure to teach and study. The book offers a comprehensive overview of social theory from classical sociology to the present day. Students are guided through the work of Durkheim, Marx and Weber, functionalism, action perspectives, feminism, postmodernism and contemporary thinkers like Anthony Giddens, Michel Foucault, J[um]urgen Habermas, Frederic Jameson, Judith Butler, Gilles Deluze, Manuel Castells, Luce Irigary, Naomi Woolf and Camille Paglia. The book presents clear accounts of these contributions and employs an extensive range of activities that encourage the reader to evaluate the work of given theorists and approaches. The book is: - Comprehensive - Student-friendly - Accurate - Unpatronising It offers lecturers and students an ideal study resource for undergraduate modules in social theory.
A Beginner's Guide to Social Theory (PDF)
by Shaun Best`This book is accessible, as a beginner's guide should be, but without an over-simplification of the arguments. It should prove an immensely durable text for generations of students to come' - John Hughes, Lancaster University At last, a book that makes social theory for undergraduates a pleasure to teach and study. The book offers a comprehensive overview of social theory from classical sociology to the present day. Students are guided through the work of Durkheim, Marx and Weber, functionalism, action perspectives, feminism, postmodernism and contemporary thinkers like Anthony Giddens, Michel Foucault, J[um]urgen Habermas, Frederic Jameson, Judith Butler, Gilles Deluze, Manuel Castells, Luce Irigary, Naomi Woolf and Camille Paglia. The book presents clear accounts of these contributions and employs an extensive range of activities that encourage the reader to evaluate the work of given theorists and approaches. The book is: - Comprehensive - Student-friendly - Accurate - Unpatronising It offers lecturers and students an ideal study resource for undergraduate modules in social theory.
Introduction to Politics and Society
by Shaun BestIntroduction to Politics and Society comprehensively demonstrates how key theoretical and concepts in political science have foretold, rationalized and shaped politics in the contemporary world. Students will discover the meaning of `power', `authority', `coercion', `surveillance' and `legitimacy'. The ideas of Weber, Marx, Foucault, Bauman, Sennett, Habermas, Baudrillard and Giddens are explained with clarity and precision. Well-chosen examples, many from popular political culture illustrate the relevance of fundamental theoretical debates. This book also examines: - The central tendencies in the movement from modern to post-modern society - The significance, strengths and weaknesses of `Third Way' politics - The decline of organized party politics - The development of new social movements Developed with an understanding of the requirements of students and lecturers, this book is an extraordinary resource for undergraduate teaching and study needs. It will be required reading for undergraduate students in sociology, politics and social policy.
Introduction to Politics and Society (PDF)
by Shaun BestIntroduction to Politics and Society comprehensively demonstrates how key theoretical and concepts in political science have foretold, rationalized and shaped politics in the contemporary world. Students will discover the meaning of `power', `authority', `coercion', `surveillance' and `legitimacy'. The ideas of Weber, Marx, Foucault, Bauman, Sennett, Habermas, Baudrillard and Giddens are explained with clarity and precision. Well-chosen examples, many from popular political culture illustrate the relevance of fundamental theoretical debates. This book also examines: - The central tendencies in the movement from modern to post-modern society - The significance, strengths and weaknesses of `Third Way' politics - The decline of organized party politics - The development of new social movements Developed with an understanding of the requirements of students and lecturers, this book is an extraordinary resource for undergraduate teaching and study needs. It will be required reading for undergraduate students in sociology, politics and social policy.
Leisure Studies: Themes And Perspectives (PDF)
by Shaun BestWhat is the place of leisure in societies where people complain of 'over-work'? How do personal freedom and choice relate to the inequalities of class, gender, disability and ethnicity?
The Stranger (Key Ideas)
by Shaun BestThis book explores the concept of the stranger as a ‘modern’ social form, identifying the differing conceptions of strangerhood presented in the literature since the publication of Georg Simmel’s influential essay ‘The Stranger’, questioning the assumptions around what it means to be regarded as ‘strange’, and identifying the consequences of being labelled a stranger. Organised both chronologically and thematically, the book begins with Simmel’s major essays on the stranger and culminates with an analysis of Zygmunt Bauman’s thought on the subject, with each chapter introducing an idea or key theme initially discussed by Simmel before exploring the development of the theme in the work of others, including Schütz, Derrida, and Levinas. The stranger is an enduring concept across many disciplines and is central to contemporary debates about refugees, asylum, the nature of inclusion and exclusion, and the struggle for recognition. As such, this book will be of interest to scholars across the social sciences.
The Stranger (Key Ideas)
by Shaun BestThis book explores the concept of the stranger as a ‘modern’ social form, identifying the differing conceptions of strangerhood presented in the literature since the publication of Georg Simmel’s influential essay ‘The Stranger’, questioning the assumptions around what it means to be regarded as ‘strange’, and identifying the consequences of being labelled a stranger. Organised both chronologically and thematically, the book begins with Simmel’s major essays on the stranger and culminates with an analysis of Zygmunt Bauman’s thought on the subject, with each chapter introducing an idea or key theme initially discussed by Simmel before exploring the development of the theme in the work of others, including Schütz, Derrida, and Levinas. The stranger is an enduring concept across many disciplines and is central to contemporary debates about refugees, asylum, the nature of inclusion and exclusion, and the struggle for recognition. As such, this book will be of interest to scholars across the social sciences.
Talcott Parsons: Despair and Modernity
by Shaun BestThis is not a conventional biography but an attempt to explore the motives and intentions that underpin Talcott Parsons’ published work by exploring the reasoning Parsons shares with his readers in the pages of his many published works and the possible links between Parsons’ academic outputs and the social, economic and political situations in which Parsons found himself during the course of his life. Shaun Best brings together biography and the sociology of knowledge to demonstrate that there are links between the phases of Parsons theorizing the political, economic and social problems facing the United States; the circumstances in which he found himself and the intellectual decisions he made about what to publish. The assumption which underpins Parsons’ work is that knowledge is produced by people in particular historical conditions, grounded in sensory experience, exercising choice, judgment and reflection on those experiences. Thus, this book explores and evaluates Parsons’ ideas and arguments in relation to developments in social theory since the 1970s.
Talcott Parsons: Despair and Modernity
by Shaun BestThis is not a conventional biography but an attempt to explore the motives and intentions that underpin Talcott Parsons’ published work by exploring the reasoning Parsons shares with his readers in the pages of his many published works and the possible links between Parsons’ academic outputs and the social, economic and political situations in which Parsons found himself during the course of his life. Shaun Best brings together biography and the sociology of knowledge to demonstrate that there are links between the phases of Parsons theorizing the political, economic and social problems facing the United States; the circumstances in which he found himself and the intellectual decisions he made about what to publish. The assumption which underpins Parsons’ work is that knowledge is produced by people in particular historical conditions, grounded in sensory experience, exercising choice, judgment and reflection on those experiences. Thus, this book explores and evaluates Parsons’ ideas and arguments in relation to developments in social theory since the 1970s.
Understanding and Doing Successful Research: Data Collection and Analysis for the Social Sciences
by Shaun BestResearch Methods is an essential guide to carrying out a research project. Each of the focused chapters introduces and explains an aspect of social research to readers who may have no experience or knowledge of this subject. The emphasis is on 'how to do' various different methods, how to decide which is the most appropriate, and how to analyse the data. The book also includes examples of good practice from a range of social science disciplines.
Understanding and Doing Successful Research: Data Collection and Analysis for the Social Sciences
by Shaun BestResearch Methods is an essential guide to carrying out a research project. Each of the focused chapters introduces and explains an aspect of social research to readers who may have no experience or knowledge of this subject. The emphasis is on 'how to do' various different methods, how to decide which is the most appropriate, and how to analyse the data. The book also includes examples of good practice from a range of social science disciplines.