“We who are dark . . .:” The Black community according to Black adults in America: an exploratory content analysis

From Journal of Black Psychology

This paper compiles exploratory content analysis around the meaning of the Black community. The study used a sample of 60 Black adults in the mid-Atlantic United States examining responses to a single open-ended survey. From the survey 11 themes emerged around the meaning of the Black community: the Black community as cultural, the Black community as residential, the Black community as global, the Black community as supportive, the Black community as visibly distinctive, the Black community as socioeconomic, the Black community as nonactualized, the Black community as nondifferential, the Black community as nihilistic, the Black community as nondefinable, and the Black community as other. The complex forms and functions of the Black community are outlined, as well as more about the social forces involved in its mental constructions. The findings have important implications for mental health programs and policies designed for Black adults in America, and at the same time, they spawn a new set of questions to be answered. Results suggest it is important to continue to ask and seek answers to these seemingly basic questions if we are going to be responsive most effectively to the mental health needs of “we who are dark”.

The assault on Los Alamos

From Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists

December 2011 Podcast: The assault on Los Alamos – Mindy Kay Bricker speaks to Hugh Gusterson about the history and uncertain future of the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Since the late 1990s, nuclear weapons scientists at the US Department of Energy’s Los Alamos National Laboratory have faced an unanticipated threat to their work: from politicians and administrators. Hugh talk about his article in the Bulletin, where he argues for the likelihood that security lapses at Los Alamos may be symptoms of structural flaws in the workplace, but it is easier to stereotype and scapegoat scientists than to address the real problems.

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Prediction of 81 million dementia sufferers fuels the artificial nutrition and hydration debate

Artificial nutrition and hydration for patients with advanced dementia: perspectives from medical practitioners in the Netherlands and Australia

From Palliative Medicine

The incidence of dementia is growing and is expected to double every 20 years. A large proportion of people with dementia will eventually receive end-of-life care. Patients with advanced dementia commonly develop eating difficulties, decreased feelings of hunger and thirst are often part of the dementia process. Patients can become incompetent to make decisions. At this point physicians and families decide whether artificial nutrition or hydration (ANH) is likely to be beneficial for the patient.

This article examines the ongoing debate surrounding patient assessment and appropriate use of ANH, it investigates opinions of some Dutch and Australian doctors and finds In general, they are reluctant to start ANH. It seems that Dutch and Australian doctors use somewhat different care approaches for patients with advanced dementia. The study concludes that combining the Dutch comprehensive approach and the Australian analytic approach may serve the interest of patients and their families best.

Experiencing different cultures enhances creativity

When in Rome…Learn why the Romans do what they do:  how multicultural learning experiences facilitate creativity

 

From Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

 

This research reveals that creativity can be enhanced by experiencing cultures different from one’s own. Three studies looked at students who had lived abroad and those who hadn’t, testing them on different aspects of creativity. Relative to a control group, which hadn’t experienced a different culture, participants in the different culture group provided more evidence of creativity in various standard tests of the trait. Those results suggest that multicultural learning is a critical component of the adaptation process, acting as a creativity catalyst..

Reconsidering culture and poverty

From ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science

Historically scholars have been cautious when discussing links between culture and poverty. The concept of a “culture of poverty” reemerged briefly in the 60’s, but it was a short-lived headline for most as the idea that attitudes and behavior patterns kept people poor was avoided. But now, after decades of silence, a new generation of scholars is speaking openly conceding that culture and persistent poverty are entangled.

This special issue, recently highlighted on the front page of the New York Times, reconsiders culture and poverty announcing in the introduction that “Culture is back on the poverty research agenda”. The articles explore the scholarly and policy reasons why poverty researchers should be deeply concerned with culture, ultimately aiming to find a better understanding of the mechanisms that lead to the reproduction of poverty.

Read the special issue introduction for free

Article details:
Mario Luis Small, David J. Harding and Michèle Lamont (2010). Reconsidering Culture and Poverty The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science , 629 (6) : 10.1177/0002716210362077

Sustainable legacies for the 2012 Olympic Games

From Perspectives in Public Health

The 2012 UK Olympics are coming and with them the potential to offer the nation far more than encouragement to partake in sports activities and to get fitter. They could assist with government cross-cutting agendas such as tackling crime, antisocial behaviour, developing healthy and active communities, improving educational attainment, and combating barriers to participation. This article considers the promising sustainable sporting, social, cultural and economic legacies the games could deliver.