Moral urban citizenship and the youth problem in a Danish ghetto

PurposeThis article examines the interventions from municipality, state and other actors in the Gellerup estate, a Danish “ghetto” by focusing on the youth problem and its construction, by examining a cross-disciplinary academic workshop intending to “solve the youth problem” of the estate.Design/methodology/approachThe article is based on the two authors' participation in the academic workshop, as well as their continued engagement with the Gellerup estate through separate project employments and ethnographic research projects in the estate, consisting of both participant observation and interviews.FindingsIn the article the authors suggest that the 2015 workshop reproduced particularly the category of idle urban young men as problematic. The authors analyze this as a form of “moral urban citizenship”. The article also analyzes some of the proposed solutions to the problem, particularly architectural transformations, and connects the Danish approach to the problems of the “ghetto” to urban developments historically and on a global scale.Originality/valueCross-disciplinary academic attempts to solve real-world problems are rarely incorporated as ethnographic data. In this article the authors attempt to include part of their own practice as academics as valuable data that opens up new perspectives on a field and their own involvement and analysis of it.

‘The Game of the Sea’: An Interdisciplinary Educational Board Game on the Marine Environment and Ocean Awareness for Primary and Secondary Students

Games are a proven tool for learning at all ages and in many contexts. They increase the attractiveness of learning processes through arousing interest and enhancing motivation, and aid with the development of social skills. Educational games provide teachers with different approaches to teaching. ‘The Game of the Sea’ is an interdisciplinary board game, specifically designed to teach its players about the marine environment, regardless of their age. Through its 68 sections, coloured according to particular topics and organised as a fish shape, players encounter a wide range of questions and activities. Through playing this game, players acquire a broad knowledge of science, the marine environment and its importance, and literature. The game uses an interdisciplinary approach with question cards on a variety of topics (including maths, physics, biology, chemistry, art, etc.). A total of 222 players (111 children, aged 11–15, and 111 adults, aged 18–72) tested the game. These players were enrolled in different formal and non-formal educational contexts and had different educational backgrounds. For a qualitative analysis of game sessions (participant observation), researchers acted as game moderators and, while doing so, made subtle observations of players playing the game. On top of this, the value of the game, as a didactic tool, was evaluated with a test that players took before and after the game. After playing the game, knowledge of the marine environment, increased in both children and adults, with a slightly higher increase in children. Therefore, ‘The Game of the Sea’ is suitable for teaching all ages about the marine environment. Further, this game can impart to its players the importance of the marine environment and the importance of protecting this environment.

Day-to-Day Decision Making by Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer

Background: Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer must negotiate the transition between childhood and adulthood while dealing with a life-threatening illness. AYA involvement in decision making varies depending on the type of decision and when decisions occur during treatment, and evidence suggests that AYAs want to be involved in decision making. Objective: To explore involvement of AYAs with cancer in day-to-day decisions affected by their cancer and treatment. Methods: This qualitative study used interpretive focused ethnography within the sociologic tradition, informed by symbolic interactionism. Semi-structured interviews and informal participant observation took place at two quaternary pediatric oncology programs. Results: Thirty-one interviews were conducted with 16 AYAs ages 15 to 20 years. Major day to day decision-making categories identified included: (1) mental mindset, (2) self-care practices, (3) self-advocacy, and (4) negotiating relationships. Participants described how they came to grips with their illness early on and decided to fight their cancer. They described decisions they made to protect their health, how they advocated for themselves and decisions they made about relationships with family and friends. Conclusions: Through day-to-day decisions, participants managed the impact of cancer and its treatment on their daily lives. Research should focus on developing and implementing interventions to empower AYAs to participate in day-to-day decisions that will affect how they manage their cancer, its treatment and ultimately their outcomes. Implications for Practice: Healthcare providers can facilitate AYA's participation in day-to-day decision making through encouraging autonomy and self-efficacy by providing support and through effective communication.

Working with Wolt

In this paper, we present the results of an ethnographic study focusing on food deliveries for the digital platform Wolt. The platform manages food transport ordered by customers to be delivered at home from restaurants, and subcontracts the transport to workers called 'couriers', who act as independent firms or entrepreneurs. The paper is based on six months of participant observation, during which time the first author worked as a courier, as well as on ad-hoc conversations and semi-structured interviews with other couriers. We describe couriers' work for the platform and discuss our findings using Möhlmann and Zalmanson's definition of algorithmic management. We found both similarities and differences. It was noticeable that the couriers were positive about their work that no penalties or wage reductions were enforced, and that human support complemented the platform's algorithmic management. Thus, the algorithmic management we observed is neither harsh (as it has been described on other platforms including Uber), nor like the algorithmic despotism present on Instacart, for example. Hence, we refer to it as 'lenient algorithmic management' and underline the importance of adding new perspectives to our understanding of what algorithmic management can be, as well as looking at the context in which it is practised. To complement this finding of lenient algorithmic management, we present a set of strategies couriers must engage in to be effective on the platform: Thus, couriers must 1) schedule their work for peak hours to limit the amount of time they waste, 2) bundle orders to increase their payment per tour, 3) make use of support to handle customers and cancel orders involving delays, and 4) make use of the ecology of local support structures. The contribution of this paper is to add new perspectives to the way we perceive algorithmic management by presenting a lenient form of algorithmic management and indicating the importance of looking at the context in which it is practised, while describing what it takes to be an effective worker on the Wolt platform.

Family identity construction: an interpretation of the Lunar New Year's Eve dinner consumption ritual

PurposeFamily dinner on Lunar New Year's Eve is the most important and most ritualized feast for families in China. It is the time for the entire family to reunite. Families gather together to reflect their past and talk about the future. Through the lens of consumer culture theories, this study explores how Chinese consumers construct family identity.Design/methodology/approachBased on constant comparative analysis of primary data including in-depth interviews and participant observation, and secondary data including historical archives, cultural tracing, documentary reports and essays, the authors deconstruct the consumption rituals of family dinner on Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve. The authors focus on four aspects, including participants, place, time and related activities, and analyze Chinese consumers' ritual experiences.FindingsThe authors’ findings show how young consumers construct and strengthen individual self-identity, relational identity and family identity in various ways through consumption and ritual practices during Chinese Lunar New Year celebration.Originality/valueThe study of family dinner on Lunar New Year's Eve helps the authors understand contemporary consumer culture in three aspects. First, it helps the authors understand the relationship between consumption and culture. Second, the study shows the changes and continuities of consumption rituals. Third, the research highlights the experience of “home” among contemporary Chinese consumers.

Access Under Duress

This paper examines the rapid turn to remote public meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on a mix of archival materials, participant observation, and interviews within and around two mid- to large cities in the Rust Belt and Midwest regions of the United States, we consider how public officials introduced digital meeting platforms and surveys in place of traditional forms of in-person public consultation. We also examine emergent strategies of residents as they worked to have their voices heard and concerns met during a time of compounding crises (e.g., pandemic, economic recession, racial violence). Drawing from this case study, we articulate the concept of disruptive testimony, forms of public witnessing that trouble established hierarchies of power, surface conflict, and open opportunities for social change. We argue consideration for collective counter-power is increasingly important to GROUP scholarship as it attends to civic engagement beyond participation in formal, sanctioned government processes.

THE TASTE OF HOME: THE CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS THROUGH COMMENSALITY AMONGST FEMALE MALAY STUDENTS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM

Background and Purpose: Commensality is an act of eating together among migrant communities as a means of passing down the culture and ethnic identity. There is very limited discussion on commensality that pays attention to food sharing and eating that extends beyond the traditional forms of social relationships, identity, and space among the Malay community abroad. Thus, this article aims to explore the connections of social relationships through food, space and identity amongst female Malay students in the United Kingdom. Methodology: This research is based on one-year ethnographic fieldwork amongst female Malaysian Muslim students in Manchester and Cardiff. Thirty in-depth interviews were conducted with both undergraduate and postgraduate students from sciences and social sciences courses. Besides, in-depth interviews, participant observation, conversation and fieldnotes methods were deployed as supplementary for data collection. Findings: This paper argues that cooking and eating together in a private space is a way for them to maintain social relationships and overcome stress in their studies, and fulfil their desire to create harmony and trust at home. Besides, places such as the kitchen, play an essential space in building the Malay identity and social relationships between female Malay students’ communities in the host country. Contributions: This study has contributed to an understanding of the meaning of friendship, identity, space, and the discussion on the anthropology of food from international students’ perspectives and migration studies. Keywords: Food and identity, commensality, Malay students, friendship, international students. Cite as: Ibnu, I. N. (2022). The taste of home: The construction of social relationships through commensality amongst female Malay students in the United Kingdom. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 7(1), 316-334. http://dx.doi.org/10.24200/jonus.vol7iss1pp316-334

The shifting landscape of African-Pentecostalism in Kenya

I define African Pentecostalism as the Pentecostal thread that embraces some elements of African culture, without necessarily admitting it. It embraces some elements of the African heritage consciously or unconsciously. This research article sets on the premise that African Pentecostalism is the ideal phrase when referring to Pentecostalism in Africa. This drives us to consider the uniqueness of Pentecostalism in Africa rather than generalising its presence. This article seeks to demonstrate that African Pentecostalism in the 21st-century Kenya has undergone paradigm shifts in various dimensions, which includes leadership structuring, political orientations, modes of disciplining, eschatological concern, structural make-up, economic domain, health concern, ecumenical relations, gender relations, identity politics, theological education, poverty concern, use of science and technology, and general practices. Has the religious outfits that referred the earthly concerns as temporal tents and largely focused on the ‘eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands’ (2 Cor 5:1) appreciated the necessity of God’s kingdom and will-being ‘done on earth, as it is in heaven’ (Mt 6:10)? In light of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19), has the ecclesiastical model that was too conservative become liberal in nature? The methodology includes interviews with selected people who are connected to this topic, participant observation and through an extensive review of the relevant literature.

Transformational Change in maternity services in England: a longitudinal qualitative study of a national transformation programme ‘Early Adopter’

Background Large system transformation in health systems is designed to improve quality, outcomes and efficiency. Using empirical data from a longitudinal study of national policy-driven transformation of maternity services in England, we explore the utility of theory-based rules regarding ‘what works’ in large system transformation. Methods A longitudinal, qualitative case study was undertaken in a large diverse urban setting involving multiple hospital trusts, local authorities and other key stakeholders. Data was gathered using interviews, focus groups, non-participant observation, and a review of key documents in three phases between 2017 and 2019. The transcripts of the individual and focus group interviews were analysed thematically, using a combined inductive and deductive approach drawing on simple rules for large system transformation derived from evidence synthesis and the findings are reported in this paper. Results Alignment of transformation work with Best et al’s rules for ‘what works’ in large system transformation varied. Interactions between the rules were identified, indicating that the drivers of large system transformation are interdependent. Key challenges included the pace and scale of change that national policy required, complexity of the existing context, a lack of statutory status for the new ‘system’ limiting system leaders’ power and authority, and concurrent implementation of a new overarching system alongside multifaceted service change. Conclusions Objectives and timescales of transformation policy and plans should be realistic, flexible, responsive to feedback, and account for context. Drivers of large system transformation appear to be interdependent and synergistic. Transformation is likely to be more challenging in recently established systems where the basis of authority is not yet clearly established.

‘Don’t mess with my algorithm’: Exploring the relationship between listeners and automated curation and recommendation on music streaming services

Given access to huge online collections of music on streaming platforms such as Spotify or Apple Music, users have become increasingly reliant on algorithmic recommender systems and automated curation and discovery features to find and curate music. Based on participant observation and semi-structured interviews with 15 active users of music streaming services, this article critically examines the user experience of music recommendation and streaming, seeking to understand how listeners interact with and experience these systems, and asking how recommendation and curation features define their use in a new and changing landscape of music consumption and discovery. This paper argues that through daily interactions with algorithmic features and curation, listeners build complex socio-technical relationships with these algorithmic systems, involving human-like factors such as trust, betrayal and intimacy. This article is significant as it positions music recommender systems as active agents in shaping music listening habits and the individual tastes of users.