Learning at the Margin: New Models of Strength

SUMMARY

This article was originally presented at the April, 2000 Learning from Women Conference sponsored by the Harvard Medical School and the Jean Baker Miller Training Institute. It explores the ways in which marginalization and the use of power-over maneuvers and privilege contribute to disconnection at a personal and societal level. Strength in vulnerability is proposed as an alternative to strength in isolation. The author suggests that courage is created in connection and the distorting effects of the myth of the separate-self must be challenged in order to appreciate the power of connection. This article examines specific ways to resist the disconnecting and disempowering effects of hyper-individualistic values both in and out of therapy.     

Notes on ‘Bemächtigungstrieb’ and Strachey’s translation as ‘instinct for mastery’

This short paper looks at Freud’s use of the term ‘Bemächtigungstrieb’ and its translation by Strachey as ‘instinct for mastery’ when Freud was describing the motives behind his grandson’s game with the wooden reel and string in Beyond the Pleasure Principle. The word ‘Macht’ [power], which is contained in the word ‘Bemächtigung’ points to Freud’s difficult relationship with Alfred Adler, whose early theories on the aggressive drive and later theories on ‘striving for power’ were initially rejected by Freud. Looking at the changes in Freud’s reception of Adlerian terms, some of which he later integrated into his own theory, throws light on his choice of the word ‘Bemächtigungstrieb’ in 1920, when he was just beginning to introduce his thoughts on the death instinct. A slightly different translation of the word ‘Bemächtigungstrieb’, one which takes these historical and theoretical aspects into account, could make these connections clearer for the English reader.     

The role of culture and traditions in how young children’s identities are constructed

ABSTRACT

This article explores how cultures and traditions influence the construction of young children’s identities. Identity is conceptualised as a constantly changing narrative based on how an individual sees him or herself and how s/he is perceived. We all have multiple, intersecting identities. Different meanings of culture are discussed, highlighting norms and values, ‘culture-as-the-arts’, and space for growth. Primary and secondary socialisation is emphasised, recognising the influence factors such as gender, race, class and religion. The effect of the home and of the macro-culture and different micro-cultures and traditions is considered. In relation to children’s spirituality, trusting relationships and hospitable environments, and the need to counter messages given by an individualistic and consumerist macro-culture are highlighted. An apprenticeship approach is advocated, where adults encourage questioning and strive to maintain children’s sense of agency, with a gradual transfer of power as children become older and/or more confident. It is suggested that researchers and practitioners should take more account of external factors such as gender, race and class in relation to children’s spirituality.     

The Geopolitics of Gulf Sport Sponsorship

ABSTRACT

The names of two major Gulf airlines, Qatar Airways and Emirates, have saturated the European football scene for many years, sponsoring some of the most prominent European teams and FIFA itself. These state-backed airlines are also active in motorsports, rugby, cycling, tennis, golf, cricket, and equestrian sport, while several prominent Gulf elites and royal family members have recently taken over major sports franchises in Europe and elsewhere. How should we understand these far-reaching sponsorship agendas in the Gulf? What can they tell us about the politics and ethics of international sport on the Arabian Peninsula? Moving beyond the general readings of Gulf sport sponsorship as an exercise in ‘soft power,’ this article shows how these deals are strategic nodes for diverse actors in the Gulf and in the international sporting community to advance various interests: personal, political, financial, and otherwise. Informed by a critical geopolitics lens that questions the coherence of the ‘state’ as an actor, I ask what it means to say that ‘the Gulf’ sponsors sport, and more specifically investigate the relevant actors behind these sponsorship deals. To do so, this article examines regional and global political economy through a focus on three Gulf airline sponsors, Emirates, Etihad, and Qatar Airways, and three elite sports sponsors—the UAE’s Sheik Mansour, Qatar’s Nasser bin Ghanim Al-Khelaïfi, and Sheikh Nasser of Bahrain. By decentering ‘soft power’ approaches to sport that unduly emphasize the ‘state’ as an actor, this article suggests a more grounded approach to the geopolitics of sport in the Arabian Peninsula, which simultaneously acknowledges the complicity of Western actors and institutions in the rise of Gulf sports sponsorship deals in the past decade.     

汉代中常侍考论

汉承秦制,设中常侍。元、成之后中常侍为加官,因"得入禁中",与皇帝关系十分密切,有代宣皇帝诏命、代表皇帝责问大臣的权力,事实上中常侍是皇帝意志的代表。东汉初,光武帝参用士人、宦官。和熹邓太后以女主称制,改用宦官为中常侍,其权力进一步扩大,甚至左右皇帝的废立和皇位的继承,对东汉的政治造成十分恶劣的影响。     

Electroencephalographic and autonomic alterations in subjects with frequent nightmares during pre-and post-REM periods

Abnormal arousal processes, sympathetic influences, as well as wake-like alpha activity during sleep were reported as pathophysiological features of Nightmare Disorder. We hypothesized that in Nightmare Disorder, wake-like cortical activity and peripheral measures linked to arousals would be triggered by physiological processes related to the initiation of REM periods. Therefore, we examined electroencephalographic (EEG), motor and autonomous (cardiac) activity in a group of nightmare (NM) and healthy control (CTL) subjects during sleep-state-transitions while controlling for the confounding effects of trait anxiety. Based on the second-nights’ polysomnographic recordings of 19 Nightmare Disordered (NM) and 21 control (CTL) subjects, we examined the absolute power spectra focusing on the alpha range, measures of heart rate variability (HRV) and motor (muscle tone) activity during pre-REM and post-REM periods, separately. According to our results, the NM group exhibited increased alpha power during pre-REM, but not in post-REM, or stable, non-transitory periods. While CTL subjects showed increased HRV during pre-REM periods in contrast to post-REM ones, NM subjects did not exhibit such sleep state-specific differences in HRV, but showed more stable values across the examined sleep stages and less overall variability reflecting generally attenuated parasympathetic activity during sleep-state-transitions and during stable, non-transitory NREM states. These differences were not mediated by waking levels of trait anxiety. Moreover, in both groups, significant differences emerged regarding cortical and motor (muscle tone) activity between pre-REM and post-REM conditions, reflecting the heterogeneity of NREM sleep. Our findings indicate that NM subjects’ sleep is compromised during NREM–REM transitions, but relatively stabilized after REM periods. The coexistence of sleep-like and wake-like cortical activity in NM subjects seems to be triggered by REM/WAKE promoting neural activity. We propose that increased arousal-related phenomena in NREM–REM transitions might reflect altered emotional processing in NM subjects.     

Citizen Science in Post-Fukushima Japan: The Gendered Scientization of Radiation Measurement

ABSTRACT

After the Fukushima nuclear accident, many laywomen established citizen radiation measuring organizations (CRMOs) to measure the concentration of radioactive materials in food to ensure its safety. These women had diverse motivations. As caretakers, many wanted to protect their families. Others saw it as important to arm themselves with science when the broader social discourse portrayed contamination concerns as irrational and harmful to food producers, and stereotyped women as overreacting due to their scientific illiteracy. Some women also became empowered and productive citizen scientists, influenced by the popular idea of women-in-science. The fluid relationships between scientization and citizens’ collective mobilizations make it particularly illuminating to analyze such shifting relationships between activism and science using Gieryn’s concept of boundary-work. Women’s motivations to participate in CRMOs were closely connected to the expanding scientization—the increasing role of science in defining and prescribing social problems. While they shared many sentiments with anti-nuclear movements, women often performed boundary-work in a way that constructed science as irreconcilable with activism. Many saw activism as threatening the legitimation provided by science: a particularly important issue for women, who were stereotyped and policed as anti-science and irrational after the accident. Activism was also understood as a highly masculinized space incompatible with the feminized caretaker role that many women took on, which initially provided the rationale for their involvement in citizen science. The concept of gendered scientization highlights how the turn to science in dealing with environmental threats might result in gendered opportunities and challenges in collective mobilization by citizens.     

Review Section

No abstract available for this article.     

The international financial crisis and the north‐south dialogue

The author describes several origins of current international financial problems. Shortcomings of current solutions are analyzed, and solutions which the author thinks are more appropriate are presented.