Journal articles on the topic 'Christians Bangladesh'

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in EnglishProfessor David Solomon examines the cultural conflicts and conflicts in bioethics in the United States. Conservative Christians wish to establish a Western account of bioethics based on their religious view of dignity. In contrast, progressive liberals argue that bioethics should be based on pure reason or rational arguments, regardless of the features of any particular religion or culture. The aim of this commentary is to show that the cultural conflicts and divisions that afflict bioethical debate in Bangladesh are very similar to those in the United States. Moderate Muslims wish to maintain the core values of their Muslim culture and at the same time benefit from the modern development of science and technology. In contrast, progressive liberals, influenced by modern Western traditions, have sought to establish a moral philosophy based on secular reason in the Muslim country of Bangladesh. However, this individualist Western approach is at odds with the Muslim culture of Bangladesh, where non-individualist values are prevalent. In this commentary, it is also contended that the progressive liberals are unreasonably ambitious in attempting to establish universal bioethical norms for Muslim culture regardless of cultural differences.DOWNLOAD HISTORY | This article has been downloaded 46 times in Digital Commons before migrating into this platform.

In this study we selected a small ethnic group named Mahali living in the villages Pachandar and Mondumala of Barind track at Rajshahi in the north-western part of Bangladesh along with the mainstream individuals. Those two villages are entirely occupied by homogenous people of Mahali who practice their traditional lifestyle accompanied by Christianity. In this context, we have tried to explore the religious syncretism of the Mahali Christians regarding their ethnic background, socio-economic status, power structure and their belief systems. We also identify the process of acculturation that took place among the Mahalis after Christianization and that resulted in a number of social changes through decades, thus turning the Mahali culture into a state of transition. In addition, we have also made some recommendations on this issue based on the findings having from the study

The 2011 Indian census affirms that child sex ratios of Muslims and Christians (as Abrahamic religions) are “normal”, but those of Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists (as Dharmic religions of Indian origin) are below par, due to increasing sex-selective abortion. One probable explanation could be that the scriptures of Abrahamic religions—especially the Quran—explicitly forbid female infanticide, a practice common in Pagan Arabia in the Middle Ages. Therefore, most of India’s neighbours, including Muslim-dominated Pakistan and Bangladesh, have normal child sex ratios and the epicentre of the problem of low child sex ratios in South Asia is now largely concentrated in India. Historical census data also suggests that this acute gender bias is perhaps a recent phenomenon as before the widespread usage of ultrasound technology for sex determination; sex ratios of Hindus were in fact better than Muslims in India.

The Early Screening of Autistic Trait Questionnaire (ESAT) is a tool for detecting the early signs of ASD – as developed by Dietz and colleagues in 2006 as a primary ASD screening checklist (of 14 questions checklist). This is a tested and reliable tool to diagnose early signs of autism in children. The aim of the present study is to determine the prevalence of autistic spectrum disorder by early detection method using the ESAT tool and see its correlation with age difference. This cross-sectional study was conducted between January and December of 2016, in 47 schools of Uttara, Ashulia, Nikujo Area of Dhaka City Corporation and Tongi Area of Gazipur City Corporation under Dhaka Division. A total of 1000 children aged 3-5 years were recruited in the study. The research instrument was a semi-structured questionnaire based on ESAT tool. The mean age of the participants was 4.22±0.709 years or (50.4±8.504) months. The age group 3, 4 and 5 years had 167(16.7%), 451(45.1%) and 382(38.2%) respondents respectively. Of them, a total of 517 were males (51.7%) and 483 were females (48.3%). Most of the respondents were Muslims 966(96.6%), rest are Hindus 32(3.2%) and Christians 2(0.2%). Our study revealed a prevalence of early signs of autism in 2.6% cases (26 in 1000). Among children with ASD, absence of some of those signs (like interest in different sorts of objects; expressed feeling, crying/calling when left alone, liked to be cuddled, spoke a few words or utter various words, and pretending to make a cup of tea using a toy cup and teapot) were related to age difference; the results were statistically significant (P<0.05). CBMJ 2021 January: vol. 10 no. 01 P: 37-42

Dental caries is one of the most common health problem in the dental practices in both developed and developing countries including Bangladesh. The overall influence of dental caries on the general health of the community is harmful. The main objective of the study was to assess the factors related to dental caries among the patients attending at the Outpatient Department (OPD) of Dhaka Dental College and Hospital. The study was carried out during the month of January to June, 2002. Data were collected by the researcher himself with a pretested structured interview schedule from 167 patients selected by systematic random sampling procedure. The study showed that (29.3%) patients were in the age group of 21-30 years. Their mean age was 30.04 years, SD was ±14.60 and age range was 12-72 years. Among the patients, 55.1% were males and 44.9% were females. 76.6% patients were Muslims, 15.6% were Hindus, and only 7.8% were Christians. Regarding the educational level, the maximum (63%) were below HSC education level, only 37% were HSC and above. The patients having more than four affected teeth, maximum (34.3%) were from illiterate mothers. Patients having mother's education HSC and above were nil in this group. The rates of dental caries were high among those who consumed excess sweets and who did not maintain oral hygiene adequately. Majority of the patients knew how dental caries occur and maximum of them thought that dental caries is a preventable disease. The above study showed that no age and sex is without problem. The ignorance, illiteracy, low family income, inadequate practice of oral hygiene, consumption of excess sweets etc. are the major contributory factors for the occurrence of dental caries. As dental caries is a multifactorial preventable disease, proper preventative measures including health education programme should be intensified to minimize the disease. Further study is also needed to assess the status of the problem and to find out the factors related to the disease. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjdre.v3i1.16590 Bangladesh Journal of Dental Research & Education Vol.3(1) 2013: 16-20 Dental caries is one of the most common health problem in the dental practices in both developed and developing countries including Bangladesh. The overall influence of dental caries on the general health of the community is harmful. The main objective of the study was to assess the factors related to dental caries among the patients attending at the Outpatient Department (OPD) of Dhaka Dental College and Hospital. The study was carried out during the month of January to June, 2002. Data were collected by the researcher himself with a pretested structured interview schedule from 167 patients selected by systematic random sampling procedure. The study showed that (29.3%) patients were in the age group of 21-30 years. Their mean age was 30.04 years, SD was ±14.60 and age range was 12-72 years. Among the patients, 55.1% were males and 44.9% were females. 76.6% patients were Muslims, 15.6% were Hindus, and only 7.8% were Christians. Regarding the educational level, the maximum (63%) were below HSC education level, only 37% were HSC and above. The patients having more than four affected teeth, maximum (34.3%) were from illiterate mothers. Patients having mother's education HSC and above were nil in this group. The rates of dental caries were high among those who consumed excess sweets and who did not maintain oral hygiene adequately. Majority of the patients knew how dental caries occur and maximum of them thought that dental caries is a preventable disease. The above study showed that no age and sex is without problem. The ignorance, illiteracy, low family income, inadequate practice of oral hygiene, consumption of excess sweets etc. are the major contributory factors for the occurrence of dental caries. As dental caries is a multifactorial preventable disease, proper preventative measures including health education programme should be intensified to minimize the disease. Further study is also needed to assess the status of the problem and to find out the factors related to the disease.

Myanmar (formerly known as Burma) is a small and important country in South East Asia. Whose borders are with India, Bangladesh, China, Thailand and Laos. Its area is 6.76 sq km and the population is 5.4 crores as per 2019 figures. In which Buddhist followers (90 percent), Christians (04 percent), Muslims (04 percent), Hindus (01 percent) and others (01 percent). The main rivers here are Irrawaddy, Sanween and Mekong. Whose delta is famous for agricultural crops especially rice. Shan Plateau is an important source of minerals here. Myanmar is also very rich in natural gas, but due to political upheaval and internal unrest, military intervention, this area has been adversely affected. Due to which Myanmar has not been able to progress as expected. Abstract in Hindi Language: म्यांमार (पूर्व नाम वर्मा) जोकि दक्षिण पूर्व एशिया का एक छोटा एवं महत्वपूर्ण देश है। जिसकी सीमाएँ भारत, बांगलादेश, चीन थाईलैण्ड तथा लाओस से लगती हंै। इसका क्षेत्रफल 6.76 वर्ग किमी हंै तथा जनसंख्या 2019 के आंकड़ों के अनुसार 5.4 करोड़ हैं। जिसमें बौद्ध अनुयायी (90 प्रतिशत), ईसाई (4 प्रतिशत), मुस्लिम (04 प्रतिशत), हिन्दू (01 प्रतिशत) तथा अन्य (01 प्रतिशत) हैं। यहाँ की मुख्य नदियां इरावदी, सानवीन तथा मेकांग हैं। जिनके डेल्टा कृषि फसलों विशेषकर चावल हेतु प्रसिद्ध है। शान का पठार यहाँ के खनिजों का महत्वपूर्ण स्त्रोत हंै। प्राकृतिक गैस की दृष्टि से भी म्यामांर काफी समृद्ध है लेकिन राजनीतिक उठा पटक व आन्तरिक अशान्ति, सैन्य हस्तक्षेप के करण यह क्षेत्र विपरीत रूप से काफी प्रभावित रहा है। जिसके कारण म्यांमार आशानुरूप प्रगति नहीं कर पाया है। Keywords: म्यामांर, भू-राजनीतिक, वैश्विक, भारत ।

Road traffic accidents (RTAs) has spiked over the past few years and has become a major public health concern in Bangladesh. Globally, RTA causes 1.35 million deaths annually. The consequences of road traffic accident not only affect the victim’s physical, psychological and financial hardship, but also has fatal impact on the functioning of the whole family. The objective of this study was to evaluate the present situation of RTA in Dhaka city, to find out the pattern of injuries, to identify the causes, frequency, socio- demographic characteristics of the victims and to identify the measures to minimize the incidence of RTAs. This retrospective study was conducted in the department of Forensic Medicine & Toxicology of Dhaka Medical College during January 2019 to December 2019. A total of 154 medico-legal cases of road traffic accidents were brought to the mortuary of Dhaka Medical College from 23 police stations and 1 railway Thana. Data was collected from inquest report, Challan and postmortem reports from the department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Dhaka Medical College. This study shows that a total of 154 post mortems of RTA cases were conducted at DMC morgue during January 2019 to December 2019. Greater number of the accidents occurred during June 28 (18.18%) and August 25 (16.23%). Among the victims, 114 (74.03%) were male and 40 (25.97%)were female. Most of fatality was among the age group 22 to 27 years (48, 31.17%) followed by 28 to 33 years age group (32, 20.78%). By relidion, Muslims were 130 (84.41%), followed by Hindus (19, 12.34 %), and Christians (05, 3.25 %). Considering the injury patterns, all victims had multiple abrasion and bruise 154 (100%), fracture ribs 28 (18.18%), fracture hipbones 26(16.88 %), fracture skull bones 17 (11.04%), head injury 24 (15.58%) and intracranial haemorrhages 24 (15.58%). Road traffic accidents can be minimized by creating public awareness among all road users about traffic signals and traffic safety rules as far as private users of vehicles are concerned.

This Article Explores Whether The CAMEL Method And The Insider Movement (IM) Paradigm Share Similar Philosophies, Approaches, And Underlying Presuppositions. After A Brief Overview Of The CAMEL Method And Its Contexts (twentieth-century Missions, The International Mission Board, And The Bangladeshi Context), I Will Discuss Four Themes Common To CAMEL And IM. We Will See That CAMEL And IM Share Similar Assumptions Yet With Different Outworkings. Both Seem To Share The Sentiment Of The Catholic Louis Massignon, Chief Architect Of Vatican II’s Approach To Non-Christian Religions: “Rather Than Destroy Islam, Might It Then Not Be Better To Expand It? … If A Moslem Followed His Soul’s Promptings To The End, He Would Come To Christ.” KEYWORDS: Camel Method, Insider Movement, mission, Islam, Bangladesh

Religion has been playing a significant role in the socio-economic development of the society, more specifically of the under privileged people. Religion or Faith based NGOs are one of the pioneering agents of this kind of development. Though the contributions of such organizations; World Vision or Christian Aid for instances, have been evaluated in the Western academia, in Bangladesh the contributions of these Faith Based Organizations have been overlooked for a long time. FBOs have been working in Bangladesh on diverse issues from poverty reduction to health issues. This article in particular will critically assess the role of the Faith Based Organizations in Bangladesh. Apart from their positive contributions, an attempt has been shown to address few criticisms against them such as conversion and terrorist financing.

Purpose: Advanced CSR research is still in the context of developed countries. Very limited research is available in the CSR system of developing countries such as Bangladesh. Specifically, this paper examines the impact of CEOs personal characteristics on CSR among the public listed company in Bangladesh.Theoretical Framework: This study also focuses on six firm characteristics firm size, profitability board size, firm leverage, sales and cash.Design/Methodology/Approach: Using ordinary least square (OLS) regression analysis on 100 public listed firms at Dhaka stock exchange (DSE) and Chittagong stock exchange (CSE) in Bangladesh.Originality/Value: this study provides new evidence on the relationship between CEO Characteristics and corporate social responsibility in Bangladesh.Findings: The results show that CEO's impressive positive and rationally significant, which means male is better than women, corporate strategy is better than women in their strategy. One of the most important reasons for education because education also results CEO business education positive and significant, which ultimately affects the organization. The Chief Executive Officer of the organization is an important part of religion and its religion, so that the religion of CEO is Islam and Christian, then he will have more impact on the social welfare organization. The variability of CEO's religion (Islam and Christian) is positive, which affects the company's social welfare, which ultimately increases the company's value.

Facial anthropometry has well-known implications in health-related fields. Measurement of human face is used in identification of person in Forensic medicine, Plastic surgery, Orthodontics, Archeology, Hairstyle design and examination of the differences between races and ethnicities. Facial anthropometry provides an indication of the variations in facial shape in a specified population. Bangladesh harbours many cultures and people of different races because of the colonial rules of the past regimes. Standards based on ethnic or racial data are desirable because these standards reflect the potentially different patterns of craniofacial growth resulting from racial, ethnic and sexual differences. In the above context, the present study was attempted to establish ethnic specific anthropometric data for the Christian Garo adult females of Bangladesh. The study was an observational, cross-sectional and primarily descriptive in nature with some analytical components and it was carried out with a total number of 100 Christian Garo adult females aged between 25-45 years. Three vertical facial dimensions such as facial height from ‘trichion’ to ‘gnathion’, nasal length and total vermilion height were measured by photographic method. Though these measurements were taken by photographic method but they were converted into actual size using one of the physically measured variables between two angles of the mouth (chilion to chilion). The data were then statistically analyzed by computation to find out its normatic value. The study also observed the possible ‘correlation’ between the facial height from ‘trichion’ to ‘gnathion’ with nasal length and total vermilion height. Multiplication factors were estimated for estimating facial height from nasal length and total vermilion height. Comparison were made between ‘estimated’ values with the ‘measured’ values by using‘t’ test. The mean (±SD) of nasal length and total vermilion height were 4.53±0.36 cm and 1.63±0.23 cm respectively and the mean (±SD) of facial height from ‘trichion’ to ‘gnathion’ was 16.88±1.11 cm. Nasal length and total vermilion height showed also a significant positive correlation with facial height from ‘trichion’ to ‘gnathion’. No significant difference was found between the ‘measured’ and ‘estimated’ facial height from ‘trichion’ to ‘gnathion’ for nasal length and total vermilion height. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bmrcb.v39i2.19643 Bangladesh Med Res Counc Bull 2013; 39: 61-64

AbstractThis article asks what can be learned about affinity and alterity by considering how villagers and state troops collectively live in remote and often dangerous borders. Situating this question along South Asia's longest international boundary—the India-Bangladesh border—I query the political possibilities of conviviality that bear upon altering notions of reciprocity, exchange, and trust, and which have not attracted the attention of either urban or border scholars. I argue that reciprocal webs of exchange brought Garo matrilineal kinship and Christian religiosity into relations with seemingly impersonal worlds of state control and border rule. The exchange of valued domestic objects, and the broader set of political and gendered affinities that surrounded these, are evidence of the border's changing role and temporality in mitigating difference and danger. Although these relations are embedded in the history of border-making in the Garo Hills, recent national security measures and border infrastructures have disrupted prior exchanges. These have disembedded the troops from their immediate rural environment in attempts to contain trans-border relationships.

In October 2018, on behalf of the Bangladesh Parliament, I proposed to the 139th Assembly of the Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU) to adopt a resolution on “Achieving universal health coverage by 2030: The role of parliaments in ensuring the right to health” (Annex-1). After the acceptance of my proposal, I worked as a co-rapporteur along with Mr. Christian Lohr, Member of the National Council, Switzerland and Ms. Mariana Carvalho, Member of the Chamber of Deputies, Brazil for a year to consult with and gather inputs from the parliaments and parliamentarians across the world. After several intensive discussions, debates and consultations in different parts of the world, we presented a draft proposal to the IPU member parliaments before presented it to the IPU assembly. Later, following the final debate and discussion, 141st IPU assembly 2019 in Belgrade, Serbia approved this resolution. I believe this global tool will enable parliaments and parliamentarians to contribute in ensuring the highest attainable standard of health and global health targets by 2030. I am grateful to the Hon’ble Prime Minister of Bangladesh Jononetry Sheikh Hasina MP and the Hon’ble Speaker of Bangladesh Parliament Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury MP for their encouragement. I am also thankful to IPU President Ms Gabriela Cuevas Barron, IPU Secretary General Mr Martin Chungong and World Health Organization Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus for their regular guidance towards this initiative. My sincere appreciation goes to the colleagues from the Bangladesh Parliament, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of Bangladesh, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh, IPU Secretariat and WHO Secretariat for their contribution in the process. I hope our parliaments and parliamentarians will take full advantage of this resolution in their work to make the right decisions when it’s come to those health issues. I am now looking forward to working together with my fellow parliamentarians from home and abroad to deliver the commitment we have made through the IPU resolution on universal health coverage. I would appreciate your comment, suggestion and advice in this regard.

Abstract Though conversion studies have attempted to move beyond models that “privilege interior states and subjectivities” (Rambo and Farhadian 2014), this article argues, first, that such a step forward has proved difficult. Interiority persists within frequent divisions of intrinsic and extrinsic factors in Christian conversion or is only de-emphasized at the cost of marginalizing converts’ theological or spiritual convictions. Retaining an internal-external paradigm is especially problematic in non-western contexts, where converts may have quite differently-ordered configurations of self-understanding. Second, the article demonstrates the potential of suspending this duality, through an analysis of existing studies of Muslim-background “Isai” groups in Bangladesh. Isai conversion, involving a pivot from Muhammad to Jesus, is interpreted within a patron-client scheme in which intimacy is more fundamental than interiority, indicating that devotional “proximity” might be a way to refer to the transformative conversion experience without reverting to an interior-exterior dichotomy.

This study investigated the ecosystem service preference of forest people in Madhupur Sal forest and the factors contributing to their preference towards those services. Data were collected through a personal interview with 230 respondents with four focus group discussions. Majority of the respondents comprised ethnic people (the Garo) of the region. Findings revealed that the majority of the respondents (89.8%) possessed moderate to high knowledge regarding ecosystem service. They identified 16 ecosystem services where ‘Forest identity’, ‘Crop cultivation’, and ‘Maintenance of social relation’ were perceived as the top services. The ecosystem service preference differed among respondents of different locations of the forest where people living inside the forest and living 1-2 km of forest appreciated cultural service most. The variation observed in service preference among different ethnic groups and Garo Sangsharek community’s preference towards ecosystem service was much higher than the other two communities (Garo Christian and Bengali). Results of multiple regression analysis showed that respondents’ age, ecosystem service knowledge, residence distance from forest, and forest dependency were the contributing factors that influenced their preference towards ecosystem services. The research results offer relevant information that is helpful for ecosystem-related studies in Bangladesh.

Christian missionaries started the modern education of women in India and Bengal. After a long journey, women could strengthen their position in education before the partition in 1947. But during the Pakistani period, the advancement of women was somewhat hindered. However, when Bangladesh became independent in 1971, women started coming to educational institutions with a new vigor, which became tremendously visible in the 21st century. Although women achieved equality in secondary education in the second decade of the 21st century, their dropout rate is still alarming. The general purpose of the research work in this regard is to find out the causes of the dropout rate of female students in secondary education in Bangladesh in general and in the context of personal, social, and cultural barriers in particular. Attempts have been made to achieve the goals and objectives of the research by using a mixed-method approach. The results found that personal, social, and cultural issues are equally responsible for female students’ dropping out of secondary education as structural issues. Furthermore, the immediate process of dropping out is child marriage, a socio-cultural disorder. While most studies refer to it as a cause, this study found that it is a process, not a cause. In addition to this, three other factors due to socio-cultural degradation are significant. These are addictions to the virtual world, addiction to illegal affairs (flirting, passion for love, real or purposeful), and addiction to drugs. All the addictions are increasing alarmingly, especially among female students.

Langerhans cells histiocytosis (LCH) or histiocytosis-X is a rare group diseases that includes three overlapping diseases of Hand-Schuller-Christian disease (HSC), Letterer-Siwe disease (LS)and Eosinophilic granuloma(EG). It results from clonal proliferation of histiocytes having similar morphology and immunophenotype to Langerhans cells in skin and mucosa Though head and neck manifestation is common, isolated simultaneous bilateral temporal bone Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis is an extremely rare presentation. Having same otological menifestations, high resolution CT scan is advocated for early identification and differentiation of LCH from other common conditions such as mastoidits,otitis externa ,chronic suppurative otitis media. Diagnosis of LCH is confirmed by biopsy and immunohistochemical staining of S-100 protein and or CD1a antigen. Chemotherapy is main mode of treatment.The prognosis is worse when presenting age of children is younger than 2 years. Bangladesh J Otorhinolaryngol; April 2020; 26(1): 68-72

This study aimed to examine nurses? job satisfaction at Sadar Hospital, Naogaon, Bangladesh. It also examines the relationships between nurses? assessment, satisfaction, attitude, and practice with respect to job satisfaction. The descriptive cross sectional study design was used to explore the job satisfaction among the staff nurses. Total number of nurses working in this hospital was 121. A total number of fifty nurses were recruited into this study in order to overcome non-response subjects. The age group 30-39 years were 40%, 40-49 years were 46% and 50+ above were 14% nurses. Male nurses were only 6% and the female were 94%. Marital status single 12%, married 80%, widow 8%. Muslim nurses were 58%, Hindu 38% and Christian 4%. Academic qualification of them was SSC 66% and H.S.C 34%. Professional qualification was Diploma in Nursing /Diploma in Midwifery 92%, B.Sc. in public Health Nursing 6% and MPH 2%. Length of service 1 to 10 years 22%, 11 to 20 years 50%, 21 to 25 years 24%, 31+ years 4%. Regarding maintaining therapeutic relationship; facing problem in duty; keeping records; receiving complicated patient; attend in duty time; maintaining aseptic techniques; maintaining work; carryout admission and discharge the results for all above questions were 100% yes. But regarding satisfy to give care 30% respondent were not satisfied; whole for job salary 68% nurses were not feel enough and remaining 32% were satisfied. Again in case of promotion to the next post most of the respondent 16% were satisfied and 84% were not satisfied.Asian J. Med. Biol. Res. December 2016, 2(4): 611-615

Objective: To determine the homophobia level of ındividuals in different countries. Material and methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study among 518 individuals of ages 18 years and above living in Turkey (Agri), Nigeria (Ibadan), Pakistan (Charsadda), India (Punjab), Bangladesh (Chittagong) and Nepal (Kathmandu). Using google form they completed a demographic characteristics form and Hudson and Ricketts Homophobia Scale Results: The homophobia scale total score mean was 92.97 ± 27.47. The total score means the homophobia scale was statistically significantly higher among Nigeria nationality, religious belief Christian, male, health personnel and those who do not have a homosexual acquaintance (p <0.05). A statistically significant relationship was also found between homophobia scale total score mean and age (p <0.05). Conclusion: Nationality, religion, gender, occupation, age and whether or not one has homosexual acquaintances are key demographic correlates of homophobia level. However, the study recommends that further investigation should be conducted with a larger group for a proper inference of causation to be drawn.

This article aims to explain the labour market penalties among Muslim women in Britain. It draws on theories of intersectionality and colour/cultural racism to argue that the labour market experience of British-Muslim women is multiply determined via criteria of ascription such as ethnicity, migration status, race and religion rather than criteria of achievement. The study uses data from the Labour Force Survey (2002–2013) with a large sample (N=245,391) of women aged 19–65 years. The overarching finding suggests that most Muslim women, regardless of their multiple ascriptive identities, generation and levels of qualifications, still face significant penalties compared with their White-British Christian counterparts. The penalties for some groups, such as Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Black-Muslim women, are harsher than for Indian and White-Muslim women, demonstrating how different social markers and multiple identities have contingent relationships to multiple determinants and outcomes.

AbstractThe article deals with the crisis of the German welfare system. Protestant churches are challenged by this crisis. Six challenges are discussed: (a) Recognize facts. One fact is, that the economies of countfies like Germany cannot be separated from the trend of economic globalization. It is every country's position in global economic competition which determines the possible Ievel of its national welfare. A secend fact is, that the present old-age insurance system cannot be maintained. The third fact mentioned is the inconsistency of the system of social security. (b) Becoming open for economic thinking: Solidarity is not possible against but only in conformity with economic rationality. (c) Understand the worldwide dimension of solidarity: lt is exactly economic globalization which promotes worldwide solidarity (the growth of textile industry in Bangladesh is taken as an example). (d) Promote selfresponsibility: Those who are able to help themselves should do so more than before so that assistance for the helpless can be maintained. (e) Stimulate innovations in the field of social policy: An example is the negative income tax. (f) Protect the needy: This is indispensable, and it corresponds not only to christian convictions but also to the enlightened self-interest of a secular society.

Over the past forty years, Britain has witnessed a decline in religious attendance, observance and worship, particularly within the Christian faith. This social trend is also starting to affect second generation Punjabi Sikhs and Gujarati Hindus. For others, in particular, Pakistani and Bangladeshi Muslims, religion is central to how many conduct and live their lives.A small-scale survey was carried out with social work students studying in Bradford, England to elicit their views about the impact of faith and beliefs on practice. National and local statistics provide a picture of the make-up of the local population by ethnicity and religion.A questionnaire was used to find out the importance of their religious belief, if any, to determine any anxieties in relation to placement, to provide examples of any conflicts or ethical dilemmas concerning religious beliefs and practice and to suggest ways of preparing and equipping social workers to work with diverse faiths and communities.It appears that religion and spirituality is a neglected area of social work. This preliminary work suggests the need for further research in a number of areas in order to promote culturally competent practice.

An extensive survey study was carried out on different aspects of health management practices of the Garo communities in Bangladesh to assess their actual present health status. The study was carried out on 1205 respondents out of 40,173 total Garo people of the study area of greater Mymensingh district. The study revealed that Garos enjoy a better health status than the common Bengali community. It was also observed that traditional cultural practices have great influence on the health management of the Garos. Many of the Garos think that diseases result from the dissatisfaction of the gods and goddesses or curses of the evil spirits. Thus they sacrifice animals to please the spirits to get relief of their diseases. Almost all the Garos use water from tube well (53.69%) or puller pump (44.81%) for drinking, bathing and cleaning purposes. Every family has a latrine. Almost everybody is concerned about regular dental care and half of the Garos are concerned about family planning. Garos eat a wider variety of foods including numerous natural plants as vegetables, some of which have medicinal values. Traditionally Garos are fond of drinking wine, prepared from boiled rice. The study also revealed that the Garos are generally less attacked by diseases than the common Bengali people. This may be attributed to their better living environment, food habits, cleanliness, hard work in the fields and sufficient rest after work and, after all, consciousness about health and diseases. But yet, diseases are quite common in this community; the most common one being Malaria. Most of the Garos take treatment from their traditional health practitioners although treatment of modern Allopathic system is available in the local Christian hospitals. About 55.68% of the Garos expressed their firm faith on their traditional treatment systems. In spite of some superstitions about diseases and health, the overall health status of the Garos is comparatively better than the majority of the mainland Bengali community. Key Words: Garo community, Garo culture, Health management practices, Traditional healers    doi:10.3329/sjps.v1i1.1783 S. J. Pharm. Sci. 1(1&2): 29-37

This article analyzes Amitav Ghosh’s The Shadow Lines to examine a narrative gap at its heart that conceals the central fact of the death of Tridib, arguably the most important character in the text. The novel concentrates on the Partition of Bengal and its impact on people from different countries and nationalities in Asia and Europe. Accommodating the story of three generations of people in three cities--Dhaka, Calcutta, and London--The Shadow Lines shows the interaction of characters belonging to Hindu, Muslim, and Christian faith. Important events in the text revolve around the family of Mayadebi, her sister Tha’mma and the Prices, their English friends. The narrative begins in 1939 and ends in 1964, connecting the Second World War, the Partition in 1947, and the riots of 1964 in Calcutta and Dhaka. Using Tha’mma, the grandmother of the unnamed narrator, as the connecting link between their pre-modern life before Partition in Dhaka and diasporic life in post-Partition Calcutta, The Shadow Lines depicts the traumatic suffering of characters from different nationalities but mainly from India and Bangladesh. The paper argues that the silence and secrecy maintained by Tha’mma and others about Tridib’s death mirrors the silence of official history concerning violence in their narrative of civilization, freedom, and progress which Ghosh unravels to produce a novelistic revisionist history that not only challenges the mainstream history but also fills the gaps it leaves.

IntroductionThe development of type 2 diabetes mellitus disproportionately affects South Asian women with prior gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). The Lifestyle InterVention IN Gestational diabetes (LIVING) Study is a randomised controlled trial of a low-intensity lifestyle modification programme tailored to women with previous GDM, in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, aimed at preventing diabetes/pre-diabetes. The aim of this process evaluation is to understand what worked, and why, during the LIVING intervention implementation, and to provide additional data that will assist in the interpretation of the LIVING Study results. The findings will also inform future scale-up efforts if the intervention is found to be effective.Methods and analysisThe Reach Effectiveness Adoption Implementation Maintenance (RE-AIM) methodological approach informed the evaluation framework. Michie’s Behaviour Change Theory and Normalisation Process Theory were used to guide the design of our qualitative evaluation tools within the overall RE-AIM evaluation framework. Mixed methods including qualitative interviews, focus groups and quantitative analyses will be used to evaluate the intervention from the perspectives of the women receiving the intervention, facilitators, site investigators and project management staff. The evaluation will use evaluation datasets, administratively collected process data accessed during monitoring visits, check lists and logs, quantitative participant evaluation surveys, semistructured interviews and focus group discussions. Interview participants will be recruited using maximum variation purposive sampling. We will undertake thematic analysis of all qualitative data, conducted contemporaneously with data collection until thematic saturation has been achieved. To triangulate data, the analysis team will engage in constant iterative comparison among data from various stakeholders.Ethics and disseminationEthics approval has been obtained from the respective human research ethics committees of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India; University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; and site-specific approval at each local site in the three countries: India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. This includes approvals from the Institutional Ethics Committee at King Edwards Memorial Hospital, Maharaja Agrasen Hospital, Centre for Disease Control New Delhi, Goa Medical College, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, Christian Medical College Vellore, Fernandez Hospital Foundation, Castle Street Hospital for Women, University of Kelaniya, Topiwala National Medical College and BYL Nair Charitable Hospital, Birdem General Hospital and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research. Findings will be documented in academic publications, presentations at scientific meetings and stakeholder workshops.Trial registration numbersClinical Trials Registry of India (CTRI/2017/06/008744); Sri Lanka Clinical Trials Registry (SLCTR/2017/001) and ClinicalTrials.gov Registry (NCT03305939); Pre-results.

Introduction: Overweight and obesity presents a major challenge in women around the world, with mainly associated with epidemiological factors. The study aim was to evaluate Socio-Economic Factors Associated with Obesity in Women >20 Years of Age. Materials and Methods: This was a community based observational study conducted at the Department of Physiology, Dhaka Central International Medical College (DCIMC), and Dhaka, Bangladesh during the period of January 2020 to March 2021. Two hundred participants were selected through a purposive sampling technique as study participants. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 22. Results: Among the participants, the majority (32%) was from the age group of 30-39 years. 27.5% were in the age group of 20-29 years, and 21.5% were from the age group of 40-49 years. 55% were Muslim, 41% were Hindu and 4% were Christian. The majority of the participants (86%) were currently married. 75% were modern nuclear families, and 20% were joint families. Over half (51%) of the participants were illiterate. The Mean ± SD weight was 50.34 ± 6.78 in the non-obese group, and 68.85 ± 8.38 in the obese groups. The Mean ± SD BMI was 21.72 ± 2.56 in the non-obese group and 29.85 ± 3.81 in the obese group. The difference between the age groups of participants between the obese and non-obese groups was statistically significant, and the difference in religion and education between the two groups was statistically non-significant. Conclusion: This community-based study was able to understand certain socio-economic factors associated with obesity in adult women.

International Journal of Chemistry wishes to acknowledge the following individuals for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Their help and contributions in maintaining the quality of the journal is greatly appreciated. Many authors, regardless of whether International Journal of Chemistry publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Reviewers for Volume 11, Number 1 &nbsp; Abdul Rouf Dar, University of Florida, USA Ahmad Galadima, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Nigeria Ahmet Ozan Gezerman, Yildiz Technical University, Turkey Asghari Gul, Comsats IIT, Pakistan Ayodele Temidayo Odularu, University of Fort Hare, South Africa Elnaz Rostampour, Islamic Azad University, Iran Fatima Tuz Johra, Kookmin University, Bangladesh Greg Peters, University of Findlay, USA Ho Soon Min, INTI International University, Malaysia Hongbin Liu, University of Washington, USA Khaldun Mohammad Al Azzam, Batterjee Medical College for Sciences and Technology, Saudi Arabia Maolin Lu, Yale University, USA Merve Kaya, Toros Agri., Turkey Mohamed Abass, Ain Shams University, Egypt Nanthaphong Khamthong, Rangsit University, Thailand Prathapan Sreedharan, Cochin University, India R. K. Dey, Birla Institute of Technology (BIT), India Rabia Rehman, University of the Punjab, Pakistan Sahar A. El-Molla, Ain Shams University, Egypt Sitaram Acharya, Texas Christian University, USA Yu Chen, Henkel Co. Ltd., USA Albert John On behalf of, The Editorial Board of International Journal of Chemistry Canadian Center of Science and Education

International Journal of Chemistry wishes to acknowledge the following individuals for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Their help and contributions in maintaining the quality of the journal is greatly appreciated. Many authors, regardless of whether International Journal of Chemistry publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Reviewers for Volume 12, Number 2 Abdul Rouf Dar, University of Florida, USA Ahmad Galadima, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Nigeria Ahmet Ozan Gezerman, Yildiz Technical University, Turkey Amal A. M. Elgharbawy, International Institute for Halal Research and Training, Malaysia Ayodele Temidayo Odularu, University of Fort Hare, South Africa Donatus Bekindaka Eni, University of Buea, Cameroon Elnaz Rostampour, Islamic Azad University, Iran Fatima Tuz Johra, Kookmin University, Bangladesh Hesham G. Ibrahim, Al-Mergheb University, Libya Hongbin Liu, University of Washington, USA Kevin C. Cannon, Penn State Abington, USA Khaldun M. Al Azzam, Batterjee Medical College for Sciences &amp; Technology, Saudi Arabia Nanda Gunawardhana, Saga University, Japan Nanthaphong Khamthong, Rangsit University, Thailand Nejib Hussein Mekni, Al Manar University, Tunisia Rabia Rehman, University of the Punjab, Pakistan Rafael Gomes da Silveira, Federal Institute of Education, Brazil Sintayehu Leshe, Debre Markos University, Ethiopia Sitaram Acharya, Texas Christian University, USA Syed A. A. Rizvi, Hampton University, USA Tony Di Feo, Natural Resources Canada, Canada Vin&iacute;cius Silva Pinto, Instituto Federal Goiano, Brazil Albert John On behalf of, The Editorial Board of International Journal of Chemistry Canadian Center of Science and Education

International Journal of Chemistry wishes to acknowledge the following individuals for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Their help and contributions in maintaining the quality of the journal is greatly appreciated. Many authors, regardless of whether International Journal of Chemistry publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Reviewers for Volume 10, Number 4 &nbsp; Abdul Rouf Dar, University of Florida, USA Ahmad Galadima, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Nigeria Ahmet Ozan Gezerman, Yildiz Technical University, Turkey Asghari Gul, Comsats IIT, Pakistan Ayodele Temidayo Odularu, University of Fort Hare, South Africa Binod P Pandey, The Pennsylvania State University, USA Di Cui, Temple University, USA Elnaz Rostampour, Islamic Azad University, Iran Fatima Tuz Johra, Kookmin University, Bangladesh Han Zhang, TP Therapeutics, USA Hesham G. Ibrahim, Al-Mergheb University, Libya Ho Soon Min, INTI International University, Malaysia Juan R. Garcia, Research Institute on Catalysis and Pertrochemistry (INCAPE), Argentina Khaldun M. Al Azzam, Batterjee Medical College for Sciences and Technology, Saudi Arabia Madduri Srinivasarao, Purdue University, USA Mohamed Abass, Ain Shams University, Egypt Mustafa Oguzhan Kaya, Siirt University, Turkey Nejib Hussein Mekni, Al Manar University, Tunisia Praveen Kumar, Texas Tech University, USA Qun Ye, Institute of Materials Reseach and Engineering, Singapore R. K. Dey, Birla Institute of Technology (BIT), India Rabia Rehman, University of the Punjab, Pakistan Rodrigo Vieira Rodrigues, University of S&atilde;o Paulo, Brazil Saurav Sarma, University of Columbia Missouri, USA Sitaram Acharya, Texas Christian University, USA Syed A. A. Rizvi, Nova Southeastern University, USA Vijay Ramalingam, Columbia University, USA Zhixin Tian, Tongji University, China &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Albert John On behalf of, The Editorial Board of International Journal of Chemistry Canadian Center of Science and Education

Introduction The IARC (1987)1 has classified arsenic as a group 1 human carcinogen. Chronic exposure to inorganic arsenic can cause cancerous1-4 and non-cancerous health hazards5,6 in humans. Arsenic can get entry into the human body via drinking water, eating food, inhaling dust, and/or ingesting soil. An important limitation on the scientific understanding of arsenic toxicity is the complexity of arsenic metabolism. Differences in susceptibility to arsenic toxicity might be manifested by differences in arsenic metabolism or in the prevalence of arsenic-associated diseases among people of either gender, ages, nutritional factors, polymorphisms of the arsenic biotransformation genes in different ethnic group7,8 and may other unknown factors. Previous studies indicated that females are less susceptible to the arsenic related skin effects than males9-11. Normally, children do not show skin lesions compared to adults when both are drinking same arsenic contaminated water12. The main organ for arsenic metabolism is the liver, but the metabolic pathway of inorganic arsenic is not yet fully clarified7,8. It was thought that the conversion of iAs into methylated arsenic reduced exposure to this toxic effect; that is, methylation was a detoxification process of iAs 13. But now a days, it is clear that some of the metabolites (trivalent forms) are more toxic than others 14, 15. Trivalent arsenic species are more ready to cross cell membrane and inorganic pentavalent arsenate in mostly reduced to trivalent arsenite in the blood stream before entering the cells for further metabolism16,17. Inorg-As is metabolized in the body by alternating reduction of pentavalent arsenic to trivalent form by enzymes and addition of a methyl group from S-adenosylmethionine7,18; it is excreted mainly in urine as DMA (V)19. Inorganic arsenate [Inorg-As (V)] is biotransformed to Inorg-As (III), MMA (V), MMA (III), DMA (V), and DMA (III) (Fig.)7. Therefore, the study of the toxicology of Inorg-As (V) involves at least these six chemical forms of arsenic. Studies reported the presence of 3+ oxidation state arsenic biotransformants [MMA (III) and DMA (III)] in human urine20 and in animal tissues21. The MMA (III) and DMA (III) are more toxic than other arsenicals22,23. In particular MMA (III) is highly toxic22,23. In increased % MMA in urine has been recognized in arsenic toxicity24. In addition, people with a small % MMA in urine show less retention of arsenic25. Thus, the higher prevalence of toxic effects with increased % MMA in urine could be attributed to the presence of toxic MMA (III) in the tissue. Previous studies also indicated that males are more susceptible to the As related skin effects than females24,26. A study in the U.S population reported that females excreted a lower % Inorg-As as well as % MMA, and a higher % DMA than did males27. Another study in Bangladesh reported that the average total urinary arsenic metabolites in children’s urine is higher than adults and total arsenic excretion per kg body weight is also higher for children than adults 12. It has been observed that inorganic arsenic (In-As) in average is 2.36% and MMA is 6.55% lower for children than adults while DMA is 8.91% (average) higher in children than adults. Figure. Biotransformation of inorganic arsenic. The efficiency of the methylation process is also assessed by the ratio between urinary concentration of putative product and putative substrate of the arsenic metabolic pathway. Higher values mean higher methylation capacity. Results show the values of the MMA/In-As ratio for adults and children are 0.93 and 0.74, respectively 12. These results indicate that first reaction of the metabolic pathway is more active in adults than children. But a significant increase in the values of the DMA/MMA ratio in children than adults of exposed group (8.15 vs. 4.11, respectively) indicates 2nd methylation step is more active in children than adults. It has also been shown that the distribution of the values of DMA/MMA ratio to exposed group decrease with increasing age (2nd methylation process). Thus, from these results we may infer those children retain less arsenic in their body than adults. This may also explain why children do not show skin lesions compared to adults when both are drinking same contaminated water. To date, metal or metalloids that may influence arsenic methylation are largely unknown. A study reported that the concentrations of trace elements (for examples: Se, Mn, Hg, etc.) relative to As in urine and blood were positively correlated with urinary % inorg As as well as % MMA, and negatively correlated with % DMA as well as the ratios of % DMA to % MMA. The results also suggest that Se, Mn as well as Hg may decrease arsenic methylation with decreasing creatinine formation for both males and females, but it could be concentration dependent 28. References IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer). 1987. In IARC Monograph on the Evaluation of Carcinogenicity Risk to Humans. Overall Evaluation of Carcinogenicity: An Update of IARC Monographs 1-42 (Suppl. 7). Lyon, France: International Agency for Research on Cancer, pp. 100-106. NRC (National Research Council). 2001. Arsenic in Drinking Water. Update to the 1999 Arsenic in Drinking Water Report. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. Chen, C.J., Chen, C.W., Wu, M.M., Kuo, T.L. 1992. Cancer potential in liver, lung, bladder, and kidney due to ingested inorganic arsenic in drinking water. Br. J. Cancer 66, 888-892. Rossman, T.G., Uddin, A.N., Burns, F.J. 2004. Evidence that arsenite acts as a cocarcinogen in skin cancer. Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol. 198, 394-404. Huang, Y.K., Tseng, C.H., Huang, Y.L., Yang, M.H., Chen, C.J., Hsueh, Y.M. 2007. Arsenic methylation capacity and hypertension risk in subjects living in arseniasis-hyperendemic areas in southwestern Taiwan, Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol. 218, 135-182. Tseng, C.H. 2007. Metabolism of inorganic arsenic and non-cancerous health hazards associated with chronic exposure in humans. J. Environ. Biol. 28, 349-357. Aposhian, H.V., Aposhian, M.M., 2006. Arsenic toxicology: Five questions. Chem. Res. Toxicol. 19, 1-15. Tseng, C.H. 2009. A review on environmental factors regulating arsenic methylation in humans. Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol. 235, 338-350. Guha Mazumder, D.N., Haque, R., Ghosh, N., De, B.K., Santra, A., Chakraborti, D., Smith, A.H., 1998. Arsenic levels in drinking water and the prevalence of skin lesions in West Bengal, India. Int. J. Epidemiol. 27, 871-877. Lindberg, A.-L., Rahman, M., Persson, L.-A., Vahter, M., 2008a. The risk of arsenic induced skin lesions in Bangladeshi men and women is affected by arsenic metabolism and the age at first exposure. Toxicol. Appl. Pharmacol. 230, 9-16. Vahter, M., Akesson, A., Liden, C., Ceccatelli, S., Berglund, M., 2007. Gender differences in the disposition and toxicity of metals. Environ. Res. 104, 85-95. Chowdhury, U.K., Rahman, M.M., Sengupta, M.K., Lodh, D., Chanda, C.R., Roy, S., Quamruzzaman, Q., Tokunaga, H., Ando, M., Chakraborti, D., 2003. Pattern of Excretion of ArsenicCompounds [Arsenite, Arsenate, MMA(V), DMA(V)] in Urine of Children Compared to Adults froman Arsenic Exposed Area in Bangladesh, Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part A,38:1, 87-113, DOI: 10.1081/ESE-120016883 Thomas, D.J. 2021. Arsenic methylation-Lessons from three decades of research. Toxocol., 457, 1-7. Styblo, M., Del Razo, L. M., Vega, L., Germolec, D. R., LeCluyse, E. L., Hamilton, G. A., Reed, , Wang, C., Cullen, W. R., Thomas, D.J., 2000. Comparative toxicity of trivalent and pentavalent inorganic and methylated arsenicals in rat and human cells. Arch. Toxicol., 74, 289-299. Petrick, J. S., Jagadish, B., Mash, E. A., Aposhian, H. V., 2001. Monomethylarsonous acid (MMAIII) and arsenite: LD50 in hamsters and in vitro inhibition of pyruvate dehydrogenase. Ch Res. Toxicol. 14, 651-656. Cohen, S.M., Arnold, L.L., Eldan, M., Lewis, A.S., Beck, B.D., 2006. Methylated arsenicals: the implications of metabolism and carcinogenicity studies in rodents to human risk assessment. Crit. Rev. Toxicol. 36, 99-133. Vahter, M., 2002. Mechanisms of arsenic biotransformation. Toxicology, 181-182, 211-217. Aposhian, H. V., 1997. Enzymatic methylation of arsenic species and other new approaches to arsenic toxicity. An Rev. Pharmacol. Toxicol. 37, 397-419. Vahter, M., 1999. Variation in human metabolism of arsenic. In: Abernathy, C. O., Calderon, R. L., Chappell, W. R., (eds) Arsenic exposure and Health effect Elsevier Science, New York, pp 267-279. Aposhian, H. V., Gurzau, E. , Le, X. C., Gurzau, A., Healy, S. M., Lu, X., Ma, M., Yip, L., Zakharyan, R. A., Maiorino, R. M., Dart, R. C., Tircus, M. G., Gonzalez-Ramirez, D., Morgan, D. L., Avram, D., Aposhian, M. M., 2000. Occurrence of monomethylarsonous acid in urine of humans exposed to inorganic arsenic. Chem. Res. Toxicol. 13, 693-697. Chowdhury, U. K., Zakharyan, R. A., Hernandez, A., Avram, M.D., Kopplin, M. J., Aposhian, H. V., 2006. Glutathione-S-transferase-omega [MMA (V) reductase] knockout mice: Enzyme and arsenic species concentrations in tissues after arsenate administration. Appl. Pharmacol. 216, 446-457. Styblo, M., Del Razo, L. M., Vega, L., Germolec, D. R., LeCluyse, E. L., Hamilton, G. A., Reed, , Wang, C., Cullen, W. R., Thomas, D.J., 2000. Comparative toxicity of trivalent and pentavalent inorganic and methylated arsenicals in rat and human cells. Arch. Toxicol., 74, 289-299. Petrick, J. S., Jagadish, B., Mash, E. A., Aposhian, H. V., 2001. Monomethylarsonous acid (MMAIII) and arsenite: LD50 in hamsters and in vitro inhibition of pyruvate dehydrogenase. Ch Res. Toxicol. 14, 651-656. Lindberg, A. L., Rahman, M., Persson, L. A., Vahter, M., 2008. The risk of arsenic induced skin lesions in Bangladeshi men and women is affected by arsenic metabolism and the age at first exposure. Appl. Pharmacol. 230, 9-16. Vahter, M., 2002. Mechanisms of arsenic biotransformation. Toxicology, 181-182, 211-217. Chen, Y. C., Guo, Y. L., Su, H. J., Hsueh, Y. M., Smith, T. J., Ryan, L. M., Lee, M. S., Chao, S. C., Lee, J. Y., Christiani, D. C., 200 Arsenic methylation and skin cancer risk in southwestern Taiwan. J. Occup. Environ. Med. 45, 241-248. Steinmaus, C., Carrigan, K., Kalman, D., Atallah, R., Yuan, Y., Smith, A.H., 20 Dietary intake and arsenic methylation in a U.S. population. Environ. Health Perspect. 113, 1153-1159. 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ABSTRACT: Asia is the second region after Africa to have the tallest prevalence of stunting in the world. Indonesia is one of the countries in Southeast Asia with the fifth highest prevalence of stunting in the world at 37%, or nearly 9 million children who experience stunting. This study aims to examine the factors that influence and risk the occurrence of stunting in children in Indonesia. The research method uses a type of qualitative research with a traditional literature review. This study found that stunting is influenced by several complex factors not only at the individual level but also at the family and community levels. A comprehensive synthesis of the available evidence on the determinants of stunting in children in Indonesia outlines who is most vulnerable to stunting, which interventions are successful, and what new research is needed to fill knowledge gaps. Keywords: Indonesian toddlers, stunting factors References: Adair, L. S., & Guilkey, D. K. (1997). 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Our studies have indicated that the relative concentration of Se or Hg to As in urine and blood positively correlates with percentage of inorganic arsenic (% Inorg-As) and percentage of monomethlyarsonic acid [% MMA (V)]. We also found a negative correlation with percentage of dimethylarsinic acid [% DMA (V)] and the ratio of % DMA (V) to % MMA (V). In another study, we found that a group of proteins were significantly over expressed and conversely other groups were under-expressed in tissues in Na-As (III) treated hamsters. Introduction.Inorganic arsenic (Inorg-As) in drinking water.One of the largest public health problems at present is the drinking of water containing levels of Inorg-As that are known to be carcinogenic. At least 200 million people globally are at risk of dying because of arsenic (As) in their drinking water1-3. The chronic ingestion of Inorg-As can results in skin cancer, bladder cancer, lung cancer, and cancer of other organs1-3. The maximum contamination level (MCL) of U.S. drinking water for arsenic is 10 ug/L. The arsenic related public health problem in the U.S. is not at present anywhere near that of India4, Bangladesh4, and other countries5. Metabolism and toxicity of Inorg-As and arsenic species.Inorg-As is metabolized in the body by alternating reduction of pentavalent arsenic to trivalent form by enzymes and addition of a methyl group from S-adenosylmethionine6, 7; it is excreted mainly in urine as DMA (V)8. Inorganic arsenate [Inorg-As (V)]is biotransformed to Inorg-As (III), MMA (V), MMA (III), DMA (V), and DMA (III)6(Fig. 1). Therefore, the study of the toxicology of Inorg-As (V) involves at least these six chemical forms of arsenic. Studies reported the presence of 3+ oxidation state arsenic biotransformants [MMA (III) and DMA (III)] in human urine9and in animal tissues10. The MMA (III) and DMA (III) are more toxic than other arsenicals11, 12. In particular MMA (III) is highly toxic11, 12. In increased % MMA in urine has been recognized in arsenic toxicity13. In addition, people with a small % MMA in urine show less retention of arsenic14. Thus, the higher prevalence of toxic effects with increased % MMA in urine could be attributed to the presence of toxic MMA (III) in the tissue. Previous studies also indicated that males are more susceptible to the As related skin effects than females13, 15. A study in the U.S population reported that females excreted a lower % Inorg-As as well as % MMA, and a higher % DMA than did males16. Abbreviation: SAM, S-adenosyl-L-methionine; SAHC, S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine. Differences in susceptibility to arsenic toxicity might be manifested by differences in arsenic metabolism among people. Several factors (for examples, genetic factors, sex, duration and dosage of exposure, nutritional and dietary factors, etc.) could be influence for biotransformation of Inorg-As,6, 17 and other unknown factors may also be involved. The interaction between As, Se, and Hg.The toxicity of one metal or metalloid can be dramatically modulated by the interaction with other toxic and essential elements18. Arsenic and Hg are toxic elements, and Se is required to maintain good health19. But Se is also toxic at high levels20. Recent reports point out the increased risk of squamous cell carcinoma and non-melanoma skin cancer in those treated with 200 ug/day of selenium (Nutritional Prevention of Cancer Trial in the United States)21. However, it is well known that As and Se as well as Se and Hg act as antagonists22. It was also reported that Inorg-As (III) influenced the interaction between selenite and methyl mercury23. A possible molecular link between As, Se, and Hg has been proposed by Korbas et al. (2008)24. The identifying complexes between the interaction of As and Se, Se and Hg as well as As, Se, and Hg in blood of rabbit are shown in Table 1. Influence of Se and Hg on the metabolism of Inorg-As.The studies have reported that Se supplementation decreased the As-induced toxicity25, 26. The concentrations of urinary Se expressed as ug/L were negatively correlated with urinary % Inorg-As and positively correlated with % DMA27. The study did not address the urinary creatinine adjustment27. Other researchers suggested that Se and Hg decreased As methylation28-31(Table 2). They also suggested that the synthesis of DMA from MMA might be more susceptible to inhibition by Se (IV)29 as well as by Hg (II)30,31 compared to the production of MMA from Inorg-As (III). The inhibitory effects of Se and Hg were concentration dependent28-31. The literature suggests that reduced methylation capacity with increased % MMA (V), decreased % DMA (V), or decreased ratios of % DMA to % MMA in urine is positively associated with various lesions32. Lesions include skin cancer and bladder cancer32. The results were obtained from inorganic arsenic exposed subjects32. Our concern involves the combination of low arsenic (As) and high selenium (Se) ingestion. This can inhibit methylation of arsenic to take it to a toxic level in the tissue. Dietary sources of Se and Hg.Global selenium (Se) source are vegetables in the diet. In the United States, meat and bread are the common source. Selenium deficiency in the US is rare. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has found toxic levels of Se in dietary supplements, up to 200 times greater than the amount stated on the label33. The samples contained up to 40,800 ug Se per recommended serving. For the general population, the most important pathway of exposure to mercury (Hg) is ingestion of methyl mercury in foods. Fish (including tuna, a food commonly eaten by children), other seafood, and marine mammals contain the highest concentrations. The FDA has set a maximum permissible level of 1 ppm of methyl mercury in the seafood34. The people also exposed mercury via amalgams35. Proteomic study of Inorg-As (III) injury.Proteomics is a powerful tool developed to enhance the study of complex biological system36. This technique has been extensively employed to investigate the proteome response of cells to drugs and other diseases37, 38. A proteome analysis of the Na-As (III) response in cultured lung cells found in vitro oxidative stress-induced apoptosis39. However, to our knowledge, no in vivo proteomic study of Inorg-As (III) has yet been conducted to improve our understanding of the cellular proteome response to Inorg-As (III) except our preliminary study 40. Preliminary Studies: Results and DiscussionThe existing data (Fig. 1) from our laboratory and others show the complex nature of Inorg-As metabolism. For many years, the major way to study, arsenic (As) metabolism was to measure InorgAs (V), Inorg-As (III), MMA (V), and DMA (V) in urine of people chronically exposed to As in their drinking water. Our investigations demonstrated for the first time that MMA (III) and DMA (III) are found in human urine9. Also we have identified MMA (III) and DMA (III) in the tissues of mice and hamsters exposed to sodium arsenate [Na-As (V)]10, 41. Influence of Se as well as Hg on the As methyltransferase.We have reported that Se (IV) as well as mercuric chloride (HgCl2) inhibited As (III) methyltransferase and MMA (III) methyltransferase in rabbit liver cytosol. Mercuric chloride was found to be a more potent inhibitor of MMA (III) methyltransferase than As (III) methyltransferase30. These results suggested that Se and Hg decreased arsenic methylation. The inhibitory effects of Se and Hg were concentration dependent30. Influence of Se and Hg in urine and blood on the percentage of urinary As metabolites.Our human studies indicated that the ratios of the concentrations of Se or Hg to As in urine and blood were positively correlated with % Inorg-As and % MMA (V). But it negatively correlated with % DMA (V) and the ratios of % DMA (V) to % MMA (V) in urine of both males and females (unpublished data) (Table 3). These results confirmed that the inhibitory effects of Se as well as Hg for the methylation of Inorg-As in humans were concentration dependent. We also found that the concentrations of Se and Hg were negatively correlated with % Inorg-As and % MMA (V). Conversely it correlated positively with % DMA (V) and the ratios of % DMA (V) to % MMA (V) in urine of both sexes (unpublished data). These correlations were not statistically significant when urinary concentrations of Se and Hg were adjusted for urinary creatinine (Table 3). Interactions of As, Se, Hg and its relationship with methylation of arsenic are summarized in Figure 2. Sex difference distribution of arsenic species in urine.Our results indicate that females have more methylation capacity of arsenic as compared to males. In our human studies (n= 191) in Mexico, we found that females (n= 98) had lower % MMA (p<0.001) and higher % DMA (p=0.006) when compared to males (n= 93) (Fig. 3). The means ratio of % MMA (V) to % Inorg-As and % DMA (V) to %MMA (V) were also lower (p<0.05) and higher (p<0.001), respectively in females compared to males. The protein expression profiles in the tissues of hamsters exposed to Na-As (III).In our preliminary studies40, hamsters were exposed to Na-As (III) (173 pg/ml as As) in their drinking water for 6 days and control hamsters were given only the water used to make the solutions for the experimental animals. After DIGE (Two-dimensional differential in gel electrophoresis) and analysis by the DeCyder software, several protein spots were found to be over-expressed (red spot) and several were under expressed (green spot) as compared to control (Figs. 4a-c). Three proteins (one was over-expressed and two were under-expressed) of each tissue (liver and urinary bladder) were identified by LC-MS/MS (liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry).DIGE in combination with LC-MS/MS is a powerful tool that may help cancer investigators to understand the molecular mechanisms of cancer progression due to Inorg-As. Propose a new researchThese results suggested that selenium (Se) as well as mercury (Hg) may influence the methylation of Inorg-As and this influence could be dependent on the concentration of Se, Hg and/or the sex of the animal. Our study also suggested that the identification and functional assignment of the expressed proteins in the tissues of Inorg-As (III) exposed animals will be useful for understanding and helping to formulate a theory dealing with the molecular events of arsenic toxicity and carcinogenicity.Therefore, it would be very useful if we could do a research study with combination of Inorg-arsenic, Se, and Hg. The new research protocol could be the following:For metabolic processing, hamsters provide a good animal model. For carcinogenesis, mouse model is well accepted. The aims of this project are: 1) To map the differential distributions of arsenic (As) metabolites/species in relation to selenium (Se) and mercury (Hg) levels in male and female hamsters and 2) To chart the protein expression profile and identify the defense proteins in mice and hamsters after As injury. Experimental hamsters (male or female) will include four groups. The first group will be treated with Na arseniteNa-As(III), the second group with Na-As (III) and Na-selenite (Na-Se (IV)], the third group with Na As (III) and methyl mercuric chloride (MeHgCl), and the final group with Na-As (III), Na-Se (IV), and MeHgci at different levels. Urine and tissue will be collected at different time periods and measured for As species using high performance liquid chromatography/inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (HPLC/ICP-MS). For proteomics, mice (male and female) and hamsters (male and female) will be exposed to Na-As (III)at different levels in tap water, and control mice and hamsters will be given only the tap water. Tissue will be harvested at different time periods. TWO dimensional differential in gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) combined with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) will be employed to identify the expressed protein. In summary, we intend to extend our findings to: 1) Differential distribution of As metabolites in kidney, liver, lung, and urinary bladder of male and female hamsters exposed to Na-As (III), and combined with Na-As (III) and Na-Se (IV) and/or MeHgCl at different levels and different time periods, 2) Show the correlation of As species distribution in the tissue and urine for both male and female hamsters treated with and without Na-Se (IV) and/or MeHgCl, and 3) Show protein expression profile and identify the defense proteins in the tissues (liver, lung, and urinary bladder epithelium) in mice after arsenic injury. The significance of this study: The results of which have the following significances: (A) Since Inorg-As is a human carcinogen, understanding how its metabolism is influenced by environmental factors may help understand its toxicity and carcinogenicity, (B) The interactions between arsenic (As), selenium (Se), and mercury (Hg) are of practical significance because populations in various parts of the world are simultaneously exposed to Inorg-As & Se and/or MeHg, (C) These interactions may inhibit the biotransformation of Inorg-As (III) which could increase the amount and toxicity of Inorg-As (III) and MMA (III) in the tissues, (D) Determination of arsenic species profile in the tissues after ingestion of Inorg-As (III), Se (IV), and/or MeHg+ will help understand the tissue specific influence of Se and Hg on Inorg-As (III) metabolism, (E) Correlation of arsenic species between tissue and urine might help to understand the tissue burden of arsenic species when researchers just know the distribution of arsenic species in urine, (F) The identification of the defense proteins (over-expressed and under-expressed) in the tissues of the mouse may lead to understanding the mechanisms of inorganic arsenic injury in human. 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The South Asia region consists of Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Maldives and Sri Lanka. The population of South Asia is about 1.891 billion or about 1/4 of the world population, making it both the most populous and the most densely populated largest geographical region in the world. In 2010, South Asia had the world’s largest population of Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Jains and Christians. South Asia alone account for 98.47% Hindus, 90.5% of Sikhs, and 31% of Muslims worldwide, as well as 35,000,000 Christians and 25,000,000 Buddhists. Despite their diversity, South Asian countries have been at the heart of the persecution of minorities since independence. Different pattern of minority exploitation can be seen in South Asian countries such as Afghanistan, Bhutan and Maldives.

The article is a brief report of transformation of the indigenous religion of the autochthonous tribal people of the North East Indian State of Tripura who were inhabited in the state since the primitive age. In course of time thousands of non tribe people from the neighboring districts of the then East Pakistan or today’s Bangladesh migrated and settle in Tripura. As a result, this migration made a bold effort on the religious life of the tribes of Tripura and the process of religious transformation had taken part seriously. Within a century that is 20th century the tribes of Tripura religiously converted from indigenous practice to Hinduism or Christianity as a whole. It is unfortunate that scholar’s attention has not been focused on this aspect. The present study aims at bring about the real fact by examining authentic sources and materials.

Abstract It is unclear if links between religiosity and mental health are found in contexts outside the US or are causal. We examined differences in mental wellbeing and associations between mental wellbeing and religiosity among the religiously unaffiliated, white and non-white Christians, Muslims of Pakistani, Bangladeshi and other ethnicities, and other minority ethnoreligious groups. We used four waves of Understanding Society, a UK longitudinal household panel (2009–2013, N=50922). We adjusted for potential confounders (including socioeconomic factors and personality) and for household fixed effects to account for household level unobserved confounding factors. Compared with those with no religious affiliation, Pakistani and Bangladeshi Muslims and members of other minority religions had worse wellbeing (as measured by Shortened Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS) and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ)). Higher subjective importance of religion was associated with lower wellbeing according to GHQ; associations were not found with SWEMWBS. More frequent religious service attendance was associated with higher wellbeing; effect sizes were larger for those with religious affiliations. These associations were only partially attenuated by adjustment for potential confounding factors including household fixed effects. Religious service attendance and/or its secular alternatives may have a role in improving population-wide mental wellbeing.

This article examines Basil Anthony Moreau’s philosophy of education, and particularly his idea of Christian education. Moreau is the founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross that has been working on education and evangelization since 1853 in different countries of the world including Bangladesh. His philosophy of education plays a significant role in guiding and running Holy Cross educational institutions across the globe. Moreau’s educational philosophy envisioned three aims for all students in Holy Cross education: to develop the necessary skills and knowledge to function in the world and the hereafter; to nurture an appreciation for individual responsibility and social connectedness to advance social justice issues; to stimulate those critical dispositions of mind and heart essential to the sustenance of a peaceful society. He had the vision to educate both the hearts and minds of Christian students to grow in Christ’s love and make the world a better place. His views on education also have inspired Holy Cross education the pursuit of academic excellence within a family’s atmosphere that binds the student, faculty, staff, and alumni. Although Holy Cross educators did not implement the specific teaching methods of Moreau in all of their institutions, Moreau’s views laid the foundation of educational philosophy in Holy Cross education. Philosophy and Progress, Vol#63-64-; No#1-2; Jan-Dec 2018 P 65-80

Delwar Hussain, Boundaries Undermined: The Ruin of Progress on the Bangladesh-India Border Shelley FeldmanTing Chang, Travel, Collecting, and Museums of Asian Art in Nineteenth-Century Paris Michelle AntoinetteFelicity Barnes, New Zealand's London: A Colony and its Metropolis Frances SteelGauitra Bahadur, The Coolie Woman: The Odyssey of Indenture Vidhya RaveendranathanLee Rainie and Barry Wellman, Networked: The New Social Operating System Ulla AutenriethMelina Piglia, Autos, rutas y turismo: El Automóvil Club Argentino y el estado Rodrigo BoothLorenz J. Finison, Boston's Cycling Craze, 1880-1900: A Story of Race, Sport, and Society Luis VivancoRoland Wenzlhuemer, Connecting the Nineteenth-Century World: The Telegraph and Globalization Christian Holtorf, Der erste Draht zur Neuen Welt: Die Verlegung des transatlantischen Telegrafenkabels Regine BuschauerColin Pooley, Tim Jones, Miles Tight, Dave Horton, Griet Scheldeman, Caroline Mullen, Ann Jopson and Emanuele Strano, Promoting Walking and Cycling: New Perspectives on Sustainable Travel Melody L. HoffmannJon Shaw and Iain Docherty, The Transport Debate Rachel AldredNOVEL REVIEW Rachel Kushner, The Flamethrowers: A Novel Sunny Stalter-Pace

The study was conducted among Intervida beneficiaries (Students) on October 2010. Total number of students was 46. The purpose of the study was to assess the nutritional status and dietary intake of the orphan children. All of the children were abandoned and got admitted to the ICH within one year of age. Among them 89.1% were Muslim, 2.2% were Christian and 8.7% were Hindu. 8.70 % students got enrolled in special education as they were either physically or mentally disabled. The mean±Sd of age, height and weight were 104.65±16.51 months, 126.37±6.98cm and 26.87±6.98kg respectively. While BMI was considered, it was found that 60.87% (28) students were normal, 21.74% (10) student were overweight, 6.5% (3) students were and 10.87% (5) students were underweight. Considering HAZ (Height for age Z-score), 89.1% (41) were normal, 8.7% (4) Stunted and 2.2% (1) tall. While WAZ (Weight for age Z-score) was considered, 84.8% (39) were normal, 2.2% (1) was overweight and 13% (6) were underweight. On the other hand, when, WHZ(Weight for Height Z-score) was used, it was found that 83.8% (31) students were normal, 8.1% (3) student were overweight , 5.4% (2) students were obese and 2.7% (1) student was Wasted. The mean calorie, protein, carbohydrate and fat intake were 2270 kcal, 65 gram, 335 gram and 73 gram respectively. Carbohydrate, protein and fat provided 59%, 12% and 29% of total calorie respectively. Average intake of calcium, iron, vitamin A, carotene, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, niacin, vitamin C and zinc intake was 826 mg, 31 mg, 6462 IU, 10508 ?g, 1.60 mg , 1.64 mg, 19 mg , 111 mg and 10.2 mg respectively. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjnut.v24i0.14034 Bangladesh J. Nutr. Vol. 24-25 Dec 2011-2012 pp.23-30

Introduction I am a transmigrant who has moved back and forth between the West and the Rest. I was born and raised in a Muslim family in a predominantly Muslim country, Bangladesh, but I spent several years of my childhood in Pakistan. After my marriage, I lived in the United States for a year and a half, the Middle East for 5 years, Australia for three years, back to the Middle East for another 5 years, then, finally, in Australia for the last 12 years. I speak Bengali (my mother tongue), Urdu (which I learnt in Pakistan), a bit of Arabic (learnt in the Middle East); but English has always been my medium of instruction. So where is home? Is it my place of origin, the Muslim umma, or my land of settlement? Or is it my ‘root’ or my ‘route’ (Blunt and Dowling)? Blunt and Dowling (199) observe that the lives of transmigrants are often interpreted in terms of their ‘roots’ and ‘routes’, which are two frameworks for thinking about home, homeland and diaspora. Whereas ‘roots’ might imply an original homeland from which people have scattered, and to which they might seek to return, ‘routes’ focuses on mobile, multiple and transcultural geographies of home. However, both ‘roots’ and ‘routes’ are attached to emotion and identity, and both invoke a sense of place, belonging or alienation that is intrinsically tied to a sense of self (Blunt and Dowling 196-219). In this paper, I equate home with my root (place of birth) and route (transnational homing) within the context of the ‘diaspora and belonging’. First I define the diaspora and possible criteria of belonging. Next I describe my transnational homing within the framework of diaspora and belonging. Finally, I consider how Australia can be a ‘home’ for me and other Muslim Australians. The Diaspora and Belonging Blunt and Dowling (199) define diaspora as “scattering of people over space and transnational connections between people and the places”. Cohen emphasised the ethno-cultural aspects of the diaspora setting; that is, how migrants identify and position themselves in other nations in terms of their (different) ethnic and cultural orientation. Hall argues that the diasporic subjects form a cultural identity through transformation and difference. Speaking of the Hindu diaspora in the UK and Caribbean, Vertovec (21-23) contends that the migrants’ contact with their original ‘home’ or diaspora depends on four factors: migration processes and factors of settlement, cultural composition, structural and political power, and community development. With regard to the first factor, migration processes and factors of settlement, Vertovec explains that if the migrants are political or economic refugees, or on a temporary visa, they are likely to live in a ‘myth of return’. In the cultural composition context, Vertovec argues that religion, language, region of origin, caste, and degree of cultural homogenisation are factors in which migrants are bound to their homeland. Concerning the social structure and political power issue, Vertovec suggests that the extent and nature of racial and ethnic pluralism or social stigma, class composition, degree of institutionalised racism, involvement in party politics (or active citizenship) determine migrants’ connection to their new or old home. Finally, community development, including membership in organisations (political, union, religious, cultural, leisure), leadership qualities, and ethnic convergence or conflict (trends towards intra-communal or inter-ethnic/inter-religious co-operation) would also affect the migrants’ sense of belonging. Using these scholarly ideas as triggers, I will examine my home and belonging over the last few decades. My Home In an initial stage of my transmigrant history, my home was my root (place of birth, Dhaka, Bangladesh). Subsequently, my routes (settlement in different countries) reshaped my homes. In all respects, the ethno-cultural factors have played a big part in my definition of ‘home’. But on some occasions my ethnic identification has been overridden by my religious identification and vice versa. By ethnic identity, I mean my language (mother tongue) and my connection to my people (Bangladeshi). By my religious identity, I mean my Muslim religion, and my spiritual connection to the umma, a Muslim nation transcending all boundaries. Umma refers to the Muslim identity and unity within a larger Muslim group across national boundaries. The only thing the members of the umma have in common is their Islamic belief (Spencer and Wollman 169-170). In my childhood my father, a banker, was relocated to Karachi, Pakistan (then West Pakistan). Although I lived in Pakistan for much of my childhood, I have never considered it to be my home, even though it is predominantly a Muslim country. In this case, my home was my root (Bangladesh) where my grandparents and extended family lived. Every year I used to visit my grandparents who resided in a small town in Bangladesh (then East Pakistan). Thus my connection with my home was sustained through my extended family, ethnic traditions, language (Bengali/Bangla), and the occasional visits to the landscape of Bangladesh. Smith (9-11) notes that people build their connection or identity to their homeland through their historic land, common historical memories, myths, symbols and traditions. Though Pakistan and Bangladesh had common histories, their traditions of language, dress and ethnic culture were very different. For example, the celebration of the Bengali New Year (Pohela Baishakh), folk dance, folk music and folk tales, drama, poetry, lyrics of poets Rabindranath Tagore (Rabindra Sangeet) and Nazrul Islam (Nazrul Geeti) are distinct in the cultural heritage of Bangladesh. Special musical instruments such as the banshi (a bamboo flute), dhol (drums), ektara (a single-stringed instrument) and dotara (a four-stringed instrument) are unique to Bangladeshi culture. The Bangladeshi cuisine (rice and freshwater fish) is also different from Pakistan where people mainly eat flat round bread (roti) and meat (gosh). However, my bonding factor to Bangladesh was my relatives, particularly my grandparents as they made me feel one of ‘us’. Their affection for me was irreplaceable. The train journey from Dhaka (capital city) to their town, Noakhali, was captivating. The hustle and bustle at the train station and the lush green paddy fields along the train journey reminded me that this was my ‘home’. Though I spoke the official language (Urdu) in Pakistan and had a few Pakistani friends in Karachi, they could never replace my feelings for my friends, extended relatives and cousins who lived in Bangladesh. I could not relate to the landscape or dry weather of Pakistan. More importantly, some Pakistani women (our neighbours) were critical of my mother’s traditional dress (saree), and described it as revealing because it showed a bit of her back. They took pride in their traditional dress (shalwar, kameez, dopatta), which they considered to be more covered and ‘Islamic’. So, because of our traditional dress (saree) and perhaps other differences, we were regarded as the ‘Other’. In 1970 my father was relocated back to Dhaka, Bangladesh, and I was glad to go home. It should be noted that both Pakistan and Bangladesh were separated from India in 1947 – first as one nation; then, in 1971, Bangladesh became independent from Pakistan. The conflict between Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) and Pakistan (then West Pakistan) originated for economic and political reasons. At this time I was a high school student and witnessed acts of genocide committed by the Pakistani regime against the Bangladeshis (March-December 1971). My memories of these acts are vivid and still very painful. After my marriage, I moved from Bangladesh to the United States. In this instance, my new route (Austin, Texas, USA), as it happened, did not become my home. Here the ethno-cultural and Islamic cultural factors took precedence. I spoke the English language, made some American friends, and studied history at the University of Texas. I appreciated the warm friendship extended to me in the US, but experienced a degree of culture shock. I did not appreciate the pub life, alcohol consumption, and what I perceived to be the lack of family bonds (children moving out at the age of 18, families only meeting occasionally on birthdays and Christmas). Furthermore, I could not relate to de facto relationships and acceptance of sex before marriage. However, to me ‘home’ meant a family orientation and living in close contact with family. Besides the cultural divide, my husband and I were living in the US on student visas and, as Vertovec (21-23) noted, temporary visa status can deter people from their sense of belonging to the host country. In retrospect I can see that we lived in the ‘myth of return’. However, our next move for a better life was not to our root (Bangladesh), but another route to the Muslim world of Dhahran in Saudi Arabia. My husband moved to Dhahran not because it was a Muslim world but because it gave him better economic opportunities. However, I thought this new destination would become my home – the home that was coined by Anderson as the imagined nation, or my Muslim umma. Anderson argues that the imagined communities are “to be distinguished, not by their falsity/genuineness, but by the style in which they are imagined” (6; Wood 61). Hall (122) asserts: identity is actually formed through unconscious processes over time, rather than being innate in consciousness at birth. There is always something ‘imaginary’ or fantasized about its unity. It always remains incomplete, is always ‘in process’, always ‘being formed’. As discussed above, when I had returned home to Bangladesh from Pakistan – both Muslim countries – my primary connection to my home country was my ethnic identity, language and traditions. My ethnic identity overshadowed the religious identity. But when I moved to Saudi Arabia, where my ethnic identity differed from that of the mainstream Arabs and Bedouin/nomadic Arabs, my connection to this new land was through my Islamic cultural and religious identity. Admittedly, this connection to the umma was more psychological than physical, but I was now in close proximity to Mecca, and to my home of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Mecca is an important city in Saudi Arabia for Muslims because it is the holy city of Islam, the home to the Ka’aba (the religious centre of Islam), and the birthplace of Prophet Muhammad [Peace Be Upon Him]. It is also the destination of the Hajj, one of the five pillars of Islamic faith. Therefore, Mecca is home to significant events in Islamic history, as well as being an important present day centre for the Islamic faith. We lived in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia for 5 years. Though it was a 2.5 hours flight away, I treasured Mecca’s proximity and regarded Dhahran as my second and spiritual home. Saudi Arabia had a restricted lifestyle for women, but I liked it because it was a Muslim country that gave me the opportunity to perform umrah Hajj (pilgrimage). However, Saudi Arabia did not allow citizenship to expatriates. Saudi Arabia’s government was keen to protect the status quo and did not want to compromise its cultural values or standard of living by allowing foreigners to become a permanent part of society. In exceptional circumstances only, the King granted citizenship to a foreigner for outstanding service to the state over a number of years. Children of foreigners born in Saudi Arabia did not have rights of local citizenship; they automatically assumed the nationality of their parents. If it was available, Saudi citizenship would assure expatriates a secure and permanent living in Saudi Arabia; as it was, there was a fear among the non-Saudis that they would have to leave the country once their job contract expired. Under the circumstances, though my spiritual connection to Mecca was strong, my husband was convinced that Saudi Arabia did not provide any job security. So, in 1987 when Australia offered migration to highly skilled people, my husband decided to migrate to Australia for a better and more secure economic life. I agreed to his decision, but quite reluctantly because we were again moving to a non-Muslim part of the world, which would be culturally different and far away from my original homeland (Bangladesh). In Australia, we lived first in Brisbane, then Adelaide, and after three years we took our Australian citizenship. At that stage I loved the Barossa Valley and Victor Harbour in South Australia, and the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast in Queensland, but did not feel at home in Australia. We bought a house in Adelaide and I was a full time home-maker but was always apprehensive that my children (two boys) would lose their culture in this non-Muslim world. In 1990 we once again moved back to the Muslim world, this time to Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. My connection to this route was again spiritual. I valued the fact that we would live in a Muslim country and our children would be brought up in a Muslim environment. But my husband’s move was purely financial as he got a lucrative job offer in Muscat. We had another son in Oman. We enjoyed the luxurious lifestyle provided by my husband’s workplace and the service provided by the housemaid. I loved the beaches and freedom to drive my car, and I appreciated the friendly Omani people. I also enjoyed our frequent trips (4 hours flight) to my root, Dhaka, Bangladesh. So our children were raised within our ethnic and Islamic culture, remained close to my root (family in Dhaka), though they attended a British school in Muscat. But by the time I started considering Oman to be my second home, we had to leave once again for a place that could provide us with a more secure future. Oman was like Saudi Arabia; it employed expatriates only on a contract basis, and did not give them citizenship (not even fellow Muslims). So after 5 years it was time to move back to Australia. It was with great reluctance that I moved with my husband to Brisbane in 1995 because once again we were to face a different cultural context. As mentioned earlier, we lived in Brisbane in the late 1980s; I liked the weather, the landscape, but did not consider it home for cultural reasons. Our boys started attending expensive private schools and we bought a house in a prestigious Western suburb in Brisbane. Soon after arriving I started my tertiary education at the University of Queensland, and finished an MA in Historical Studies in Indian History in 1998. Still Australia was not my home. I kept thinking that we would return to my previous routes or the ‘imagined’ homeland somewhere in the Middle East, in close proximity to my root (Bangladesh), where we could remain economically secure in a Muslim country. But gradually I began to feel that Australia was becoming my ‘home’. I had gradually become involved in professional and community activities (with university colleagues, the Bangladeshi community and Muslim women’s organisations), and in retrospect I could see that this was an early stage of my ‘self-actualisation’ (Maslow). Through my involvement with diverse people, I felt emotionally connected with the concerns, hopes and dreams of my Muslim-Australian friends. Subsequently, I also felt connected with my mainstream Australian friends whose emotions and fears (9/11 incident, Bali bombing and 7/7 tragedy) were similar to mine. In late 1998 I started my PhD studies on the immigration history of Australia, with a particular focus on the historical settlement of Muslims in Australia. This entailed retrieving archival files and interviewing people, mostly Muslims and some mainstream Australians, and enquiring into relevant migration issues. I also became more active in community issues, and was not constrained by my circumstances. By circumstances, I mean that even though I belonged to a patriarchally structured Muslim family, where my husband was the main breadwinner, main decision-maker, my independence and research activities (entailing frequent interstate trips for data collection, and public speaking) were not frowned upon or forbidden (Khan 14-15); fortunately, my husband appreciated my passion for research and gave me his trust and support. This, along with the Muslim community’s support (interviews), and the wider community’s recognition (for example, the publication of my letters in Australian newspapers, interviews on radio and television) enabled me to develop my self-esteem and built up my bicultural identity as a Muslim in a predominantly Christian country and as a Bangladeshi-Australian. In 2005, for the sake of a better job opportunity, my husband moved to the UK, but this time I asserted that I would not move again. I felt that here in Australia (now in Perth) I had a job, an identity and a home. This time my husband was able to secure a good job back in Australia and was only away for a year. I no longer dream of finding a home in the Middle East. Through my bicultural identity here in Australia I feel connected to the wider community and to the Muslim umma. However, my attachment to the umma has become ambivalent. I feel proud of my Australian-Muslim identity but I am concerned about the jihadi ideology of militant Muslims. By jihadi ideology, I mean the extremist ideology of the al-Qaeda terrorist group (Farrar 2007). The Muslim umma now incorporates both moderate and radical Muslims. The radical Muslims (though only a tiny minority of 1.4 billion Muslims worldwide) pose a threat to their moderate counterparts as well as to non-Muslims. In the UK, some second- and third-generation Muslims identify themselves with the umma rather than their parents’ homelands or their country of birth (Husain). It should not be a matter of concern if these young Muslims adopt a ‘pure’ Muslim identity, providing at the same time they are loyal to their country of residence. But when they resort to terrorism with their ‘pure’ Muslim identity (e.g., the 7/7 London bombers) they defame my religion Islam, and undermine my spiritual connection to the umma. As a 1st generation immigrant, the defining criteria of my ‘homeliness’ in Australia are my ethno-cultural and religious identity (which includes my family), my active citizenship, and my community development/contribution through my research work – all of which allow me a sense of efficacy in my life. My ethnic and religious identities generally co-exist equally, but when I see some Muslims kill my fellow Australians (such as the Bali bombings in 2002 and 2005) my Australian identity takes precedence. I feel for the victims and condemn the perpetrators. On the other hand, when I see politics play a role over the human rights issues (e.g., the Tampa incident), my religious identity begs me to comment on it (see Kabir, Muslims in Australia 295-305). Problematising ‘Home’ for Muslim Australians In the European context, Grillo (863) and Werbner (904), and in the Australian context, Kabir (Muslims in Australia) and Poynting and Mason, have identified the diversity within Islam (national, ethnic, religious etc). Werbner (904) notes that in spite of the “wishful talk of the emergence of a ‘British Islam’, even today there are Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Arab mosques, as well as Turkish and Shia’a mosques”; thus British Muslims retain their separate identities. Similarly, in Australia, the existence of separate mosques for the Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Arab and Shia’a peoples indicates that Australian Muslims have also kept their ethnic identities discrete (Saeed 64-77). However, in times of crisis, such as the Salman Rushdie affair in 1989, and the 1990-1991 Gulf crises, both British and Australian Muslims were quick to unite and express their Islamic identity by way of resistance (Kabir, Muslims in Australia 160-162; Poynting and Mason 68-70). In both British and Australian contexts, I argue that a peaceful rally or resistance is indicative of active citizenship of Muslims as it reveals their sense of belonging (also Werbner 905). So when a transmigrant Muslim wants to make a peaceful demonstration, the Western world should be encouraged, not threatened – as long as the transmigrant’s allegiances lie also with the host country. In the European context, Grillo (868) writes: when I asked Mehmet if he was planning to stay in Germany he answered without hesitation: ‘Yes, of course’. And then, after a little break, he added ‘as long as we can live here as Muslims’. In this context, I support Mehmet’s desire to live as a Muslim in a non-Muslim world as long as this is peaceful. Paradoxically, living a Muslim life through ijtihad can be either socially progressive or destructive. The Canadian Muslim feminist Irshad Manji relies on ijtihad, but so does Osama bin Laden! Manji emphasises that ijtihad can be, on the one hand, the adaptation of Islam using independent reasoning, hybridity and the contesting of ‘traditional’ family values (c.f. Doogue and Kirkwood 275-276, 314); and, on the other, ijtihad can take the form of conservative, patriarchal and militant Islamic values. The al-Qaeda terrorist Osama bin Laden espouses the jihadi ideology of Sayyid Qutb (1906-1966), an Egyptian who early in his career might have been described as a Muslim modernist who believed that Islam and Western secular ideals could be reconciled. But he discarded that idea after going to the US in 1948-50; there he was treated as ‘different’ and that treatment turned him against the West. He came back to Egypt and embraced a much more rigid and militaristic form of Islam (Esposito 136). Other scholars, such as Cesari, have identified a third orientation – a ‘secularised Islam’, which stresses general beliefs in the values of Islam and an Islamic identity, without too much concern for practices. Grillo (871) observed Islam in the West emphasised diversity. He stressed that, “some [Muslims were] more quietest, some more secular, some more clamorous, some more negotiatory”, while some were exclusively characterised by Islamic identity, such as wearing the burqa (elaborate veils), hijabs (headscarves), beards by men and total abstinence from drinking alcohol. So Mehmet, cited above, could be living a Muslim life within the spectrum of these possibilities, ranging from an integrating mode to a strict, militant Muslim manner. In the UK context, Zubaida (96) contends that marginalised, culturally-impoverished youth are the people for whom radical, militant Islamism may have an appeal, though it must be noted that the 7/7 bombers belonged to affluent families (O’Sullivan 14; Husain). In Australia, Muslim Australians are facing three challenges. First, the Muslim unemployment rate: it was three times higher than the national total in 1996 and 2001 (Kabir, Muslims in Australia 266-278; Kabir, “What Does It Mean” 63). Second, some spiritual leaders have used extreme rhetoric to appeal to marginalised youth; in January 2007, the Australian-born imam of Lebanese background, Sheikh Feiz Mohammad, was alleged to have employed a DVD format to urge children to kill the enemies of Islam and to have praised martyrs with a violent interpretation of jihad (Chulov 2). Third, the proposed citizenship test has the potential to make new migrants’ – particularly Muslims’ – settlement in Australia stressful (Kabir, “What Does It Mean” 62-79); in May 2007, fuelled by perceptions that some migrants – especially Muslims – were not integrating quickly enough, the Howard government introduced a citizenship test bill that proposes to test applicants on their English language skills and knowledge of Australian history and ‘values’. I contend that being able to demonstrate knowledge of history and having English language skills is no guarantee that a migrant will be a good citizen. Through my transmigrant history, I have learnt that developing a bond with a new place takes time, acceptance and a gradual change of identity, which are less likely to happen when facing assimilationist constraints. I spoke English and studied history in the United States, but I did not consider it my home. I did not speak the Arabic language, and did not study Middle Eastern history while I was in the Middle East, but I felt connected to it for cultural and religious reasons. Through my knowledge of history and English language proficiency I did not make Australia my home when I first migrated to Australia. Australia became my home when I started interacting with other Australians, which was made possible by having the time at my disposal and by fortunate circumstances, which included a fairly high level of efficacy and affluence. If I had been rejected because of my lack of knowledge of ‘Australian values’, or had encountered discrimination in the job market, I would have been much less willing to embrace my host country and call it home. I believe a stringent citizenship test is more likely to alienate would-be citizens than to induce their adoption of values and loyalty to their new home. Conclusion Blunt (5) observes that current studies of home often investigate mobile geographies of dwelling and how it shapes one’s identity and belonging. Such geographies of home negotiate from the domestic to the global context, thus mobilising the home beyond a fixed, bounded and confining location. Similarly, in this paper I have discussed how my mobile geography, from the domestic (root) to global (route), has shaped my identity. Though I received a degree of culture shock in the United States, loved the Middle East, and was at first quite resistant to the idea of making Australia my second home, the confidence I acquired in residing in these ‘several homes’ were cumulative and eventually enabled me to regard Australia as my ‘home’. I loved the Middle East, but I did not pursue an active involvement with the Arab community because I was a busy mother. Also I lacked the communication skill (fluency in Arabic) with the local residents who lived outside the expatriates’ campus. I am no longer a cultural freak. I am no longer the same Bangladeshi woman who saw her ethnic and Islamic culture as superior to all other cultures. I have learnt to appreciate Australian values, such as tolerance, ‘a fair go’ and multiculturalism (see Kabir, “What Does It Mean” 62-79). My bicultural identity is my strength. With my ethnic and religious identity, I can relate to the concerns of the Muslim community and other Australian ethnic and religious minorities. And with my Australian identity I have developed ‘a voice’ to pursue active citizenship. Thus my biculturalism has enabled me to retain and merge my former home with my present and permanent home of Australia. References Anderson, Benedict. Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism. London, New York: Verso, 1983. Australian Bureau of Statistics: Census of Housing and Population, 1996 and 2001. Blunt, Alison. Domicile and Diaspora: Anglo-Indian Women and the Spatial Politics of Home. Oxford: Blackwell, 2005. Blunt, Alison, and Robyn Dowling. Home. London and New York: Routledge, 2006. Cesari, Jocelyne. “Muslim Minorities in Europe: The Silent Revolution.” In John L. Esposito and Burgat, eds., Modernising Islam: Religion in the Public Sphere in Europe and the Middle East. London: Hurst, 2003. 251-269. Chulov, Martin. “Treatment Has Sheik Wary of Returning Home.” Weekend Australian 6-7 Jan. 2007: 2. Cohen, Robin. Global Diasporas: An Introduction. Seattle: University of Washington, 1997. Doogue, Geraldine, and Peter Kirkwood. Tomorrow’s Islam: Uniting Old-Age Beliefs and a Modern World. Sydney: ABC Books, 2005. Esposito, John. The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality? 3rd ed. New York, Oxford: Oxford UP, 1999. Farrar, Max. “When the Bombs Go Off: Rethinking and Managing Diversity Strategies in Leeds, UK.” International Journal of Diversity in Organisations, Communities and Nations 6.5 (2007): 63-68. Grillo, Ralph. “Islam and Transnationalism.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 30.5 (Sep. 2004): 861-878. Hall, Stuart. Polity Reader in Cultural Theory. Cambridge: Polity Press, 1994. Huntington, Samuel, P. The Clash of Civilisation and the Remaking of World Order. London: Touchstone, 1998. Husain, Ed. The Islamist: Why I Joined Radical Islam in Britain, What I Saw inside and Why I Left. London: Penguin, 2007. Kabir, Nahid. Muslims in Australia: Immigration, Race Relations and Cultural History. London: Kegan Paul, 2005. ———. “What Does It Mean to Be Un-Australian: Views of Australian Muslim Students in 2006.” People and Place 15.1 (2007): 62-79. Khan, Shahnaz. Aversion and Desire: Negotiating Muslim Female Identity in the Diaspora. Toronto: Women’s Press, 2002. Manji, Irshad. The Trouble with Islam Today. Canada:Vintage, 2005. Maslow, Abraham. Motivation and Personality. New York: Harper, 1954. O’Sullivan, J. “The Real British Disease.” Quadrant (Jan.-Feb. 2006): 14-20. Poynting, Scott, and Victoria Mason. “The Resistible Rise of Islamophobia: Anti-Muslim Racism in the UK and Australia before 11 September 2001.” Journal of Sociology 43.1 (2007): 61-86. Saeed, Abdallah. Islam in Australia. Sydney: Allen and Unwin, 2003. Smith, Anthony D. National Identity. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1991. Spencer, Philip, and Howard Wollman. Nationalism: A Critical Introduction. London: Sage, 2002. Vertovec, Stevens. The Hindu Diaspora: Comparative Patterns. London: Routledge. 2000. Werbner, Pnina, “Theorising Complex Diasporas: Purity and Hybridity in the South Asian Public Sphere in Britain.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 30.5 (2004): 895-911. Wood, Dennis. “The Diaspora, Community and the Vagrant Space.” In Cynthia Vanden Driesen and Ralph Crane, eds., Diaspora: The Australasian Experience. New Delhi: Prestige, 2005. 59-64. Zubaida, Sami. “Islam in Europe: Unity or Diversity.” Critical Quarterly 45.1-2 (2003): 88-98. Citation reference for this article MLA Style Kabir, Nahid. "Why I Call Australia ‘Home’?: A Transmigrant’s Perspective." M/C Journal 10.4 (2007). echo date('d M. Y'); ?> <http://journal.media-culture.org.au/0708/15-kabir.php>. APA Style Kabir, N. (Aug. 2007) "Why I Call Australia ‘Home’?: A Transmigrant’s Perspective," M/C Journal, 10(4). Retrieved echo date('d M. Y'); ?> from <http://journal.media-culture.org.au/0708/15-kabir.php>.

Abstract Hypertension affects a third of U.S. adults and is especially high among Asian American groups. The Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health for Asian AmeRicans (REACH FAR) project delivers culturally adapted, evidence-based hypertension-related programs to Bangladeshi, Filipino, Korean, and Asian Indian communities in New York and New Jersey through 26 sites: ethnic grocery stores, restaurants, and Muslim, Christian, and Sikh faith-based organizations. Knowledge of the implementation mechanisms of culturally adapted programs is limited and is critical to inform the design and execution of such programs by and in community sites. We applied four categories of the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research—intervention and individuals’ characteristics, inner and outer setting—to analyze factors influencing implementation outcomes, that is, site leaders’ perceptions about adopting, adapting, and sustaining REACH FAR. We conducted semistructured interviews with 15 leaders, coded them for implementation outcomes, and recoded them to identify contextual factors. Our findings show that REACH FAR resonated in sites where leaders perceived unhealthy diet and lifestyles in their communities (intervention characteristics), sites had historically engaged in health programs as a public-service mission (inner setting), and leaders identified with this mission (individuals’ characteristics). Site leaders strived to adapt programs to respond to community preferences (outer setting) without compromising core objectives (inner setting). Leaders noted that program sustainability could be impeded by staff and volunteer turnover (inner setting) but enhanced by reinforcing programs through community networks (outer setting). The findings suggest that to facilitate implementation of culturally adapted health behavior programs through community sites, interventions should reinforce sites’ organizational commitments and social ties.

IntroductionThis paper explores the different meanings that individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds associate with being authentic. It builds on previous research (Menendez 11) that found quantitative differences in terms of the meanings individuals from Eastern and Western backgrounds tend to associate with being authentic. Using qualitative analysis, it describes in more detail how individuals from these two backgrounds construct their different meanings of authenticity.Authenticity has become an overriding moral principle in contemporary Western societies and has only recently started to be contested (Feldman). From cultural products to individuals’ discourses, authenticity pervades Western culture (Lindholm; Potter; Vannini and Williams). On an individual level, the ideal of authenticity is reflected in the maxim “be true to yourself.” The social value of authenticity has a relatively recent history in the Western world of approximately 200 years (Trilling). It started to develop alongside the notion of individuality during modernity (Taylor, Sources; Trilling). The Romantic movement consolidated its cultural influence (Taylor, Sources). In the 1960s, the Hippy movement revived authenticity as a countercultural discourse, although it has progressively become mainstream through consumer culture and therapeutic discourses (Binkley).Most of the studies in the literature on authenticity as a cultural phenomenon are theoretical, conducted from a philosophical perspective (Ferrara; Guignon; Taylor, Ethics), but few of them are empirical, mostly from sociology (Erickson; Franzese, Thine; Turner, Quest; Vannini, Authenticity). Part of this dearth of empirical research on authenticity is due to the difficulties that researchers encounter in attempting to define what it means to be authentic (Franzese, Authenticity 87). Sociologists study the phenomenological experience of being true to oneself, but are less attentive to the metaphysical notion of being a “true self” (Vannini, Dead 236–37). Trying to preserve this open approach, without judging individuals on how “authentic” they are, is what makes defining authenticity difficult. For this reason, sociologists have defined being authentic in a broad sense as “an individual’s subjective sense that their behaviour, appearance, self, reflects their sense of core being. One’s sense of core being is composed of their values, beliefs, feelings, identities, self-meanings, etc.” (Franzese, Authenticity 87); this is the definition of authenticity that I use here. Besides being scarce, the sociological empirical studies on authenticity have been conducted with individuals from Western backgrounds and, thus, have privileged authenticity as a Western cultural construct. This paper tries to contribute to this field of research by: (1) contributing more empirical investigation and (2) providing cross-cultural comparison between individuals from Eastern and Western backgrounds.The literature on cross-cultural values associates Eastern societies with collective (Hofstede, Hofstede and Mirkov 95–97; 112–17) and material or survival (Inglehart and Welzel 51–57; 61–65) values, while Western societies tend to be linked to the opposite kind of values: individual, post-material or self-expression (WVS). For example, societies that score high in survival values are likely to be African (e.g., Zimbabwe) Middle Eastern (e.g., Morocco and Jordan) or Asian (e.g., Bangladesh) countries, while societies that score high in self-expression values tend to be European (e.g., Sweden) or English speaking (e.g., Australia) countries. Nevertheless, there are some exceptions, the case of Japan, for example, which tends to score high in self-expression values despite being an “Eastern” society (WVS). These differences also tend to be reflected among Eastern minorities living in Western countries (Chua and Rubenfeld). Collective values emphasise harmony in relations and prioritise the needs of the group over the individual; on the other hand, individual values emphasise self-expression. Material or survival values accentuate the satisfaction of “basic” needs, in Abraham Maslow’s terms (21), such as physiological or security needs, and imply practising thrift and delaying immediate gratification; by contrast, post-material or self-expression values stress the satisfaction of “higher” needs, such as freedom of speech, equality, or aesthetic needs.The sociologist Ralph Turner (Real) created a theoretical framework to organize individuals’ discourses around authenticity: the “impulsive” and “institutional” categories. One of Turner’s assumptions is particularly important in understanding the differences between these two categories: individuals tend to consider the self as an objective entity that, despite only existing in their minds, feels “real” to them. This can have consequences for the meanings they ascribe to certain internal subjective states, such as cognitions or emotions, which can be interpreted as indicators of their authentic selves (990–91).The institutional and impulsive categories are two different ways of understanding authenticity that present several differences (991–95). Two among them are most relevant to understand the differences that I discuss in this paper. The first one has to do with the individual’s locus of the self, whether the self is conceptualized as located “outside” or “inside” the individual. Impulsive interpretations of authenticity have an internal sense of authenticity as “being,” while institutional conceptualizations have an external sense of authenticity as “becoming.” For “impulsives,” the authentic self is something that must be searched for. Impulsives look within to discover their “true self,” which is often in opposition to society’s roles and its expectations of the individual. On the other hand, for “institutionals” authentic is achieved through external effort (Turner, Quest 155); it is something that individuals achieve through regular practice, often aligned with society’s roles and their expectations of the individual (Turner, Real 992).The second difference has to do with the management of emotions. For an institutional understanding of authenticity, individuals are true to their own authentic selves when they are in full control of their capacities and emotions. By contrast, from an impulsive point of view, individuals are true to themselves when they are spontaneous, accepting and freely expressing their emotions, often by breaking the internal or external controls that society imposes on them (Turner, Real 993).Although individuals can experience both types of authenticity, previous research on this topic (Menendez) has shown that institutional experiences tend to happen more frequently among Easterners, and impulsive experiences tend to occur more frequently among Westerners. In this paper, I show how Easterners and Westerners construct institutional and impulsive meanings of authenticity respectively; what kind of authenticity work individuals from these two backgrounds do when they conceptualize their authentic selves; how they interpret internal subjective states as expressions of who they are; and what stories they tell themselves about who they are.I suggest that these stories, although they may look purely individual, can also be social. Individuals from Western backgrounds tend to interpret impulsive experiences of authenticity as expressing their authentic selves, as they are informed by the individual and post-material values of Western societies. In contrast, individuals from Eastern backgrounds tend to interpret institutional experiences of authenticity as expressing their authentic selves, as they have been socialized in the more collective and material values of Eastern societies.Finally, and before I proceed to the analysis, I would like to acknowledge a limitation of this study. The dichotomies that I use to explain my argument, such as the Western and Eastern or the impulsive and institutional categories, can constitute a limitation for this paper because they cannot reflect nuances. They can be easily contested. For example, the division between Eastern and Western societies is often seen as ideological and Turner’s distinction between institutional and impulsive experiences of authenticity can create artificial separations between the notions of self and society or reason and passion (Solomon 173). However, these concepts have not been used for ideological or simplifying purposes, but to help explain distinguishable cultural orientations towards authenticity in the data.MethodologyI completed 20 interviews (from 50 minutes to 2 hours in length) with 20 students at La Trobe University (Australia), between September 2012 and April 2013. The 20 interviewees (9 females and 11 males), ranged from 18 to 58 years old (the median age was 24 years old). The sample was theoretically designed to cover as many diverse cultural backgrounds as possible. I asked the interviewees questions about: moments they had experienced that felt either authentic and inauthentic, what constitutes a life worth-living, and the impact their cultural backgrounds might have had on their conceptions of their true selves.The 20 interviewees were born in 13 different countries. According to the extensive dataset on cultural values, the World Values Survey (WVS), these 13 countries have different percentages of post-materialists—individuals who choose post-material instead of material values (Inglehart and Welzel 54–56). Table 1 shows the percentages of post-materialists in each of the interviewees’ countries of birth. Table 1: Percentages of post-materialists in the interviewees’ countries of birth Country % of post-materialists WVS Wave United Kingdom 22.8 2005 – 2009 Australia 20.5 2010 – 2014 United States 16.7 2010 – 2014 Israel 11.6 2000 – 2004 Finland 11.3 2005 – 2009 Greece (Turkey) 10.7 2010 – 2014 South Africa 7.7 2005 – 2009 Malaysia 5.6 2010 – 2014 Ghana 4.2 2010 – 2014 India 4 2005 – 2009 China 2.5 2010 – 2014 Egypt 1.1 2010 – 2014 Note: These data are based on the 4-item post-materialism index question (Y002) of World Values Survey (WVS). I use three different waves of data (2000–2004, 2005–2009, and 2010–2014). Greece did not have any data in World Values Survey, so its data have been estimated considering the results from Turkey, which is the most similar country in geographical and cultural terms that had data available.In my model, I consider “Western” societies as those that have more than 10% post-materialists, while “Eastern” societies have less than 10% post-materialists. As shown in Table 1 and mentioned earlier, Western countries (English speaking or European) tend to have higher percentages of post-materialists than Eastern societies (African, Asian and Middle Eastern).Thus, as Table 2 shows, the interviewees who were born in a Western society are ascribed to one group, while individuals born in an Eastern society are ascribed to another group. Although many overseas-born interviewees have lived in Australia for periods that range from 6 months to 10 years, they were ascribed to the “East” and “West” groups solely based on their country of birth. Even though these individuals may have had experiences of socialization in Australia, I assume that they have been primarily socialized in the values of their ethnic backgrounds and the countries where they were born, via their parents’ educational values or through direct experience, during the time that they lived in their countries of birth. According to my definition of authenticity, individuals’ values inform their understanding of authenticity, therefore, the values from their ethnic backgrounds can also influence their understanding of authenticity.In the first phase of the analysis, I used Grounded Theory (Charmaz), with categories directly emerging from the data, to analyse my interviewees’ stories. In the second stage, I reviewed these categories in combination with Turner’s categories of impulsive and institutional, applying them to classify the stories.Table 2: Distribution of participants between “East” and “West” West (n=11) East (n=9) Australia (n=5) China (n=2) United Kingdom (n=2) India (n=2) United States (n=1) South Korea (n=1) Greece (n=1) South Africa (n=1) Finland (n=1) Egypt (n=1) Israel (n=1) Ghana (n=1) Malaysia (n=1) ResultsAlthough I interviewed 20 participants, due to space-constraints, I illustrate my argument with only 4 interview extracts from 4 of the interviewees: 2 interviewees from Western backgrounds and 2 from Eastern backgrounds. However, these stories are representative of the trends found for the whole sample. I show how Easterners and Westerners construct their authentic selves in institutional and impulsive senses respectively through the two key characteristics that I presented in the introduction: locus of the self and management of emotions.In the first instance, Rachel (from Australia, 24 years old), a Western respondent, shows an impulsive locus of the self as “being.” Authenticity is discovered through self-acceptance of an uncomfortable emotion, like a “bad mood:”I think the times when I want to say, ‘oh, I wasn’t myself’, I usually was. My bad moods are more ‘me’. My bad moods are almost always the ‘real me’. [So you consider that your authentic self is something that is there, inside you, that you have to discover, or it is something outside yourself, that you can achieve?] I think it is something that you have to discover for yourself. I think it is different for everyone. [But would you say that it is something that is there already or it is something that you become?] No, I think it is something that is there already.On the other hand, Rani (from China, 24 years old), an Eastern respondent, interprets authenticity as “becoming;” authenticity does not pre-exist—as in the case of Rachel—but is something “external” to her idea of self. Rani becomes herself by convincing herself that she conforms to society’s ideals of physical beauty. Unlike the process of self-acceptance that Rachel described, Rani develops authentic selfhood by “lying” to herself or, as she says, “through some lies”:I have heard this sentence, like ‘you have to be yourself to others’, but I think it is really hard to do this. I think people still need some ‘acting’ things in their life. You need to act, not to say to act as another person, but sometimes like let’s say to be polite or make other people like you, you need acting. And sometimes if you are doing the ‘acting things’ a lot, you are going to believe this is true (she laughs). [Like others will believe that you are something that you are not?] I think at the beginning, maybe that’s not, but… because some people wake up every morning and say to the mirror, ‘you are very beautiful, you are the most beautiful girl in the world’, then, you will be happy and you will actually become beautiful. I think it is not like lie to yourself, but it is just being confident. Maybe at the beginning you are not going to believe that you are beautiful… like, what is this sentence? ‘Being true to yourself’, but actually doing this everyday, then that’s true, you will become, you will be confident. [So that means you can be yourself also through…] Through some lies. [So you don’t think that there is something inside you that you have to kind of discover?] No.Eastern and Western respondents also tend to interpret emotions differently. Westerners are more likely to interpret them in more impulsive terms than Easterners, who interpret them in a more institutional light. As we can see in the following extract, Sean, a Western respondent (born in Australia, but raised in England, 41 years old), feels inauthentic because he could not express his dislike of a co-worker he did not get along with:In a six months job I had before I came to Australia, I was an occupational therapist in a community. There was a girl in the administration department who was so rude. I wanted to say: ‘look darling you are so rude. It is really unpleasant talking to you. Can you just be nice? It would be just so much better and you will get more done and you will get more from me’. That’s what I should have said, but I didn’t say it. I didn’t, why? Maybe it is that sort of culture of not saying things or maybe it is me not being assertive enough. I don’t think I was being myself. Because my real self wanted to say: ‘look darling, you are not helping matters by being a complete bitch’. But I didn’t say that. I wasn’t assertive enough.In a similar type of incident, Ben, an Eastern respondent (from Ghana, 32 years old), describes an outburst he had with a co-worker who was annoying him. Unlike Sean, Ben expressed his anger to the co-worker, but he does not consider this to be a manifestation of his authentic self. For Ben, to act authentically one must control their emotions and try help others:I don’t know if that is myself or if that is not myself, but sometimes I get angry, I get upset, and I am the open type. I am the type that I can’t keep something in me, so sometimes when you make me annoyed, I just response. There is this time about this woman, in a class, that I was in Ghana. She was an older woman, a respected woman, she kept annoying me and there was one day that I couldn’t take it any longer, so I just burst up and I just… I don’t know what I said, I just… said a lot of bad things to her. The woman, she was shocked. I also felt shocked because I thought I could control myself, so that’s me… I don’t want to hide my feelings, I just want to come out with what I think when you make me annoyed, but those times, when I come out, I don’t like them, because I think it contradicts who I really am, someone who is supposed to help or care. I don’t like that aspect. You know somebody could be bossy, so he or she enjoys shouting everybody. I don’t enjoy that, but sometimes it is something that I cannot even control. Someone pushes me to the limit, and I just can’t keep that anger, and it comes out. I won’t say that is ‘me,’ I wouldn’t say that that is me. I don’t think that is a ‘true me’. [Why?] Because the true me would enjoy that experience the way I enjoy helping people instead.Unlike the two accounts from Rachel and Rani, these two last passages from Sean and Ben describe experiences of inauthenticity, where the authentic self cannot be expressed. What is important in these two passages is not their behaviour, but how they attribute their own emotions to their sense of authentic selfhood. Sean identifies his authentic self with the “impulsive” self who expresses his emotions, while Ben identifies his authentic self with the “institutional” self who is in control of his emotions. Sean feels inauthentic because he could not express his angry feelings to the co-worker, whereas Ben feels inauthentic because he could not control his outburst. Ben still hesitates about which side of himself can be attributed to his authentic self, for example, he says that he is “the open type” or that he does not want to “hide [his] feelings”, but he eventually identifies his authentic self with his institutional self.The choices that Sean and Ben make about the emotions that they attribute to their authentic selves could be motivated by their respective ethnic backgrounds. Like Rachel, Sean identifies his authentic self with a socially unacceptable emotion: anger. Consistent with his Western background, Sean’s sense of authenticity emphasizes the needs of the individual over the group and sees suppression of emotions as repressive. On the other hand, Ben reasons that since he does not enjoy being angry as much as he enjoys helping others, expressing anger is not a manifestation of authenticity. His authentic self is linked to his institutional self. Ben’s values are infused with altruism, which reflects the collective values that tend to be associated with his Eastern background. For him, suppression of emotions might not mean repression, but can foster authenticity instead.DiscussionBoth ways of interpreting authenticity, impulsive and institutional, look for self-consistency and the need to tell a coherent story to ourselves about who we are. The results section of this paper showed how Easterners and Westerners conceptualize authenticity. Easterners understand authenticity differently to Western discourses of the authentic. These alternative understandings offer viable solutions to the self-consistency problem. They present external, rather than internal, ways of conceiving the authentic self, and regulative, rather than expressive, approaches to emotions. As I mentioned earlier, Eastern societies are associated with collective and material values, while Western ones are related to individual and post-material values. These divisions in terms of values are reflected in individuals’ self-constructs. Individuals in Western societies tend to have a more independent idea of the self, whereas individuals in Eastern societies are more likely to have an interdependent one (Kitayama). An interdependent idea of the self values connectedness and conceptualizes the self in relation to others, so it can generate an institutional approach to authenticity, where the idea of the authentic self is not something that individuals search for inside themselves, but something that individuals become through their participation in social roles. This was evident in the example of Rani, whose idea of being authentic as “becoming” seemed to be an extension of her more interdependent self-construct and the need to fit in society.A regulative approach to emotions has also been associated with Easterners (Cheung and Park), on the basis of their collective values and interdependent self-constructs. For individuals from a Western background, with a more independent sense of self, as in the case of Sean, suppressing emotions tends to be seen negatively as being inauthentic, a form of repression. However, for individuals with interdependent self-constructs, this can be not only less harmful (feeling less inauthentic), but can even be beneficial because they tend to prioritize the needs of others (Le and Impett). This is evident in the example of Ben, for whom suppressing aanger does not make him feel inauthentic because he identifies his authentic self with the self that is in control of his emotions and helps others. This understanding of authenticity is aligned with the collective values of his ethnic background.In sum, ideas of authenticity seem to vary culturally according to the repertoires and values systems that inform them. 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