Academic literature on the topic 'REPRESENTING ETHNOCENTRISM'

Abstract This paper aims to measure the Romanian Millennials’ ethnocentrism tendency, together with their attitude of consumption towards Romanian-made products. Millennials, known as the Generation Y, are the demographic cohort, following the Baby Boomers and the Generation X. There is no specific date in time when this cohort begins and ends, but researchers put the early 1980’s as starting birth and, the mid-1990’s to early 2000’s as the ending birth year. Representing the youth and the young adult population, they are the principal source of worldwide influence in the world. Given the fast and massive changes of the society, in which the Generation Y developed, there are numerous socio-psychological characteristics promoted by researchers, all of these being essential for buying and consumer status of Millennials. The data were gathered using a structured online questionnaire, filled in by 518 Romanian youngsters, representative for the Generation Y, aged between 15 to 34 years old. Ethnocentrism was measured using the consumer ethnocentric tendencies scale (CETSCALE) developed by Shrimp and Sharma (1987). The attitudinal statements were used to measure the consumption behavior towards locally made products. The data was analyzed with the SPSS 20.0 statistics software for Windows, using descriptive statistics, factor analysis and correlation. The research results underline the role of the government and industry in encouraging Romanians to buy local products.

Difference is dealt with paradoxically in discourse: sometimes, it is admired and eulogized by the perceiver to the extent of fetishism; other times, however, it represents a mixture of both love and repulsion. The concept of representation does not stand for a homogeneous idea, but engenders a plethora of other concepts that lead to an inevitable crossing of various disciplines. In this regard, Journey into Barbary offers a rich territory for the study of crosscultural encounters and the representation of difference. The paper investigates the discursive ambiguity in Lewis’s representation of Morocco. The focus is on the fluctuation between a celebration of exoticism, and an assertion of ethnocentrism and superiority. The paper analyses Lewis’s travelogue considering recent theories in postcolonial criticism, attempting to unravel and demonstrate the author’s biased racial attitudes and ethnocentric tendencies in representing Moroccan people and culture, as well as his representation of other cultures – which I refer to as the translation of difference – as manifested in his description of Berbers.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine whether events such as acts of terrorism, political and social turmoil, military conflicts, epidemics, and similar influence preferences of Russian tourists for international and domestic travel (DT) and the role of psychographic and demographic factors in this process. Design/methodology/approach The study is a survey of 139 international tourists from a large Russian city. Variables representing the influence of instability in the world on selecting international vacations (unstable world, UW) and the willingness to turn to DT instead (domestic tourism, DT) were operationalized. The study operationalized the constructs of national attachment and consumer ethnocentrism and then converted them into manifest variables, NAT and CET. Hierarchical linear regression and logistic regression were conducted to investigate the relationship between UW and DT variables and personal factors. Supporting ANOVA and χ2 tests were conducted to further explore those relationships. Findings The study found that being a female, older and more attached to the homeland make Russian tourists more receptive to threats and risks of international travel; however, being wealthier, makes them less susceptible to those threats. Those with higher ethnocentric tendencies are more likely to turn to DT instead, while those with higher income are less likely. Originality/value The study does not pertain to a particular “destination-negative event” context. Nor the study is interested in a particular travel risk or whether or not Russian tourists perceive international travel as risky. The study focuses on to what degree those perceptions influence their decisions to travel internationally or domestically. Psychographic consumer ethnocentrism and national attachment variables that are rarely used in tourism studies were employed to better understand the destination selection process of Russian tourists in the UW.

The feminist anthropologist Henrietta Moore has noted that “the interpretation of ‘other cultures’ has often been likened in the anthropological literature to a process of translation.” If one accepts that interpretation and translation are closely linked (though there may be some subtle distinctions to be drawn between them), then the comparison described by Moore may be illustrated with statements from two of the most prominent of anthropological critics in recent years, Clifford Geertz and James Clifford. In his book The Interpretation of Cultures, first published in 1973, Geertz claimed that:anthropological writings are themselves interpretations, and second and third ones to boot. (By definition, only a “native” makes first order ones: it's his culture.) They are, thus, fictions, in the sense that they are “something made,” “something fashioned…”A few years later, in a now similarly influential commentary on figures of and challenges to authority in ethnography, James Clifford declared that “[e]thnography is the interpretation of cultures. Both statements reflect the growing conviction that anthropology is not the objective or even the authoritative science that it once claimed to be. In the essay that follows I want to sketch some of the problems of cultural interpretation and translation in anthropology and to discuss one fascinating attempt to find a responsible solution to the imbalance of power inherent in anthropological representation.Before I turn to this example, Melissa Llewelyn-Davies' film on the Maasai, Memories and Dreams, I need to outline the main arguments that have been made about the status of anthropology. These have focused on the discipline's complicity with colonialism, its male bias, and the ethnocentrism that underlies the claim of scientific objectivity. I shall take each of these points in turn and, though it is important to outline the arguments about, and proposals for, methods and forms of representation, I will consider them only in brief since they have been often discussed in detail elsewhere. Cumulatively, they have contributed to the recognition that “[c]ulture, and our views of ‘it,’ are produced historically, and are actively contested.”

Phil Klay’s short story collection Redeployment is considered a quintessential literary text for the U. S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and won the 2014 National Book Award for fiction. This study argues that it gestures beyond the narrow American war frame to show both the physical and cultural trauma of nonwhite Other in wars during the post- 9/11 era; meanwhile, Klay subverts and deconstructs the myth of trauma hero, truly representing soldiers’ anxiety and trauma about their relationships with enemies, wars, and national power. In Klay’s view, the disillusionment of the American myth of “city upon a hill” projects intense political crises and social contradictions, including the civilian-military divide, racial conflicts, and the loss of national faith and security. And America’s way of democracy reconstruction in the Middle East is colored by ethnocentrism and cultural imperialism, thus further questioning the rationality and justice of the U. S. global counter-terrorism strategies.

From its very beginning sports activity became – already within the framework of the modern nation-building project, establishing national ethos, and constituting effective colonization of the Other – a central element of the effort of the modern system to create, represent, and consume the modern body and soul and to create the healthy-conquering national ‘we’. And yet, when true to its essence, sport represents the impetus of Love of Life. As Love of Life it raises the human from lower levels of existence to their supreme goal within the forms of constant self-elevation. Sport as a global commodity is manufactured and consumed locally, serving and representing both ethnocentrism and false universalism in the form of globalization. It is of vital importance for sport's success as a worldwide commodity to function in the service of local passions and as a manifestation of the negation of the otherness of the Other. Without local rivalries, hate, and chauvinism, the worldwide reception and production of sport would not have been so successful.

Alan Lomax’s Cantometrics Project was arguably both the most ambitious and the most controversial undertaking in music and science that the world has known. Its flagship component, Lomax’s “cantometric” analysis of approximately 1,800 songs from 148 worldwide populations using 36 classificatory features, sparked extensive debate. While Lomax responded to some criticisms, neither his final conclusions nor the evidence on which they were based were ever fully made clear. For decades, neither cantometrics nor Lomax’s related projects involving dance, speech, popular music, digital humanities, pedagogy, and activism were widely adopted by other researchers, but there has been a resurgence of interest since Lomax’s death in 2002. Here, I provide a comprehensive critical review of the Cantometrics Project, focusing on issues regarding the song sample, classification scheme, statistical analyses, interpretation, and ethnocentrism/reductionism. I identify misunderstandings, improvements that were made, and criticisms that remain to be addressed, and distil Lomax’s sometimes-conflicting claims into diagrams summarizing his three primary results: (1) ten regional song-style types, (2) nine musical factors representing intra-musical correlations, and (3) correlations between these musical factors and five factors of social structure. Although Lomax’s interpretations regarding correlations between song style and social structure appear weakly supported, his historical interpretations regarding connections ranging from colonial diaspora to ancient migrations provide a more promising starting point for both research and teaching about the global arts. While Lomax’s attempts to correlate features of social structure such as gender, religion, politics, and economics with stylistic features of musical performance largely failed to gain acceptance, the Cantometrics Project can still provide both inspiration and cautionary lessons for future exploration of relationships between music and culture.

In the sociocultural space of Russia, there are three main and independent Buddhist centers: Kalmyk, Buryat and Tuvan. An analysis of geopolitical landmarks, ideological position, and large religious organizations representing this faith in the region shows that three different models of Buddhism as a social institution have developed: globally oriented (Kalmykia), ethnocentric (Buryatia), and regionally oriented (Tuva).

Status of the issue. The development of the theory of strategic culture began more than seven decades ago. To date, the theory has evolved from the theoretical justification of the behavioral styles of elites representing institutions and security services, to the development of models for the use of national strategic cultures as an important tool for political struggle at the global and regional levels. It should be noted that Russian political science is significantly lagging behind foreign science in the theoretical understanding of the problem and in the development of effective models for countering the Anglo-Saxon strategic culture, which has an openly aggressive Russophobic content. Results. In the course of political analysis of the evolution of the theory of strategic culture, four stages of its development and their features were identified. At the first stage-the 40-60s of the XX century, the main content was the study of national styles in strategic planning in the field of national security, caused by a military clash during the World War II. Stereotyping of the initial grounds and a certain ethnocentrism as the main features of the stage, were subjected to reasonable criticism and stimulated the further development of theoretical provisions of the problem. At the second stage – the 70-90s of the XX century researchers developed a methodology for structural and functional analysis, institutionalism and modeling of competitive relations between regional actors. This was caused by the advent of the era of nuclear deterrence. The third stage of the wave of research on strategic culture is formed at the turn of the XX and XXI centuries. Theoretical and methodological research is carried out during this period in the framework of a critical rethinking of previous approaches and the formation of a trend towards neorealism. On the basis of comparative analysis, distinctions and justifications of different types of strategic culture and corresponding strategic thinking, as well as the behavior of actors, were identified. At the present stage of theory evolution, the main attention of researchers is focused on the dynamics of changing strategic culture under the influence of threats and risks of globalization and specific events, identifying competing narratives within countries themselves, searching for effective models for changing existing national strategic cultures in the interests of the dominant regional strategic cultures – Anglo-Saxon, European, Asian (Chinese). The effectiveness of applying the results of Western research programs in political practice is proved by the process of reformatting, for example, the Ukrainian strategic culture with an anti-Russian trend. Application. Political science – in order to continue the debate on strategic culture, the further development of the theory in the light of modern conditions of the clash of strategic cultures on a global level, and also political practice of compromise to minimize the challenges, risks and threats in international relations at the regional and global levels. Conclusions. Further development of the theory of strategic culture is actualized by the sharp aggravation of the confrontation between national and regional strategic cultures in different geopolitical strategic regions of the planet. This confrontation is caused by two main factors: the presence and strengthening of a number of national strategic cultures and the desire to dominate individual national and regional strategic cultures. In the context of using national strategic cultures as an important tool of political struggle, the development of models for interaction of strategic cultures based on compromise can help to minimize risks in international relations. The level of modern theoretical understanding of the problem does not correspond to the complexity of tasks to ensure national, regional and global security.

Utilizing a critical raceclass theory of education, OiYan A. Poon and colleagues analyze interviews with Asian Americans who have publicly advocated for or against affirmative action and acknowledged how their understandings of racial capitalism informed their perspectives and actions. Limited research has considered Asian American subjectivity in examining what shapes their diverse perspectives on affirmative action. This study adds to research on the racial politics of the debate, which has increasingly centered Asian Americans and their interests, and introduces a multidimensional model of raceclass frames representing different political perspectives and choices around affirmative action: abstract liberalism, ethnocentric nationalism, conscious compromise, and systemic transformation. The model offers insights on Asian American frames and ideologies of racism, capitalism, and education to account for their divergent political perspectives and choices in the affirmative action debate.

Majority of prior research show that individual's relationship with a brand is dyadic. However, the primary need for human beings is to forge meaningful interpersonal relationships, and brands can act as facilitators to achieve this need. Thus, consumer-brand-consumer relationships are rather triadic, with brands acting as an epicenter around which close-knit human relationships are formed. This chapter discusses the indispensable roles of consumers' close social relationships with their brands representing a knit brand fandom of like-minded consumers who share common consumption values and attain transcendence through branded consumption. Using grounded theory analysis, we discover that Indian consumers' cultural values of filial piety, face saving, need for escapism and brand ethnocentrism act as antecedents to consumers' romantic brand love. This romantic brand love progresses into single brand devotion through the moderation of selective perception, and ultimately translates into a close-knit brand fandom, mainly if the consumers find the brand to enable self-expression. The role of brand-hero is also important in the formation of brand fandom, as brand hero can inspire consumers and bind them together to work for common interest of the brand. Brand fandom results in consumers experiencing flow and transcendence, where they experience a temporary sense of separation from the mundane and unity with a higher plane of existence.

Majority of prior research show that individual's relationship with a brand is dyadic. However, the primary need for human beings is to forge meaningful interpersonal relationships, and brands can act as facilitators to achieve this need. Thus, consumer-brand-consumer relationships are rather triadic, with brands acting as an epicenter around which close-knit human relationships are formed. This chapter discusses the indispensable roles of consumers' close social relationships with their brands representing a knit brand fandom of like-minded consumers who share common consumption values and attain transcendence through branded consumption. Using grounded theory analysis, we discover that Indian consumers' cultural values of filial piety, face saving, need for escapism and brand ethnocentrism act as antecedents to consumers' romantic brand love. This romantic brand love progresses into single brand devotion through the moderation of selective perception, and ultimately translates into a close-knit brand fandom, mainly if the consumers find the brand to enable self-expression. The role of brand-hero is also important in the formation of brand fandom, as brand hero can inspire consumers and bind them together to work for common interest of the brand. Brand fandom results in consumers experiencing flow and transcendence, where they experience a temporary sense of separation from the mundane and unity with a higher plane of existence.

Abstract The politics of representing Islam and Muslims in American cultural and political discourse and the Muslims’ reponse to it in how they interpret Islam and identify themselves, reveal a dialectical relationship between Western representations of Muslims and Muslims’ self-image. In this dynamic process, the “otherness” of Islam and Muslims has two functions. It acts as a dynamic of identification, by default, for the American. At the same time, it is appropriated by the Muslim as a form of self-identification. Both functions are germane to a mode of representation characteristic to a particular and dominant political and cultural discourse in the United States: a mode that is essentially ethnocentric.