To see the other types of publications on this topic, follow the link: Social sciences.
Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Social sciences'
Create a spot-on reference in APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and other styles
Consult the top 50 dissertations / theses for your research on the topic 'Social sciences.'
Next to every source in the list of references, there is an 'Add to bibliography' button. Press on it, and we will generate automatically the bibliographic reference to the chosen work in the citation style you need: APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago, Vancouver, etc.
You can also download the full text of the academic publication as pdf and read online its abstract whenever available in the metadata.
Browse dissertations / theses on a wide variety of disciplines and organise your bibliography correctly.
1
Greene, Catherine. "Laws in the social sciences." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 2017. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/3697/.
Full textAbstract:
The social sciences are often thought to be inferior to the natural sciences because they do not have laws. Bohman writes that “the social sciences have never achieved much in the way of predictive general laws—the hallmark of naturalistic knowledge—and so have often been denied the honorific status of ‘sciences’” (1994, pg. vii). Philosophers have suggested a number of reasons for the dearth of laws in the social sciences, including the frequent use of ceteris paribus conditions in the social sciences, reflexivity, and the use of ‘odd’ concepts. This thesis argues that the scarcity of laws in the social sciences is primarily due to the concepts that social scientists often work with. These concepts are described as Nomadic and are characterised by disagreement about what can reasonably be included within the scope of a concept. The second half of the thesis explores the implications of this analysis. It argues firstly, that counterfactual analysis is problematic when using Nomadic concepts. Secondly, it argues that taking an intentional perspective on behaviour often involves the use of Nomadic concepts so, if social scientists do hope to formulate laws, then they are more likely to succeed if they focus on behaviour that is not intentional.
2
Davis, Melinda Fritchoff. "Method variance in the social sciences." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/289721.
Full textAbstract:
A preliminary taxonomy has been developed that differentiates between trait characteristics, the situation, manifest and subtle methods and interaction effects. The proposed taxonomy divides method into manifest and subtle categories. The obvious, surface characteristics of method are considered manifest, while the deeper structures of method that are not usually seen are considered subtle. Seven manifest method categories are described: stimulus format, response format, response categories, raters, whether the measure is direct or summative, rating the stimulus or the response, and opaque or transparent measures. Numerous subtle method categories can also be seen within the method rather than on its surface. These include semantic or verbal characteristics, direction of wording, measures of amount, ability, latency of response, possessions, situational context, associations, and behavior. Other method categories include report of others reactions, body symptoms, and time frame. Seven item level methods were tested in this study in the context of measurement of Introversion-Extraversion (IE). They included direct questions, direction of wording, situational context, time frame, report of others reactions, preference (semantic or verbal structure), and behavior. Three of these methods (preference, behavior, and direction of wording) introduced substantial method variance in the measurement of IE, and there were also several sizable trait*method interactions: direction of wording, time frame, and preference. Generalizability theory analysis (GT) proved to be quite useful in estimating method effects and interactions. By comparing the findings from GT analysis to confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) results, it became clear that there were problems with the CFA results that could not be ignored. Although generalizability analysis is limited in its ability to provide estimates of the trait and method contributions for individual measures, unfortunately, it informs us that the estimates provided by CFA are probably erroneous.
3
Kinville, Michael Robert. "Inequality, education and the social sciences." Doctoral thesis, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Kultur-, Sozial- und Bildungswissenschaftliche Fakultät, 2017. http://dx.doi.org/10.18452/17687.
Full textAbstract:
Die konzeptionelle Verbindung zwischen Bildung und Gesellschaft, die im 19. Jahrhundert deutlich gemacht und wissenschaftlich begründet wurde, wird oft als selbstverständlich betrachtet. Diese veraltete Verbindung bildete aber die Basis für Bildungsreformen im Sekundärbereich in Deutschland und Indien in der zweiten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts. Diese Arbeit unternimmt den Versuch, zum Verständnis dieser Verzögerung zwischen den Ideen und den Reformen, die sie einrahmten, beizutragen, indem sie eine geeignete Theorie der Verbindung zwischen Bildung und einer komplexen Gesellschaft aufstellt. Grundsätzliche Annäherungen an Gesellschaft und Bildung treten in Dialog mit post-kolonialen und kritischen Theorien. Universalistische Annahmen werden problematisiert, und eine offene Lösung für die Vorstellung zukünftiger Reformen wird präsentiert. Nationale Bildungsreformen in Indien und Deutschland nach ihren „Critical Junctures“ von 1947/1945 werden eingehend und chronologisch verglichen, um einen spezifischen Charakter historisch- und bildungs-bedingter Reproduktion beider Länder herauszuarbeiten sowie einen gemeinsamen Lernprozess zu ermöglichen. Abschließend wird eine Lösung des Problems in der Form offener Bildung präsentiert. Bildung als öffentliches Gut muss nicht zwangsläufig nur auf soziale Probleme reagieren, stattdessen kann sie verändert werden, um sozialen Wandel voran zu treiben.The conceptual link between education and society, forged in the 19th Century, is often taken for granted. This seemingly outdated connection, however, has guided reforms in secondary education in India and Germany throughout the second half of the 20th Century. This study attempts to understand this lag between underlying ideas and the reforms they framed by synthesizing a viable theory for imagining the connection between education and a complex society. Foundational approaches to society and education are brought into dialogue with post-colonial and critical theories. Universalistic assumptions are problematized, and an open-ended solution for theorizing new connections is presented. National educational reforms in India and Germany subsequent to their critical junctures of 1947/1945 are exhaustively and chronologically compared in order to conceptualize a generic character of historical-educational reproduction for each country and to facilitate a process of mutual learning. Finally, a solution to the problems associated with educational reproduction is presented. Education as a public good does not need to simply be reactive to social problems. Instead, it can be reconfigured so as to drive social change.
4
Gauthier, Roberto. "La représentation de la science chez les finissants de sciences humaines au collégial /." Thèse, Chicoutimi : Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, 1995. http://theses.uqac.ca.
Full text
5
Vion, Robert. "L'interaction verbale : Communication. Linguistique et sciences humaines." Paris 5, 1991. http://www.theses.fr/1991PA05H052.
Full textAbstract:
Cette thèse a pour objet de promouvoir une linguistique interactionnelle au sein d'une approche pluridisciplinaire de la communication et de l'interaction verbale. Elle débute par un travail de réflexion sur les catégories de sujet et de social en examinant plus particulièrement les positions de l'interactionnisme symbolique, de l'ethnométhodologie et de la philosophie d'Habermas. Le concept d'espace interactif, propose pour fédérer des notions comme figuration, face, soi, relation, situation, renvoie à une pluralité d'images identitaires mise en oeuvre sumultanément par chacun des co-énonciateurs, jeu d'images exprimé en termes de rapports de places. Cette pluralité d'images identitaires correspond à la complexité du sujet, exprimée par Mead, et à l'hétérogénéité de toute instance énonciative. Le rapport de place dominant correspond au cadre interactif définitoire de l'interaction. Ces concepts conduisent à distinguer "interaction" et "rencontre" et permettent de développer, avec la notion de module, une nouvelle typologie des interactions fondée sur l'hétérogénéité et la coarticulation des types. Un bilan est également effectué à propos des analyses structurelles et hiérarchiques de l'interaction. Enfin, l'apport le plus spécifiquement linguistique consiste à prolonger les approches pragmatiques et énonciatives avec la notion d'activités discursives. La thèse s'achève avec un important travail sur les concepts exprimant ces diverses activités : référenciation, reprises, reformulations, implicites, implicitations, modalisations et modulationsThis thesis aims at promoting an interactional approach to linguistics in relation to a multidisciplinary perspective on communication and verbal interaction. The thesis opens with a discussion of the categories of subject, of social relations and social fabric. The frame of analysis put forward by symbolic interactionalism, ethnomethodology and the german philosopher habermas are examined. The concept of interactive space is proposed as a means to relate the notions of face work, face, self, relation and situation. This concept describes the diversity of self images brought to play by each of the co-enunciators, these images being linked to the places occupied by the interactants and to the relationship that these places entertain. This diversity of self images refers to the complexity of the subject, as defined by mead, and to the heterogeneous nature of enunciator. The foremost among the place relations which hold between the interactants defines the frame of interaction. The concepts proposed allow a distinction between "interaction" and "encounter" and make possible, through the notion of module, a new typology of interactions. Structural and hierachical models interaction are also discussed. The specific linguistic contribution consist in elarging the pragmatic and enunciative approaches through the notion of discursive activities. The conceptual framework required to describe various discursive activities : referenciation, reprises, reformulations, presupposedness, implicatures, modulations, is examined in the last part of the thesis
6
Han, Chunhui. "Social gate: a new social accountable framework for computer networks." Thesis, McGill University, 2009. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=66970.
Full textAbstract:
Internet is a tremendous success and is an indispensable part of our everyday activities. However, Internet does not provide sufficient integrity to ensure the end hosts accountable for the communication. In this thesis, we present a new social accountable framework for the Internet that leverages the trusted links found on online social networks to hold the people and organizations accountable for their actions. Our framework is incrementally deployable without modifying the operating systems or applications running on the hosts. We provide the full design and discuss how different types of applications can be mapped onto the proposed framework. A prototype of this social accountable framework is partially implemented to evaluate the performance of the framework.L'Internet est un succès extraordinaire et est une pièce indispensable de notre vie quotidienne. Cependent, l'Internet ne fourni pas assez d'integrité pour assurer que les hébergeurs finaux soient responsables pour les communications. Dans cette thèse, nous présentons un nouveau cadre social responsable pour l'Internet qui exploite les liens de confiance trouvés sur les réseaux sociaux pour tenir les utilisateurs et les organisations responsables pour leurs actions. Notre cadre se déploit de facon itérative sans la modification du système d'exploitation ou les applications qui y exécutent. Nous présentons le plan complet et élaborons comment différent types d'applications peuvent s'adapter au cadre proposé. Un prototype de ce cadre social responsable est partiellement mis en application pour évaluer sa performance.
7
Bellés, Calvera Lucía. "Mulilingual education: A contrastive analysis in Humanities, Social Sciences and Health Sciences." Doctoral thesis, Universitat Jaume I, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.6035/14110.2021.481594.
Full textAbstract:
This study seeks to present a comparative analysis of metadiscoursal features produced in CLIL lectures and seminars offered in the fields of Soft Sciences and Hard Sciences. As for the methodology, the data were retrieved from several research instruments: audio-recorded interviews, transcripts of CLIL seminars and lectures, observation rubrics, students’ questionnaires and placement tests. The findings in the area of Soft Sciences indicate that the linguistic devices found in teacher discourse seem to be more predominant in the fourth-year module delivered in the History degree. It has also been illustrated that metadiscoursal features are more numerous in Hard Sciences, where communicative exchanges occur at a higher rate. This investigation sheds some light on the relevance of interpersonal markers in multilingual practices delivered in higher education. Evidence may be used in future teacher training programmes in order to support meaningful CLIL experiences.Este estudio pretende presentar un análisis comparativo de los rasgos metadiscursivos producidos en las clases y seminarios AICLE ofrecidos en las áreas de Ciencias Blandas y Ciencias Duras. En cuanto a la metodología, los datos se obtuvieron a partir de varios instrumentos de investigación: entrevistas grabadas en audio, transcripciones de seminarios y conferencias AICLE, rúbricas de observación, cuestionarios y pruebas de nivel.Los hallazgos en el área de Ciencias Blandas indican que los recursos lingüísticos encontrados en el discurso del profesor parecen ser más predominantes en el módulo de cuarto curso impartido en la licenciatura de Historia. También se ha puesto de manifiesto que los rasgos metadiscursivos son más numerosos en Ciencias duras, donde los intercambios comunicativos se producen en mayor proporción. Esta investigación arroja algo de luz sobre la relevancia de los marcadores interpersonales en las prácticas de interacción multilingüe que se dan en la educación superior. Las pruebas pueden utilizarse en los futuros programas de formación del profesorado con el fin de apoyar experiencias significativas de AICLE.
Programa de Doctorat en Llengües Aplicades, Literatura i Traducció
8
Wallace, Christopher Conor. "Evolutionary game theory in the social sciences." Thesis, University of Oxford, 1999. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.322749.
Full text
9
Grönvik, Lars. "Definitions of Disability in Social Sciences : Methodological Perspectives." Doctoral thesis, Uppsala University, Department of Sociology, 2007. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-7803.
Full textAbstract:
This dissertation examines how disability researchers define disability. It is based on four studies. The first describes different definitions of disability in disability research. The second study is a conceptual analysis of the use of disability in a sample of disability research classics. In this study, it is evident that use of the concept is all but clear. It is concluded that especially environmentally based disability definitions would benefit from further empirical investigations. The notion that environmental factors (such as barriers) are a causal aspect of disability is rather widely accepted among disability researchers. However, it has not been empirically studied to such an extent that it is possible to construct workable theories of this relationship.
The third study focuses on administrative definitions of disability and investigates the possibility of using data on disabled people that have been gathered by Swedish welfare authorities. It is concluded that rich data are available, but also that researchers must scrutinize how disability has been defined in these contexts. These authorities often start from medical understandings of disability, which may clash with contemporary understandings of disability as being environmentally based.
The fourth study is a statistical analysis of the effects of different disability definitions on dependent variables. The analyses emphasize variables often included in studies of living conditions. There are major effects of choice of disability definition on the outcome in relation to such variables.
The dissertation strongly rejects efforts to standardize disability definitions; different analytical purposes require different kinds of conceptualizations. Instead, the dissertation suggests that case-constructing reflexivity be conducted. Case-constructing reflexivity means that the researcher starts with a careful analysis of how disability is best defined in relation to the aims of the study, and continues by being constantly aware of how the choice of definition may affect sampling, analyses and results.
10
Grönvik, Lars. "Definitions of disability in social sciences : methodological perspectives /." Uppsala : Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis : b Universitetsbiblioteket [distributör], 2007. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-7803.
Full text
11
Evans, William. "Multivariate visualization in social sciences and survey data." Thesis, Monterey, California: Naval Postgraduate School, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/37623.
Full textAbstract:
Approved for public release; distribution is unlimitedFor presentation of survey results, social science data, and other geospatial statistics requires careful attention in order to facilitate fast and accurate interpretation. Adding dimensionality can easily saturate the observer, leading to confusion instead of adding perspective. We produce over a dozen techniques to facilitate multivariate geospatial visualization, filter them with pilot groups, and then design a computer-based human experiment to evaluate their relative performance. In the experiment, the participants locate (with a mouse click) regions with extreme primary or secondary values and then later estimate numerically the values of these variables. We analyze these data with linear and logistic regression and general additive models to characterize the variance due to a learning effect, and then use general linear mixed-effects models to block out the variability due to individual participants and the independent and randomly-generated survey data used to generate the experiment plots. The effectiveness of a particular technique depends heavily on the goal of the presentation: a technique that provides relative perspective without distracting from the primary variable may not facilitate estimation that is as accurate as other techniques. Four scenarios are provided to qualify the presenters intent. Only one technique performed poorly in all four scenarios and only one technique was average in all four; all remaining varied from very good to very bad between scenarios.
12
Barnes, Peter. "Interpretation in the arts and the social sciences." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2005. http://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:8efbc121-6d88-4b24-a43a-c4cff9e974ba.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis makes a contribution to the debate about the status of the social sciences. Many philosophers have argued that the social sciences are unlike the natural sciences because they involve a kind of interpretative inquiry which has no parallel in the natural sciences. Stronger versions of this argument suggest that the social sciences are dominated or exhausted by interpretation. In many cases, this stronger claim is supported by an appeal to an analogy between interpretation in the social sciences and interpretation in the arts. The claim of this thesis is that the analogy between interpretation in the arts and the social sciences is not as strong as it is often thought to be. Works of art can be subjected to several distinct kinds of interpretation. Not all of these different kinds have analogues in the social sciences. In particular, conceptions of interpretation which allow for multiple incompatible interpretations of a single artwork have no corollary in the social sciences. By questioning the analogy between interpretation in the two fields, I seek to develop a limited version of naturalism in the philosophy of social science. That is, I argue that there are similarities and points of contact between the social sciences and the natural sciences. This position is strengthened by a further argument: that those who have opposed naturalism have tended to rely on an outdated and overly-rigid view of the what the natural sciences are like. The naturalism I defend is limited because it accepts that there are differences between the natural and social sciences, including the fact that there is a role (but not a dominating role) for interpretation in the social sciences.
13
Davids, Steven Emlyn. "A soft systems approach to social sciences projects." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2001. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/52133.
Full textAbstract:
Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2001ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This paper asks the question: "Is the Guide to the PMBOICs method appropriate for doing projects of a social science character?" Inthis enquiry extensive use is made ofliterature that is available via the world wide web. This paper follows the school of thought that regards the world as a complex set of interrelated systems. Humans as social beings are an integral part of these complex systems. In order to do justice to human endeavours, one must understand the systems in which humans operate and interpret all human undertakings in relation to those systems. Three broad types of systems approaches to project management are distinguished. A common underlying principle of all three approaches is that they regard social systems as complex, highly volatile and in constant flux. A direct consequence of this characteristic of social systems is that project goals are also not simple and rigidly fixed. The project goals are also complex, in constant flux and open-ended. The traditional Guide to the PMBOICs method for doing project management is unable to deal effectively with these complex and volatile system problems. This paper advocates that a slightly modified version of Checkland's soft systems method be used to deal with social projects, which are by definition, also complex projects. It is proposed that Checkland's soft systems method should be used in addition to the traditional approach. The method proposed by this paper is, to various degrees, already being implemented in practice. The proposed method is, however, presently not being catered for in the project management software packages that are readily and commercially available.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie ondersoek die vraag: "Is die metode soos voorgestel in die Guide to the PMBOK geskik vir projekte met 'n sosiaal wetenskaplike karakter?" In die ondersoek word op grootskaal gebruik gemaak van literatuur wat beskikbaar is op die internet. Hierdie studie sluit aan by die wetenskaplike gedagterigting wat die wêreld beskou as bestaande uit 'n reeks ingewikkelde en onderling verbinde sisteme. As sosiale wese is die mens 'n integrale deel van hierdie gekompliseerde sisteme. Om reg te laat geskied aan menslike handelinge, moet die sisteme waarbinne die mens leef verstaan word. Menslike handeling moet ook vertolk word teen die agtergrond van daardie sisteme en in verhouding tot die sisteme. Drie gedagterigtings kan onderskei word binne die sisteem benadering tot projekbestuur. 'n Gemeenskaplike en onderliggende beginsel van al drie gedagterigtings is dat hulle sosiale sisteme beskou as gekompliseerd, uiters onbestendig en in voortdurende beweging. 'n Direkte gevolg van hierdie eienskap van sosiale sisteme is dat projekte se doelwitte ook nie maklik definieerbaar en stabiel is nie. Projekte se doelwitte is gekompliseerd, onbestendig en oop. Die konvensionele metodes vir projekbestuur soos voorgestel deur die Guide to the PMBOK is nie in staat om hierdie gekompliseerde en onbestendige sisteem probleme effektief te hanteer nie. Hierdie studie debatteer dat 'n effens gewysigde weergawe van Checkland se sagte sisteem metode gebruik word vir die doen van sosiale projekte, wat per definisie gekompliseerde projekte is. Dit word aan die hand gedoen dat Checkland se sagte sisteem metode gebruik word saam met die konvensionele benadering. Die metode wat hierdie studie bepleit, word alreeds tot vlakke in die praktyk toegepas. Daar word egter nie voorsieining gemaak vir die voorgestelde metode in rekenaar sagte ware programme in projekbestuur wat redelik algemeen in die kleinhandel beskikbaar is nie.
14
Jones, Rhys. "Igniting the statistical spark in the social sciences." Thesis, Cardiff University, 2018. http://orca.cf.ac.uk/111418/.
Full textAbstract:
Several investigations have concluded that there is a quantitative deficit within the social sciences in the UK (Fonow and Cook, 1991; Lincoln and Denzin, 2003; Payne et al., 2004; Williams, et al., 2008; MacInnes, 2009; Platt, 2012; Payne, 2014; Williams et al., 2015). Reasons for this are potentially rooted within the societal negative attitudes towards mathematics. Societal negative attitudes towards mathematics could be a product of the traditional teaching approaches of mathematics education. In particular, teaching methods have potentially contributed to the subject identity as being right or wrong, perceived as a difficult discipline (Porkess, 2013; Donaldson, 2015). Significant changes have been made to mathematics education (years 7-13) more recently to encourage greater student uptake post-16, within England and Wales (Porkess, 2013; Donaldson, 2015). Statistics has gained an increasingly important voice within mathematics education. Statistics also cuts across many disciplines, becoming a core subject. In addition, employers are increasingly requesting employees acquire data analysis skills, underpinned by statistical and scientific principles. In relation to the quantitative deficit, the Q-Step initiative was created across 15 British universities to develop a range of undergraduate social science degree courses to improve quantitative methods skills. The Q-Step centre within Cardiff University invested in the development of a range of school and further education activities, to highlight the importance of these quantitative skills. The development of a QCF level 3 course in Social Analytics (investigation of social processes using statistical analysis and techniques) involved the creation of the Pilot Scheme in Social Analytics (SA). This course was developed with a group of secondary school teachers and FE lecturers, delivered over a series of 21 weeks to a mixture of year 12 and 13 students in Cardiff in 2014/15 (44 students) and 2015/16 (29 students). To investigate the effectiveness of the Pilot Scheme in SA, a series of research questions were developed. A quasi-experimental design was used to operationalise these research questions to measure the impacts on student attitudes and attainment in statistics (in year 12 and 13) on an experimental group who received a contextualised statistics course in 2015/16 (Pilot Scheme in SA), compared to two control groups. Results suggest the course did lead to changes in the students’ attitudes, becoming more positive. In addition, their statistical abilities also seem to have improved, in comparison to the two control groups. Although the positive impacts of the course are somewhat tentative, and in places it is difficult to make unequivocal inferences, there is no evidence to suggest the course had a negative impact on the experimental group. In comparison, students in both control groups who didn’t receive the treatment, showed negative differences in their attitudes and abilities with respect to mathematics and statistics. In light of the findings and discussion, recommendations have been made with reference to professional practice and also future research. These include expanding the Pilot Scheme in SA to be made available for more schools in Wales and developing teacher training support to deliver these courses.
15
Arnold, Robert V. "Theory, Method, and Democracy in the Social Sciences." Ohio University / OhioLINK, 2008. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1212757204.
Full text
16
Mallick, Arindam. "The Methodology of social sciences : a phenomenological approach." Thesis, University of North Bengal, 1994. http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/52.
Full text
17
Manco, Vega Alejandra. "Early career researchers and PhD students from the social sciences use of Social Networking Sites (SNS) for science communication: an affordances approach." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för informatik och media, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-332028.
Full textAbstract:
This research aims to understand the different practices and strategies early career researchers and PhD students from the social sciences have in Social Networking Sites (SNSs) for science communication in one particular country: Brazil. Following this purpose, the central research question is which are the motives and rationale of the researchers for using social networking sites for science communication. Two sub-questions arise from this general research question: How do practices and strategies relate to the academic system of this country? And How do the traditional science communication practices translate into the use of Social Networking Sites (SNS)? This research is empirically oriented building up on case studies in Brazil. This study makes use of the adaptation that Van Dijck (2013) made of the Actor-Network Theory (ANT) and the review of affordances of social media platforms (Bucher & Helmond, 2016) to apply it to the study of social media as the theoretical approach. The methodological approach of this research is qualitative, using both interviews and netnography as research methods. The primary motivations for using different Social Networking Sites are all related to connectivity: communication with peers, to the public and research subjects, updating themselves about their research issue, dissemination of research, availability of papers, self-branding and participation in interest groups are the most mentioned. These motivations translate into cross-posting practices and integrated communication strategies -combining online and offline elements- on the different Social Networking Sites. These motivations translate into perceived affordances all related to social affordances, therefore, social capital processes: availability, scalability, visibility and multimediality. The academic system of the country has remained unchanged as it privileges traditional scholarly academic formats; therefore, early career researchers and PhD students from the social sciences only use the different Social Networking Sites (SNS) as a side aid but not as a primary means of communication. Social media is underused as a means of public science communication, even though these platforms offer a lot of advantages for pursuing such issue. Traditional science communication practices translate into the use of Social Networking Sites (SNSs). The most important issue that came out in this report was the fact that social affordances provided by Social Networking (SNSs) are still required to be endorsed by real life meeting to start further collaboration and the fact that English is the preferred language for such issues.
18
Chen, Chen. "Romantic Transfer: From Science to Social Ideologies." Thesis, Harvard University, 2017. http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:33052848.
Full textAbstract:
The transfer of learning is arguably the most enduring goal of education. The history of science reveals that numerous theories transfer from natural-science to the socio-political realm, but educational practitioners often deem such transfers romantic and rhetorical, ignoring the opportunities and challenges such transfers may hold. In terms of opportunities, romantic transfer encourages students to relate science to events in social life and further to discover new ways to understand social issues and propose social hypotheses. In terms of challenge, romantic transfers are often based on superficial and even imprecise understandings of science and depend on oversimplified labels and metaphors. In many cases, the romantic transfers are imaginative. Although logically romantic transfers are based on analogical resonance, empirically they are hardly proven to be valid. Nevertheless, when students imagine social and ideological implications of the hard science terminologies and theorems, they are at risk for considering the emergent ideologies as proven by hard sciences that are often considered authoritative, objective, and universal. Literal understanding of science-inspired by still unexamined ideologies can lead to maladaptive and even dangerous social actions. Because many of the romantic transfers are interdisciplinary and controversial, teachers may avoid explicit discussion about romantic transfer with students, and do not wish to assume responsibility of doing so. However, the question remains whether avoiding explicit discussion and debates about romantic transfer would inhibit students from spontaneously romanticize science concepts. This dissertation presents four studies that systematically investigate questions of romantic transfer—informal, emergent, and metaphorical boundary transections from natural science to social ideologies that often occur unexpectedly.
My first study shows that participants who scored high in transferential thinking style also scored high in scientism beliefs and that participants who scored high on both tend to give literal interpretations to (religious) text. Following, my second study shows that students who reviewed the conservation of energy in physics are more likely to believe that luck is conserved, a naïve karmic religious idea. My third study shows that students are able to transfer spontaneously from theories in physics to more politically charged contexts. Specifically, students who learned the theory of entropy are more likely to prefer tightened social control, whereas students who learned self-organization theory are more likely to prefer stronger individual agency and relaxed social control. Study-4 involved interviews with the participants from Study-3 and shows that students’ narratives about social control are largely consistent with the thermodynamic concepts they have learned. Occasionally, students can critically evaluate the plausibility of their romantic transferences.
This dissertation shows that science instruction implicitly empowers students to make social hypotheses and to engage in moral-civic-political discourse. To consider pedagogies that respond to such an opportunity without falling victim to hasty generalizations, we need both science and civic educations to equip students with the methods to examine self-generated social hypothesis. We also need pedagogies that promote the awareness and tolerance of metaphors to offset the dangers of literalism.
19
Olmos, Peñuela Julia. "Science-Society interactions in the social sciences and humanities:empirical studies of the Spanish Council for Scientific Research." Doctoral thesis, Universitat Politècnica de València, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/31653.
Full textAbstract:
Las interacciones entre los agentes del sistema de innovación son una pieza clave para
el fomento del intercambio de conocimiento, los procesos de aprendizaje y el proceso
innovador. El análisis de las interacciones entre universidades y organismos públicos de
investigación (ciencia) y los agentes del entorno social (sociedad) ha recibido una gran
atención en la comunidad científica, entre otras razones, porque los resultados de estas
interacciones pueden tener implicaciones en el diseño de las políticas de ciencia e
innovación y en la gestión de la organización.
En esta tesis se analizan las interacciones entre los investigadores del área de ciencias
sociales y humanidades (CCSSHH) y los agentes sociales, dado que es un colectivo que
ha sido escasamente estudiado desde esta perspectiva y presenta características
específicas respecto a otros ámbitos científicos. Los tres estudios que componen la tesis
abordan aspectos diferentes del tema objeto de estudio y se basan en datos empíricos
obtenidos mediante encuestas y entrevistas realizadas en el Consejo Superior de
Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC).
El primer estudio pretende averiguar si la utilidad del conocimiento producido en las
CCSSHH es menor que en las STEM (acrónimo inglés para ciencia, tecnología, ingeniería
y matemáticas), tal como los enfoques de las políticas científicas al uso parecen
presuponer al establecer medidas basadas en indicadores difíciles de aplicar a este
colectivo (licencias de patentes, contratos de I+D con empresas, creación de spin off). El
análisis empírico realizado muestra que los resultados de las investigaciones en
CCSSHH no son menos útiles que los de las STEM porque, en ambos casos, hay agentes
sociales interesados en ellos. Sin embargo, se aprecia que el tipo de mecanismo de
colaboración varía entre áreas del conocimiento, al igual que el tipo de agente social con
el cual los investigadores interactúan. Las empresas predominan entre los agentes
sociales con los cuales colaboran los investigadores de las STEM mientras que los de CCSSHH colaboran con un grupo más variado de agentes sociales (i.e. administraciones,
organizaciones no gubernamentales, etc.).
El segundo estudio explora en qué medida los grupos de investigación del área de
CCSSHH se relacionan con una variedad de agentes sociales mediante cauces no
formalizados. Para ello, se realizan dos análisis complementarios (cuantitativo y
cualitativo). Los resultados obtenidos ponen de manifiesto que la mayoría de las
relaciones no se formalizan institucionalmente, lo cual significa que la institución no las
identifica, registra o valora. Sin embargo, la participación en este tipo de colaboraciones
informales, que no tienen necesariamente una contrapartida económica, resulta
atractiva por su coste relativamente bajo (en términos económicos y de tiempo), por la
ausencia de condiciones restrictivas (p. ej. derechos de propiedad, confidencialidad) y
por la existencia de beneficios intangibles para el investigador.
El tercer estudio analiza en qué medida los grupos de investigación de CCSSHH
interactúan con su entorno mediante diferentes actividades de transferencia de
conocimiento (TC) ¿consultoría, investigación contratada, investigación conjunta,
actividades de formación e intercambio de personal¿ e identifica los determinantes de
cada una de ellas. Los resultados indican que las actividades de TC más frecuentes son la
consultoría y la investigación contratada, mientras que el intercambio de personal
representa una actividad marginal entre las analizadas. El estudio de los factores que
determinan la participación en estas actividades de TC muestra que considerar el
potencial uso social de los resultados desde el principio aumenta la participación de los
grupos de investigación en todas las actividades de TC analizadas.
En conjunto, los tres estudios permiten concluir que la investigación en CCSSHH
produce conocimiento y resultados que son de interés para la sociedad. Sin embargo, se
diferencian de otras áreas científicas en los mecanismos de interacción predominantes y
en la variedad de agentes sociales con los que interactúan. Estas conclusiones pueden
tener utilidad práctica para el diseño de políticas destinadas a fomentar el amplio
conjunto de interacciones identificadas, para la mejora de las prácticas de gestión y para
tratar de evaluar las citadas interacciones mediante indicadores capaces de recoger el
amplio espectro de mecanismos identificados en esta tesis.Interactions among agents in the innovation system are critical for the promotion of knowledge exchange, learning processes and the innovation process. The analysis of interactions between universities or public research organisations (science) and social agents (society) has received great attention in the scientific community because, among other reasons, the results of these interactions can have implications for the design of science and innovation policies and organisation management. This thesis analyses the interactions between researchers in the social sciences and humanities (SSH) and social agents. The SSH community is a collective that has been little studied from this perspective and presents particular characteristics as compared to other scientific fields. The three studies included in the thesis address different aspects of the topic and are based on empirical data obtained through surveys and interviews conducted in the Spanish Council for Scientific Research (CSIC). The first study explores whether the knowledge produced by the SSH is less useful than that produced in STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), as science policy seems to presume when establishing measures based on indicators (patent licenses, R&D contracts with companies, creating spin off) that are difficult to apply to the SSH community. The empirical analysis shows that SSH research outputs are no less useful than those from STEM because, in both cases, there are social agents interested in them. However, the preferred type of collaborative mechanism varies across fields, as does the type of agent with whom researchers interact. Firms are the prevailing type of agent collaborating with STEM researchers whilst SSH researchers collaborate with a varied group of social agents (i.e. government, NGOs, etc.). The second study explores the extent to which SSH research groups engage with a variety of social agents through non¿formalized collaborations. To do this, two complementary analyses (quantitative and qualitative) are conducted. Results show that most of the collaborations are not institutionally formalized, which means that the research organisation does not identify, record or value them. However, engagement in these informal collaborations, that do not necessarily have an economic counterpart, are attractive due to the relatively low cost (in time and economic terms) of many such activities, the absence of restrictive conditions (e.g. IPR, confidentiality) and other intangible benefits accruing to the researcher. The third study examines the extent to which SSH research groups interact with social agents through different knowledge transfer (KT) activities ¿consultancy, contract research, joint research, training and personnel mobility¿ and identifies the determinants of each. Results show that the most frequent KT activities are consultancy and contract research, while personnel exchange is a marginal activity among those analysed. The study of the factors determining the engagement in these activities shows that consideration of the social uses of the research outputs from the beginning enhances research groups¿ engagement in all the knowledge transfer activities analysed. Overall, the three studies support the conclusion that SSH research produces knowledge and outputs that are of interest to society. However, differences from other scientific fields are found in terms of the prevalent type of interaction mechanisms used and the variety of social agents with whom interactions are established. These findings may have practical utility for the design of policies aimed at encouraging and enhancing the range of interactions, for improving managerial practices and for the assessment of these interactions through indicators able to capture the type of interactions identified in this thesis.
Olmos Peñuela, J. (2013). Science-Society interactions in the social sciences and humanities:empirical studies of the Spanish Council for Scientific Research [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/31653
TESIS
Premiado
20
Bordianu, Gheorghita. "Learning influence probabilities in social networks." Thesis, McGill University, 2013. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=114597.
Full textAbstract:
Social network analysis is an important cross-disciplinary area of research, with applications in fields such as biology, epidemiology, marketing and even politics. Influence maximization is the problem of finding the set of seed nodes in an information diffusion process that guarantees maximum spread of influence in a social network, given its structure. Most approaches to this problem make two assumptions. First, the global structure of the network is known. Second, influence probabilities between any two nodes are known beforehand, which is rarely the case in practical settings. In this thesis we propose a different approach to the problem of learning those influence probabilities from past data, using only the local structure of the social network. The method is grounded in unsupervised machine learning techniques and is based on a form of hierarchical clustering, allowing us to distinguish between influential and the influenceable nodes. Finally, we provide empirical results using real data extracted from Facebook.L'analyse des réseaux sociaux est un domaine d'études interdisciplinaires qui comprend des applications en biologie, épidémiologie, marketing et même politique. La maximisation de l'influence représente un problème où l'on doit trouver l'ensemble des noeuds de semence dans un processus de diffusion de l'information qui en même temps garantit le maximum de propagation de son influence dans un réseau social avec une structure connue. La plupart des approches à ce genre de problème font appel à deux hypothèses. Premièrement, la structure générale du réseau social est connue. Deuxièmement, les probabilités des influences entre deux noeuds sont connues à l'avance, fait qui n'est d'ailleurs pas valide dans des circonstances pratiques. Dans cette thèse, on propose un procédé différent visant la problème de l'apprentissage de ces probabilités d'influence à partir des données passées, en utilisant seulement la structure locale du réseau social. Le procédé se base sur l'apprentissage automatique sans surveillance et il est relié à une forme de regroupement hiérarchique, ce qui nous permet de faire la distinction entre les noeuds influenceurs et les noeuds influencés. Finalement, on fournit des résultats empiriques en utilisant des données réelles extraites du réseau social Facebook.
21
Sergeant, Jamie C. "Some model-based approaches to measurement in social sciences." Thesis, University of Oxford, 2007. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.491974.
Full textAbstract:
Statistical models are often used as the defining basis of measurement in social science. However, important issues such as uncertainty, model criticism and the impact of model assumptions are often neglected. These issues are explored in the context of three leading cases of model-based measurement. The relative index of inequality (RII) is used to measure socioeconomic inequality in health outcomes. A new definition of the RII is introduced, in place of the standard formulation based on linear regression. Non-linear outcome rates are accommodated, and estimation using cubic splines fitted by maximum penalized likelihood is developed. The modeling approach taken naturally handles standardizing variables such as age. Bootstrap estimation of variability is pursued. Simulations and a real data example demonstrate a reduction in bias, at the cost of some increase in variance, when incidence rates are non-linear. Social mobility can be measured using an index of mobility, which summarizes a mobility table in a single number. A certain index, based on the supposition of an underlying continuous-time Markov process, satisfies criteria set out in the literature. The 'embedding problem' is explored to assess when it is valid to apply this index. A sufficient condition for the distribution of a likelihood ratio test statistic is derived, and used to develop confidence intervals. In an example using French data, the index is used to caution against the conclusions of the popular UNIDIFF model. Electoral transitions between parties can be measured via a transition table of votes. The aggregated compound multinomial model for such a table appears rigid. Flexibility is introduced in two ways: the log-linear dependence on covariates is relaxed to one involving thin plate splines, and a new model with a general covariate structure is introduced. However, little improvement is offered in the example of describing the dependence of the 2005 British general election results on the 2001 results. This is illustrated using novel plots of residuals.
22
Burrows, Andrea C. "A social study of women in contemporary biological sciences." Diss., This resource online, 1991. http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-07282008-135540/.
Full text
23
Loignon, Andrew Caleb. "Social class in the organizational sciences| A meta-analysis." Thesis, The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 2017. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=10240988.
Full textAbstract:
Social class has become increasingly popular in the organizational sciences. Recent studies have found that one’s social class influences phenomena ranging from decision-making, to pro-social behavior, and interpersonal interactions. Despite the burgeoning interest in this topic, there remains a great deal of ambiguity concerning the conceptualization and operationalization of social class. For instance, scholars have used income, education, as well as subjective ratings to measures one’s social class. In order to improve the conceptual clarity of social class, I develop and present a model that draws on the dominant theories of social class from both sociology and psychology, while organizing their key principles to explain how social class influences an individual’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. By using this model as a framework, this dissertation attempts to refine the conceptualization of social class by testing core research questions pertaining to the construct validity of this construct. Based on a comprehensive, interdisciplinary literature search, which yielded nearly 4,000 effect sizes, I used meta-analytical structural equation modeling to test the proposed research questions and hypotheses. The findings offer clear support for two distinct components of social class (i.e., objective and subjective) that are both highly related to one another and associated with other micro-level constructs (i.e., job attitudes). Given the timeliness and importance of social class, the findings of this conceptual review and empirical meta-analysis offer a means of summarizing this large, interdisciplinary literature while guiding future management research on this critical topic.
24
Page, Arnaud. "Le social et les disciplines : Développement et institutionnalisation des sciences sociales à la london School of Economics and Political Science, 1895-1914." Pau, 2009. http://www.theses.fr/2009PAUU1015.
Full textAbstract:
Cette thèse étudie les vingt premières années d'existence de la London School of Economics and Political Science (créée par le socialiste Fabien Sidney Webb en 1895) afin de contribuer à l'analyse du processus d'institutionnalisation des sciences sociales en Grande-Bretagne au tournant du vingtième siècle. La perspective privilégiée dans cette thèse est de replacer le développement de ces différentes formes de discoursdans leurs contextes professionnels. Situant son analyse au niveau non pas d'un penseur ou d'une discipline mais d'une école comme lieu concret d'enseignement et de production de savoirs, elle se propose d'étudier l'interaction entre les changements institutionnels et intellectuels. L'argument central qui parcourt ce travail est que si l'ambition initiale de Webb a parfois été interprétée comme procédant d'une volonté de s'opposer à l'étude plus traditionnelle qui prévalait à Oxford et Cambridge, la mise en œuvre de ce projet est marquée par de multiples lignes de continuité avec le travail développé dans les anciennes universités. Cette thèse s'attache ainsi à montrer la façon dont la création de cette école participe d'une reformulation (plutôt que d'un rejet) de l'idéal universitaire, marquée par l'intégration de l'idéal de recherche au sein d'une approche plus généraliste et "libérale". En étudiant quatre disciplines en particulier (science politique, économie, géographie et sociologie), ce travail s'attache surtout à montrer que la contribution de la LSE aux évolutions de l'étude du social se situe moins au niveau de grands projets théoriques et scientifiques qu'à celui d'une accumulation de décalages graduels dans les pratiques intellectuelleThis dissertation studies the first twenty years of the London School of Economics and Political Science (founded in 1895 by Fabian Sidney Webb) to contribute to a better understanding of the institutionalisation of the social sciences at the turn of the twentieth century. The approach taken in this thesis is to locate the developments of these different types of discourse primarily in their professional contexts. Rather than analysing a particular thinker or a discipline, it focuses on a school as a concrete place of teaching and research, in order to analyse the interaction between institutional and intellectual changes. The central argument of this thesis is that if the initial project for the school has sometimes been interpreted as having been directed against the more traditional types of study which prevailed at Oxford or Cambridge, its actual developments were marked by the persistence of the concerns and approaches that characterized the analysis of social phenomena in the older universities. This dissertation argues that creation of the LSE was an important event in the reformulation (rather than the rejection) of the ideals attached to institutions of higher education in Britain, marked by the incorporation of the research ideal within a more general and liberal approach. It attemps to show how the contribution of the LSE to the transformations of the social sciences is to be found in a series of gradual intellectual and institutional shifts rather than in eleborate theoretical or scientific schemes
25
Chan, Ip Miu-kwan Rose. "The information structure in Hong Kong Form III integrated science and social studies textbooks." Click to view the E-thesis via HKUTO, 1986. http://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/HKUTO/record/B38626378.
Full text
26
Yu, Jingyuan. "Discovering Twitter through Computational Social Science Methods." Doctoral thesis, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 2021. http://hdl.handle.net/10803/671609.
Full textAbstract:
Visibilitzant la vida quotidiana de la gent, Twitter s'ha convertit en una de les plataformes d'intercanvi d'informació més importants i ha atret ràpidament l'atenció dels científics. Investigadors de tot el món s'han centrat en les ciències socials i en els estudis d'Internet amb dades de Twitter com a mostra del món real, i en l'última dècada s'han dissenyat nombroses eines d'anàlisis i algorismes. La present tesi doctoral consta de tres recerques, en primer lloc, donats els 14 anys (fins a 2020) d'història des de la fundació de Twitter, hem assistit a una explosió de publicacions científiques relacionades, però el panorama actual de la recerca en aquesta plataforma de mitjans socials continuava sent desconegut. Per a omplir aquest buit de recerca, vam fer una anàlisi bibliomètrica dels estudis relacionats amb Twitter per a analitzar com van evolucionar els estudis de Twitter al llarg del temps, i per a proporcionar una descripció general de l'entorn acadèmic de recerca de Twitter des d'un nivell macro. En segon lloc, atès que hi ha moltes eines de programari analític que estan disponibles actualment per a la recerca en Twitter, una pregunta pràctica per als investigadors júnior és com triar el programari més apropiat per al seu propi projecte de recerca. Per a resoldre aquest problema, vam fer una revisió del programari per a alguns dels sistemes integrats que es consideren més rellevants per a la recerca en ciències socials. Atès que els investigadors júnior en ciències socials poden enfrontar-se a possibles limitacions financeres, vam reduir el nostre abast per a centrar-nos únicament en el programari gratuït i de baix cost. En tercer lloc, donada l'actual crisi de salut pública, hem observat que els mitjans de comunicació social són una de les fonts d'informació i notícies més accessibles per al públic. Durant una pandèmia, la forma en què s'emmarquen els problemes de salut i les malalties en la premsa influeix en la comprensió del públic sobre l'actual brot epidèmic i les seves actituds i comportaments. Per tant, decidim usar Twitter com una font de notícies de fàcil accés per a analitzar l'evolució dels marcs de notícies espanyols durant la pandèmia COVID-19. En general, les tres recerques s'han associat estretament amb l'aplicació de mètodes computacionals, incloent la recol·lecció de dades en línia, la mineria de textos, l'anàlisi de xarxes i la visualització de dades. Aquest projecte de doctorat ha mostrat com la gent estudia i utilitza Twitter des de tres nivells diferents: el nivell acadèmic, el nivell pràctic i el nivell empíric.Visibilizando la vida cotidiana de la gente, Twitter se ha convertido en una de las plataformas de intercambio de información más importantes y ha atraído rápidamente la atención de los científicos. Investigadores de todo el mundo se han centrado en las ciencias sociales y en los estudios de Internet con datos de Twitter como muestra del mundo real, y en la última década se han diseñado numerosas herramientas de análisis y algoritmos. La presente tesis doctoral consta de tres investigaciones, en primer lugar, dados los 14 años (hasta 2020) de historia desde la fundación de Twitter, hemos asistido a una explosión de publicaciones científicas relacionadas, pero el panorama actual de la investigación en esta plataforma de medios sociales seguía siendo desconocido. Para llenar este vacío de investigación, hicimos un análisis bibliométrico de los estudios relacionados con Twitter para analizar cómo evolucionaron los estudios de Twitter a lo largo del tiempo, y para proporcionar una descripción general del entorno académico de investigación de Twitter desde un nivel macro. En segundo lugar, dado que hay muchas herramientas de software analítico que están disponibles actualmente para la investigación en Twitter, una pregunta práctica para los investigadores junior es cómo elegir el software más apropiado para su propio proyecto de investigación. Para resolver este problema, hicimos una revisión del software para algunos de los sistemas integrados que se consideran más relevantes para la investigación en ciencias sociales. Dado que los investigadores junior en ciencias sociales pueden enfrentarse a posibles limitaciones financieras, redujimos nuestro alcance para centrarnos únicamente en el software gratuito y de bajo coste. En tercer lugar, dada la actual crisis de salud pública, hemos observado que los medios de comunicación social son una de las fuentes de información y noticias más accesibles para el público. Durante una pandemia, la forma en que se enmarcan los problemas de salud y las enfermedades en la prensa influye en la comprensión del público sobre el actual brote epidémico y sus actitudes y comportamientos. Por lo tanto, decidimos usar Twitter como una fuente de noticias de fácil acceso para analizar la evolución de los marcos de noticias españoles durante la pandemia COVID-19. En general, las tres investigaciones se han asociado estrechamente con la aplicación de métodos computacionales, incluyendo la recolección de datos en línea, la minería de textos, el análisis de redes y la visualización de datos. Este proyecto de doctorado ha mostrado cómo la gente estudia y utiliza Twitter desde tres niveles diferentes: el nivel académico, el nivel práctico y el nivel empírico.
As Twitter has covered up people’s daily life, it has became one of the most important information exchange platforms, and quickly attracted scientists’ attention. Researchers around the world have highly focused on social science and internet studies with Twitter data as a real world sample, and numerous analytics tools and algorithms have been designed in the last decade. The present doctoral thesis consists of three researches, first, given the 14 years (until 2020) of history since the foundation of Twitter, an explosion of related scientific publications have been witnessed, but the current research landscape on this social media platform remained unknown, to fill this research gap, we did a bibliometric analysis on Twitter-related studies to analyze how the Twitter studies evolved over time, and to provide a general description of the Twitter research academic environment from a macro level. Second, since there are many analytic software tools that are currently available for Twitter research, a practical question for junior researchers is how to choose the most appropriate software for their own research project, to solve this problem, we did a software review for some of the integrated frameworks that are considered most relevant for social science research, given that junior social science researchers may face possible financial constraints, we narrowed our scope to solely focus on the free and low-cost software. Third, given the current public health crisis, we have noticed that social media are one of the most accessed information and news sources for the public. During a pandemic, how health issues and diseases are framed in the news release impacts public’s understanding of the current epidemic outbreak and their attitudes and behaviors. Hence, we decided to use Twitter as an easy-access news source to analyze the evolution of the Spanish news frames during the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, the three researches have closely associated with the application of computational methods, including online data collection, text mining, complex network and data visualization. And this doctoral project has discovered how people study and use Twitter from three different levels: the academic level, the practical level and the empirical level.
27
Nadrowski, Karin, Daniel Seifarth, Sophia Ratcliffe, Christian Wirth, and Lutz Maicher. "Identifiers in e-Science platforms for the ecological sciences." Saechsische Landesbibliothek- Staats- und Universitaetsbibliothek Dresden, 2012. http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bsz:14-qucosa-101319.
Full textAbstract:
In the emerging Web of Data, publishing stable and unique identifiers promises great potential in using the web as common platform to discover and enrich data in the ecologic sciences. With our collaborative e-Science platform “BEFdata”, we generated and published unique identifiers for the data repository of the Biodiversity – Ecosystem Functioning Research Unit of the German Research Foundation (BEF-China; DFG: FOR 891). We linked part of the identifiers to two external data providers, thus creating a virtual common platform including several ecological repositories. We used the Global Biodiversity Facility (GBIF) as well the International Plant Name Index (IPNI) to enrich the data from our own field observations. We conclude in discussing other potential providers for identifiers for the ecological research domain. We demonstrate the ease of making use of existing decentralized and unsupervised identifiers for a data repository, which opens new avenues to collaborative data discovery for learning, teaching, and research in ecology.
28
Brillinger, Marc Andrew. "Brainstorming : how the brain sciences can inform social justice strategies." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/51352.
Full textAbstract:
Anthropogenic climate disruption (global warming) and income inequality are in the process of spiraling out of control, pushing humanity to the brink of global collapse and mass extinction of species. Underlying this profound issue is an epic struggle taking place between two alternate worldviews. Corporate institutional power has morphed economics, capitalism and the “free market” into a suicide machine that increasingly extracts, exploits and selfishly hordes the bulk of the world’s wealth for the few. The obscene wealth and power of the plutocrats and oligarchs has rigged both economics and politics to benefit the one percent and destroy the environment. Alternately, social justice led by activists have made valiant attempts to slow down this process and regain some sanity with a return to community, sociality and cooperation. A world worth living in hangs precariously in the balance.
This interdisciplinary research focuses on the critical, yet unexplored, intersection of social justice and the burgeoning brain sciences. The “brain sciences” refers to the rapidly increasing interdisciplinary understanding (from neuroscience, biology, social sciences etc.) of the human brain, mind, consciousness and their relationship to institutions, cultures, society and human belief and behaviour. A synthesis of the knowledge arising out of the brain sciences, as it applies to existing social activist strategies and tactics, now seems a necessity in the attempt to restrain corporate institutional power that is currently running amok in North America and globally.
Extensive interviews with fifteen North American activists on the current state of social justice movements and their understandings of the brain sciences comprised the core of the research. Using grounded theory methodology, initial analysis confirmed that corporate institutional power was the roadblock, obfuscating any positive social change on both anthropogenic climate disruption and income inequality. Deeper analysis of the data, along with the integration of the brain sciences, resulted in a specific strategic recommendation: A global mythology for the 21st century, cognizant of the science of our time and powered by moral outrage, has to “culturally evolve” and spread around the world inhabiting many minds in many places enabling a global cultural environment that nurtures connection, cooperation, cognition and childhood. We can be magnificent, together.Graduate Studies, College of (Okanagan)
Graduate
29
Grüne, Till. "Rational causes : the concept of preference in the social sciences." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 2004. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/2899/.
Full textAbstract:
The concept of preference is used in the social sciences to explain and predict behaviour. This thesis investigates the conditions the preference concept has to satisfy in order to operate as explanans. First, it defends the naturalistic position that preferences are causes of behaviour. More specifically, it is argued that preferences are programming properties that are themselves not causally efficacious, but causally relevant in that they realise efficacious properties. Further, the argument that the allegedly intentional nature of preferences poses a problem to such a causal relevance is rejected. Second, methodologies of preference attribution are discussed. The methodology of introspection in its current form is rejected, as well as the Radical Behaviourists' proposal to avoid mental properties altogether. Instead, it is argued that preferences are theoretical concepts. Third, a framework is provided that connects preferences over prospects of different degrees of abstraction. Such a framework allows to attribute specific preferences on the basis of observed actions and derive from these specific preferences more abstract preferences which are employed in the explanation and prediction of behaviour. Fourth, this thesis develops a model of preference change. It is specified under which conditions the inconsistency of an agent's behaviour with the preferences previously assigned to her should be interpreted as a preference change. The model then takes those behavioural observations and predicts how the preferences must have been changed in order to retain consistency. Principles guiding such a change are specified and operationalised, and the ensuing model is compared to existing ones.
30
Guibal, Francis. "Social Sciences and Political Philosophy. Eric Weil's Post-Weberian Kantianism." Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú - Departamento de Humanidades, 2013. http://repositorio.pucp.edu.pe/index/handle/123456789/113269.
Full textAbstract:
The historical success of sciences and their tendency to extendt hemselves universally to all of realityis a fact. In order to understand their sense, they should be referred to acultural (rational) project, whose presuppositions ought to be judged in accordance with a reason conceived both as practical (ethical-political) and speculative (philosophical). E. Weil's rigorous thought is here compared in all of these points with high-ranging positions: only after going through Hegelian, Marxian and Weberian positions he intends an original reappropiation of Kantian insights.El éxito histórico de la(s) ciencia(s)y su extensión tendencialmente universal a toda realidad es un hecho. Comprender su sentido exige que se le refiera a un proyecto cultural (racional) cuyos supuestos han de ser juzgados conforme a una razón inseparablemente práctica (ético-política) y especulativa (filosofía). Sobre todos estos puntos, el pensamiento riguroso de E. Weil se compara y se contrasta aquí con posiciones de alto vuelo: solamente después de atravesar los planteamientos hegelianos, marxianos y weberianos, es como intenta retomar,de manera original, orientaciones kantianas.
31
Byrne, Michael J. "An exploratory analysis of free will in the social sciences." Ashland University Ashbrook Undergraduate Theses / OhioLINK, 2011. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=auashbrook1304710552.
Full text
32
Liu, Zhiyuan. "A Study of Stochastic Processes in Natural and Social Sciences." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin153027399786377.
Full text
33
Tambyah, Mallihai M. "Middle school social sciences : exploring teachers’ conceptions of essential knowledge." Thesis, Queensland University of Technology, 2012. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/51000/1/Mallihai_Tambyah_Thesis.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
This study examines teachers’ conceptions of essential knowledge in the humanities and social sciences, commonly referred to as "social education", in the middle years of schooling. Social education has long been a highly contested area of the curriculum in Australia. In Queensland, social education comprises the integrated learning area of Studies of Society and Environment (SOSE). However, the new Australian Curriculum marks a return to discipline-based study of history and geography. This phenomenographic study addresses a perceived lack of understanding in the current research literature in Australia of the nature of middle school teachers’ professional knowledge for teaching the social sciences. Teachers are conceptualised in this study as curriculum makers in the classroom and, as such, their conceptions of essential knowledge are significant. Shulman’s (1986, 1987) theory of teachers’ knowledge forms the theoretical foundation of the study, which is contextualised in Federal and State education policies and the literature on the middle phase of schooling.
Transcripts of interviews conducted with a group of thirty-one Queensland middle school teachers of SOSE were subjected to phenomenographic analysis, revealing seven qualitatively different categories of description. Essential aspects of knowledge for social education emerging from the study were: (1) discipline-based knowledge; (2) curriculum knowledge; (3) knowledge derived from teaching experience; (4) knowledge of middle years learners; (5) knowledge of integration; (6) knowledge of current affairs; and (7) knowledge invested in teacher identity. The three dimensions of variation that linked and differentiated the categories were: (1) content; (2) inquiry learning; and (3) teacher autonomy. These findings are presented as an outcome space where the categories are grouped as knowledge of the learning area, knowledge of contexts and knowledge of self as teacher.
The results of the study suggest that social education teachers’ identity and knowledge of self are critical aspects of their knowledge as curriculum makers. The results illustrate that the professional and personal domains intersect, extending Shulman’s (1986, 1987) original theorisation of teachers’ knowledge into the personal arena. Further, middle years teachers’ conceptions of essential knowledge reveal a practice-based theorisation of knowledge for social education that fits the goals of middle schooling. The research concludes that attention to teacher identity in teacher education and in-service professional development has considerable potential to grow teachers’ knowledge in the social sciences and enhance their capacity for school-based curriculum leadership.
34
Villegas, Wilfred. "A trust-based access control scheme for social networks." Thesis, McGill University, 2008. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=22020.
Full textAbstract:
The personal data being published on online social networks is presenting new challenges in sharing of this digital content. This thesis proposes an access control scheme called Personal Data Access Control, or PDAC, which allows users to share data among their friends, using a trust computation to determine which friends should be given access. This trust computation uses previous interactions among a user's friends to classify his or her peers into one of three protection zones, which determine whether that peer gains access to the user's data. Additionally, the user may designate certain friends as attesters who will aid the user in determining which peers are trustworthy enough to be given access to his or her data. Simulations of the PDAC scheme were performed to evaluate its effectiveness in enforcing data access privileges. The results show that PDAC preserves confidentiality by exploiting the trust that is captured in existing social networks.Les données personnelles publiées sur internet par l'entremise des nouveaux réseaux sociaux virtuels présentent des défis considérables en ce qui attrait à l'échange numérique. Cette thèse propose un système de contrôle d'accès appelé Personal Data Access Control, ou PDAC, qui permet aux utilisateurs d'échanger leurs données personnelles avec leurs amis de façon mesurée, en utilisant un calcul de confiance. Ce calcul de confiance utilise comme critères d'évaluation les interactions antérieures entre l'utilisateur et chacun de ses amis afin de classer chacune de ses connaissances dans une de trois zones de protection. Ces zones délimitent le niveau d'accès accordé aux données de l'utilisateur. De plus, l'utilisateur peut assigner certains amis come vérificateurs qui donnent leur approbation et ainsi détermine en toute confidentialité qui devrait avoir accès a ses données. Nos résultats d'analyse démontrent que le PDAC accorde privilèges d'accès aux données de façon efficace. Ces simulations démontrent aussi que le PDAC préserve la confidentialité en saisissant les niveaux de confiance qui existe dans les réseaux sociaux virtuels d'aujourd'hui actuels.
35
Nourian, Arash. "CASTLE: a social framework for collaborative anti-phishing databases." Thesis, McGill University, 2009. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=66989.
Full textAbstract:
A Phishing attack is a type of identity theft attempting to steal confidential and personal data like Credit Card or banking account information. Different approaches have been proposed to defeat phishing attacks. Most of the approaches rely on a database lookup approach. In this thesis, we present a framework called CASTLE that allows a collaborative approach to build and maintain the databases containing information needed for anti-phishing services. We provide the full design and discuss how phishing sites can be captured using CASTLE. A prototype of this social frame- work for collaborative anti-phishing databases is partially implemented to evaluate the performance and effectiveness of the framework against phishing attacks.L'hame¸connage est un type de vol d'identité qui tente de voler des donnés confidentielleset personnelles comme l'information de cartes de crédit ou de comptes bancaires.Plusieurs stratégies ont été proposées pour vaincre l'hame¸connage ; la plupart d'entreelles dépendent d'une base de données. Dans cette th'ese, nous présentons le cadreCASTLE, qui incite la collaboration pour construire et entretenir des bases de donnescontenant l'information nécessaire pour contrer l'hame¸connage. Nous fournissons laconception et discutons la mani'ere avec laquelle les sites de hameonnage peuventêtre capturés a l'aide de CASTLE. Un prototype de ce cadre est partiellement misen oeuvre pour évaluer la performance et l'efficacit du cadre contre les attaques dehame¸connage.
36
Wang, Kang. "The design and implementation of a social accountability framework." Thesis, McGill University, 2010. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=95206.
Full textAbstract:
We present an accountability framework for the Internet which ties a user's action to her identity on an online social network. The framework is optional in that users do not need to be accountable at all times, but various web services can force accountability on the part of their users by only allowing accountable users access. Our design is general enough that higher level applications can place additional policies/restrictions on the basic accountability provided. In this thesis, we introduce the design, discuss how various applications can be mapped onto our framework, and provide performance numbers from an experimental prototype.Nous présentons un cadre de responsabilisation pour l'Internet, qui lie l'action d'un utilisateur à son identité sur un réseau social en ligne. Le cadre est facultatif en ce que les utilisateurs n'ont pas besoin d'être responsables en tout temps, mais les services web différents peuvent envigueur responsabilité de la part de leurs utilisateurs en ne permettant l'accès que pour des utilisateurs responsables. Notre conception est suffisamment général pour que les applications de niveau supérieur peut placer d'autres politiques et les restrictions sur la responsabilité de base prévue. Dans cette thèse, nous présentons la conception, discutons comment les différentes applications peuvent être placés sur notre cadre, et fournissons des données de performance à partir d'un prototype expérimental.
37
Fransson, Ebba, and Nathalie Lundin. "Social mobilisering i en digital tidsålder : En analys av rörelseaktivism på sociala medier." Thesis, Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för samhällsstudier (SS), 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-80370.
Full textAbstract:
With this study, we have been aiming to describe and analyze how social mobilization is constructed by digital technology, using the #metoo movement as a case study. The focus of this study has been to show how collective identity and ”we and–them” groups are constructed in digital movements. Our study is based on a netnographic method and our material has been retrived by posts on about 20 closed forums for #metoo–activists on Facebook and Instagram. We are interested to examine the dialogues, which has been published in these forums. Seven major themes has been found; (a) collective identity construction; (b) incorporation; (c) equality ideals; (d) identifying opponents (e) framing of ”we–and them”–groups through imperative; (f) who gets entry; and; (g) poor and bad guys. Our results in the analysis showed us how collective identity and ”we–and them”–goups are constructed by the earlier mentioned themes.
38
La, Cava Edward. "Mining for a Gilded Age: Social Media and Social Phenomena." Scholarship @ Claremont, 2011. http://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/253.
Full text
39
Vikström, David. "Social kompetens - en bristvara? : Fritidshemmets betydelse för elevernas utveckling av den sociala kompetensen." Thesis, Umeå universitet, Institutionen för tillämpad utbildningsvetenskap, 2017. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-135223.
Full textAbstract:
Syftet med detta arbete är att utöka kunskapen kring den så kallade Generationen Y eller Millennium generationen och hur deras förhållningssätt samt egenskaper påverkar deras barns sociala kompetens, elever som idag finns i våra fritidshem. Fokus i arbetet ligger på uppfattningen kring elevernas sociala kompetens och hur mycket de t.ex. påverkas av sociala medier samt hur personal vid fritidsverksamheten arbetar med social kompetens och elevernas självkänsla. Studien grundar sig på kvalitativa intervjuer med fritidspedagoger.Resultatet visar tendenser till att barn/elever har en större självständighet men samtidigt en lägre självkänsla. Studien visar också att fritidshemsverksamheten är medveten om detta och arbetar målmedvetet för att förstärka elevernas självkänsla och deras sociala kompetens. En viktig slutsats är att fritidshemmet spelar en stor betydelse för utvecklingen inom dessa områden.
40
Todres, Mathew. "Exploring the 'social' in social entrepreneurship : applying the concept of network sociality to social entrepreneurs." Thesis, University of Kent, 2016. https://kar.kent.ac.uk/56195/.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this thesis is to mobilise the concept of network sociality (Wittel 2001) as a framework for exploring how social entrepreneurs enact social entrepreneurship. Specifically, this thesis questions the tendency to interpret social entrepreneurs and their ability to achieve their altruistic aim of solving social problems only in terms of the successful application of business practices such as financial control, marketing, and strategising. Instead it is argued that critically deploying the concept of network sociality does two things. Firstly, it highlights the importance of also depicting and understanding the nature of the social processes (i.e., interactions with other stakeholders) which play a crucial role in the success of social entrepreneurial activity. Network sociality therefore helps to conceptualise the under researched activities which precede social change. Secondly, this thesis facilitates a move away from the dominant stance in the literature where the social entrepreneur is conceptualised in terms of either an individualist 'solitary hero' operating alone without the assistance of others (Nicholls 2010), or alternatively as a communally embedded actor operating in the context of strong ties of solidarity (Hjorth and Bjerke 2006; Hjorth 2013; Steyaert and Hjorth 2007). The aim of this thesis is to shed light on the social processes inherent in doing business in a social entrepreneurship context, by drawing on data derived from 33 semi-structured interviews with social entrepreneurs located in the south east of England. An abductive analysis (Van Maanen, Sørensen and Mitchell 2007; Tavory and Timmermans 2014) whereby the interview data is read through the five dimensions of the concept of network sociality - individualisation, ephemeral relations, information exchange, assimilation of play and work, and use of technology - facilitates a critique of the literature privileging outcomes at the expense of conceptualising the social actions that precede and facilitate these outcomes (826 Seymour, Richard 2012), as well as the prevailing dichotomy in the social entrepreneurship literature where the 'social' element is conceptualised largely in collectivist (Hjorth 2013; Steyaert and Hjorth 2007), philanthropic (Tan, Williams and Tan 2003; Tan, Williams and Tan 2005) terms while the 'entrepreneurship' element is conceptualised in largely individualist business terms (Dees, Emerson and Economy 2002). The analysis sheds light on social entrepreneurship beyond the distinction of collective versus individual (Nicholls 2010). Through the use of the concept of network sociality, the thesis rather makes visible how the social entrepreneur engages in several social activities while operating in an individualistic manner to achieve social/business aims within the context of impermanent relationships (113 Wittel, Andreas 2001). The thesis concludes that it is in researching and conceptualising what social entrepreneurs do, that we can better understand who social entrepreneurs are, in their missions to secure positive solutions to social problems.
41
Gopal, Manjari. "Cognitive processing patterns in the production of metaphors by in-service teachers in the sciences and social sciences." Thesis, University of Ottawa (Canada), 1993. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/6842.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this exploratory study is primarily to identify and examine the processes and patterns that are employed by Secondary and Intermediate school teachers in the production of metaphors. The research objectives that were explicitly explored were: (1) the examination of the characteristics of the statements produced as metaphorical descriptions by Secondary and Intermediate school teachers. (2) the exploration of the differentiating characteristics of the statements that discriminate between the Secondary and Intermediate school teachers across gender and domain of specialization. (3) the identification of the cognitive processes that were employed in the production of metaphors by groups of Secondary and Intermediate school teachers differentiated by gender and specialization. (4) the identification of the distribution patterns of cognitive activity or global strategies that were observed for the groups of Secondary and Intermediate school teachers, differentiated by gender and domain of specialization. The development of a coding grid for idenfying the cognitive processes utilized by the participants help in the categorization of the data into 29 activities grouped into six episodes. A classification scheme to examine the nature of the descriptive statements made provides three types of statements (Structural, Functional and Evaluative), that are analyzed for five levels of complexity of mapping (ranging from Basic to Complex). The categorization of the cognitive processes utilizing the specific coding grid developed and the classification of the metaphorical statements are qualitatively analysed. This is followed by a quantitative analysis of the stimulus-topics and the targets which are further analyzed for patterns of observations across gender and specialization. While some differences in the categories of statements produced can be ascribed to gender and specialization differences, other variables that influenced the task performance were contextual. The format of presentation of stimulus-topics (visual-verbal) and the types of verbal stimuli presented: abstract and concrete forms of nouns and adjectives affected the types of "targets" used and also the types and categories of statements produced. The frequency and duration of episodes were extracted through 'process strips' to analyse the distributions of occurrences. "Participant profiles" that show the global strategies used by each participant are then obtained. These profiles can be used as a diagnostic tool in the classroom since it can help in the identification of the weaknesses and strengths in an individual's profile, particularly when the absence or limited use of certain cognitive activity is observed in the profile. Intervention measures can be planned to remedy and compensate for any limitations in processing activity observed in the profiles. Other implications of this study include the recognition of the important role played by personal experiences for producing figurative language. The need to include the students own experience in the classroom are stressed. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
42
Romani, Vincent. "Sciences sociales et coercition : les social scientists des territoires palestiniens entre lutte nationale et indépendance scientifique." Aix-Marseille 3, 2008. http://www.theses.fr/2008AIX32074.
Full textAbstract:
Ce travail a pour thème général la relation savoirs-pouvoirs-société. Il présente une socio-histoire politique des sciences sociales à travers le cas des sociologues et politologues palestiniens des Territoires occupés. L'énigme posée est celle de la genèse et du devenir de sciences sociales autochtones dans un contexte coercitif, en crise et sans État, à travers une série de questions : sociologie et science politique constituent-elles des professions instituées dans l'espace social considéré ? Comment les pratiques disciplinaire interagissent-elles avec les contraintes politiques ? Comment les carrières de sociologue et de olitologue se déroulent-t-elles ? Comment les praticiens des sciences sociales constituent-ils ou expriment-ils leurs engagements professionnels et politiques ? Au fil des réponses, nous mettons en relation les savoirs produits et reproduits, les institutions académiques et leurs savants, en synchronie et en diachronie. Les amples trajectoires sociales des sociologues et politistes palestiniens s'analysent en relation à la violence sur un plan à la fois individuel et collectif. La dimension thérapeutique désormais donnée aux sciences sociales propose une double cure : la reconquête individuelle d'un quotidien dont les acteurs sont dépossédés de la maîtrise ; et la reconquête nationaliste d'un avenir collectif menacé. Nous montrons enfin que loin d'interdire la pratique des sciences sociales, les dimensions de ce contexte à la fois coercitif et internationalisé constituent des ressources académiques autant que les cadres structurants des sciences sociales palestiniennesThis work deals with the power-knowledge-society relation. The core question we address is that of the genesis and fate of autochthonous social sciences without statehood, freedom and democracy, in a context of ongoing violence. We demonstrate that far from acting as impediments, both the coercive and internationalized dimensions of this context provide academic resources as well as a frame to Palestinian social sciences. Through the case of the Palestinian social scientists, this dissertation contributes to a political history and anthropology of social sciences. What is being a Palestinian social scientist ? What are the main trends in Palestinian social sciences and how are they determined ? How does one become and remain a Palestinian social scientist ? Throughout the answers to these questions, we draw synchronic and diachronic relations between produced and reproduced knowledges, academic institutions, faculty and researchers, political history and processes. The ample social trajectories of the Palestinian social scientist relate to violence on the individual and collective level. The therapeutic turn of social sciences manages a double cure : the individual reconquest of daily life of whose control social actors are deprived ; the collective reconquest of a threatened national future
43
Ranganathan, Shyam. "Non-linear dynamic modelling for panel data in the social sciences." Doctoral thesis, Uppsala universitet, Tillämpad matematik och statistik, 2015. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-261289.
Full textAbstract:
Non-linearities and dynamic interactions between state variables are characteristic of complex social systems and processes. In this thesis, we present a new methodology to model these non-linearities and interactions from the large panel datasets available for some of these systems. We build macro-level statistical models that can verify theoretical predictions, and use polynomial basis functions so that each term in the model represents a specific mechanism. This bridges the existing gap between macro-level theories supported by statistical models and micro-level mechanistic models supported by behavioural evidence. We apply this methodology to two important problems in the social sciences, the demographic transition and the transition to democracy. The demographic transition is an important problem for economists and development scientists. Research has shown that economic growth reduces mortality and fertility rates, which reduction in turn results in faster economic growth. We build a non-linear dynamic model and show how this data-driven model extends existing mechanistic models. We also show policy applications for our models, especially in setting development targets for the Millennium Development Goals or the Sustainable Development Goals. The transition to democracy is an important problem for political scientists and sociologists. Research has shown that economic growth and overall human development transforms socio-cultural values and drives political institutions towards democracy. We model the interactions between the state variables and find that changes in institutional freedoms precedes changes in socio-cultural values. We show applications of our models in studying development traps. This thesis comprises the comprehensive summary and seven papers. Papers I and II describe two similar but complementary methodologies to build non-linear dynamic models from panel datasets. Papers III and IV deal with the demographic transition and policy applications. Papers V and VI describe the transition to democracy and applications. Paper VII describes an application to sustainable development.
44
Creaven, Sean. "Emergentist Marxism : a materialistic application of realism in the social sciences." Thesis, University of Warwick, 1999. http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/108276/.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis will be concerned with articulating and defending a form of realist social theory entitled "emergentist Marxism". As such its principal objective is less to investigate or review the voluminous literature on "social realism" and more to show the ways in which Marxian social theory can be legitimately "constructed" as a specific "materialistic" application of ontological and methodological realism in the human sciences. The significance of this research is that it functions simultaneously as a contribution to the social science component of Roy Bhaskar's philosophical realism and as a Marxist commentary upon and perhaps intervention against it. The latter is less certain, however, because Bhaskar's depth realism appears to be consistent with the form of anti-reductive materialism defended here. "Realism" or "emergentism" refers to an ontological position denoting a stratified social world of irreducible levels, of which persons, practices and structures are the most fundamental, all of which are efficacious by virtue of the properties and powers which pertain to each of them. "Materialism" denotes the ontological position that the material structures of social systems vertically explain social and cultural structures without "explaining them away". Thus "emergentist Marxism" is an anti-reductive socio-historical ontological materialism and attendant dialectical realist method. Translated into practical social research, it is applied concretely here to the task of theorising the interface between the properties and powers which pertain to human agents and those which pertain to social structures in shaping the constitution and dynamics of social systems.
45
Temporão, Mickael. "Measuring public opinion using Big Data : applications in computational social sciences." Doctoral thesis, Université Laval, 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11794/34438.
Full textAbstract:
La démocratie est fondée sur l’idée que les gouvernements sont sensibles à l’opinion des citoyens qu’ils sont élus pour représenter. Des mesures fiables de l’opinion publique sont requises afin de permettre aux élus de gouverner de manière efficace. Les sources traditionnelles d’information sur l’opinion publique se complexifient avec l’accroissement des modalités de communication et les changements culturels qui y sont associés. La diversification des technologies de l’information et de la communication ainsi que la forte baisse des taux de réponse aux enquêtes de sondages provoquent une crise de confiance dans les méthodes d’échantillonnage probabiliste classique. Une source d’information sur l’opinion publique de plus en plus riche, mais relativement peu exploitée, se présente sous la forme d’ensembles de données extraordinairement volumineuses et complexes, communément appelées Big Data. Ces données présentent de nombreux défis liés à l’inférence statistique, notamment parce qu’elles prennent généralement la forme d’échantillons non probabilistes. En combinant des avancées récentes en sciences sociales numériques, en statistiques et en technologie de l’information, cette thèse, constituée de trois articles, aborde certains de ces défis en développant de nouvelles approches, permettant l’extraction d’informations adaptées aux larges ensembles de données. Ces nouvelles approches permettent d’étudier l’opinion publique sous de nouveaux angles et ainsi de contribuer à des débats théoriques importants dans la littérature sur la recherche sur l’opinion publique en rassemblant les preuves empiriques nécessaires afin de tester des théories de la science politique qui n’avaient pas pu être abordées, jusqu’à présent, en raison du manque des données. Dans le premier article, sur le placement idéologique des utilisateurs sur les médias sociaux, nous développons un modèle permettant de prédire l’idéologie et l’intention de vote des utilisateurs sur les médias sociaux en se basant sur le jargon qu’ils emploient dans leurs interactions sur les plateformes de médias sociaux. Dans le second article, sur l’identité nationale au Canada, nous présentons une approche permettant d’étudier l’hétérogénéité de l’identité nationale en explorant la variance de l’attachement à des symboles nationaux parmi les citoyens à partir de données provenant d’un vaste sondage en ligne. Dans le troisième article portant sur les prédictions électorales, nous introduisons une approche se basant sur le concept de la sagesse des foules, qui facilite l’utilisation de données à grande échelle dans le contexte d’études électorales non-aléatoires afin de corriger les biais de sélection inhérents à de tels échantillons. Chacune de ces études améliore notre compréhension collective sur la manière dont les sciences sociales numériques peuvent accroître notre connaissance théorique des dynamiques de l’opinion publique et du comportement politique.Democracy is predicated on the idea that governments are responsive to the publics which they are elected to represent. In order for elected representatives to govern effectively, they require reliable measures of public opinion. Traditional sources of public opinion research are increasingly complicated by the expanding modalities of communication and accompanying cultural shifts. Diversification of information and communication technologies as well as a steep decline in survey response rates is producing a crisis of confidence in conventional probability sampling. An increasingly rich, yet relatively untapped, source of public opinion takes the form of extraordinarily large, complex datasets commonly referred to as Big Data. These datasets present numerous challenges for statistical inference, not least of which is that they typically take the form of non-probability sample. By combining recent advances in social science, computer science, statistics, and information technology, this thesis, which combines three distinct articles, addresses some of these challenges by developing new and scalable approaches to facilitate the extraction of valuable insights from Big Data. In so doing, it introduces novel approaches to study public opinion and contributes to important theoretical debates within the literature on public opinion research by marshalling the empirical evidence necessary to test theories in political science that were previously unaddressed due to data scarcity. In our first article, Ideological scaling of social media users, we develop a model that predicts the ideology and vote intention of social media users by virtue of the vernacular that they employ in their interactions on social media platforms. In our second article, The symbolic mosaic, we draw from a large online panel survey in Canada to make inferences about the heterogeneous construction of national identities by exploring variance in the attachment to symbols among various publics. Finally, in our third article, Crowdsourcing the vote, we endeavour to draw on the wisdom of the crowd in large, non-random election studies as part of an effort to control for the selection bias inherent to such samples. Each of these studies makes a contribution to our collective understanding of how computational social science can advance theoretical knowledge of the dynamics of public opinion and political behaviour.
46
Runhardt, Rosa. "Causal inquiry in the social sciences : the promise of process tracing." Thesis, London School of Economics and Political Science (University of London), 2015. http://etheses.lse.ac.uk/3099/.
Full textAbstract:
In this thesis I investigate causal inquiry in the social sciences, drawing on examples from various disciplines and in particular from conflict studies. In a backlash against the pervasiveness of statistical methods, in the last decade certain social scientists have focused on finding the causal mechanisms behind observed correlations. To provide evidence for such mechanisms, researchers increasingly rely on ‘process tracing’, a method which attempts to give evidence for causal relations by specifying the chain of events connecting a putative cause and effect of interest. I will ask whether the causal claims process tracers make are defensible, and where they are not defensible I will ask how we can improve the method. Throughout these investigations, I show that the conclusions of process tracing (and indeed ofthe social sciences more generally) are constrained both by the causal structure ofthe social world and by social scientists’ aims and values. My central argument is this: all instances of social phenomena have causally relevant differences, which implies that any research design that requires some comparison between cases (like process tracing) is limited by how we systematize these phenomena. Moreover, such research cannot rely on stable regularities. Nevertheless, to forego causal conclusions altogether is not the right response to these limitations; by carefully outlining our epistemic assumptions we can make progress in causal inquiry. While I use philosophical theories of causation to comment on the feasibility of a social scientific method, I also do the reverse: by investigating a popular contemporary method in the social sciences, I show to what extent our philosophical theories of causation are workable in practice. Thus, this thesis is both a methodological and a philosophical work. Every chapter discusses both a fundamental philosophical position on the social sciences and a relevant case study from the social sciences.
47
Driver, Charles C. "Hierarchical Continuous Time Dynamic Modelling for Psychology and the Social Sciences." Doctoral thesis, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 2018. http://dx.doi.org/10.18452/18927.
Full textAbstract:
Im Rahmen dieser Dissertation bemühe ich mich, den statistischen Ansatz der zeitkontinuierlichen dynamischen Modellierung, der die Rolle der Zeit explizit berücksichtigt, zu erweitern und praktisch anwendbar zu machen. Diese Dissertation ist so strukturiert, dass ich in Kapitel 1 die Natur dynamischer Modelle bespreche, verschiedene Ansätze zum Umgang mit mehreren Personen betrachte und ein zeitkontinuierliches dynamisches Modell mit Input-Effekten (wie Interventionen) und einem Gaußschen Messmodell detailliert darstelle. In Kapitel 2 beschreibe ich die Verwendung der Software ctsem für R, die als Teil dieser Dissertation entwickelt wurde und die Modellierung von Strukturgleichungen und Mixed-Effects über einen frequentistischen Schätzansatz realisiert. In Kapitel 3 stelle ich einen hierarchischen, komplett Random-Effects beinhaltenden Bayesschen Schätzansatz vor, unter dem sich Personen nicht nur in Interceptparametern, sondern in allen Charakteristika von Mess - und Prozessmodell unterscheiden können, wobei die Schätzung individueller Parameter trotzdem von den Daten aller Personen profitiert. Kapitel 4 beschreibt die Verwendung der Bayesschen Erweiterung der Software ctsem. In Kapitel 5} betrachte ich die Natur experimenteller Interventionen vor dem Hintergrund zeitkontinuierlicher dynamischer Modellierung und zeige Ansätze, die die Art und Weise adressieren, mit der Interventionen auf psychologische Prozesse über die Zeit wirken. Das berührt Fragen, wie: 'Nach welcher Zeit zeigt eine Intervention ihre maximale Wirkung', 'Wie ändert sich die Form des Effektes im Laufe der Zeit' und 'Für wen ist die Wirkung am stärksten oder dauert am längsten an'. Viele Bei-spiele, die sowohl frequentistische als auch bayessche Formen der Software ctsem verwenden, sind enthalten. Im letzten Kapitel fasse ich die Dissertation zusammen, zeige Limitationen der angebotenen Ansätze auf und stelle meine Gedanken zu möglichen zukünftigen Entwicklungen dar.With this dissertation I endeavor to extend, and make practically applicable for psychology, the statistical approach of continuous time dynamic modelling, in which the role of time is made explicit. The structure of this dissertation is such that in Chapter 1, I discuss the nature of dynamic models, consider various approaches to handling multiple subjects, and detail a continuous time dynamic model with input effects (such as interventions) and a Gaussian measurement model. In Chapter 2, I describe the usage of the ctsem software for R developed as part of this dissertation, which provides a frequentist, mixed effects, structural equation modelling approach to estimation. Chapter 3 details a hierarchical Bayesian, fully random effects approach to estimation, allowing for subjects to differ not only in intercept parameters but in all characteristics of the measurement and dynamic models -- while still benefiting from other subjects data for parameter estimation. Chapter 4 describes the usage of the Bayesian extension to the ctsem software. In Chapter 5 I consider the nature of experimental interventions in the continuous time dynamic modelling framework, and show approaches to address questions regarding the way interventions influence psychological processes over time, with questions such as 'how long does a treatment take to reach maximum effect', `how does the shape of the effect change over time', and 'for whom is the effect strongest, or longest lasting'. Many examples using both frequentist and Bayesian forms of the ctsem software are given. For the final chapter I summarise the dissertation, consider limitations of the approaches offered, and provide some thoughts on possible future developments.
48
Hildreth-Blue, Cynthia. "Enlivening California's sixth grade history/social sciences curriculum with historical fiction." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1990. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/562.
Full text
49
Nelson, Brandy R. "Stressors and Time-to-Degree for Online Social Sciences Doctoral Programs." ScholarWorks, 2018. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/5758.
Full textAbstract:
U.S. doctoral program completion rates have remained persistently low in the humanities and biomedical sciences despite educators' efforts. A variety of factors, including stress and dissitation advisor-related issues, were associated with high attrition rates and extended time-to-degree for PhD candidates. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine relationships among life stressors, advisor-related factors, and time-to-degree for a convenience sample of 74 online social sciences doctoral degree holders. Holmes and Rahe's work on stress and Tinto's framework for education program attrition provided the framework for the study. Linear regression and Pearson's correlation statistics were used to examine the relationships between Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS) scores, Advisor-Related Factor scores, and time-to-degree after controlling for covariates of age, ethnicity, and gender. Key findings included: a) SRRS significantly (p < .01) predicted time-to-degree after controlling for age, ethnicity, and gender; and b) no significant relationship was found between advisor-related factors. By identifying at-risk students, early intervention could reduce the time need to complete a PhD program and reduce financial and university resources required to finish. Doctoral program administrators could provide closer supervision with PhD candidates and make adjustments based on an accumulation of extraordinary stressors to help PhD candidiates adjust and finish their programs.
50
Nsele, Thandeka Praiseworth. "Translanguaging in Grade 9 Social Sciences classroom in the Zululand District." Thesis, University of Zululand, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/10530/1675.
Full textAbstract:
A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Education in fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Masters in Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instructional Studies at the University Of Zululand, 2018This study investigated whether the practices of translanguaging exists in Social Sciences classrooms and whether it is effectively adopted (This research was be solely based in Zululand district schools which offer isiZulu as a first language and English as First additional language).The study employed a mixed-methods approach in investigating Translanguaging in grade 9 Social Sciences classroom in the Zululand District. Observations were used to observe grade 9 Social sciences teachers and see how they use language as they are teaching, in order to determine their language of input and language of output. A reading comprehension inventory was administered through Solomon 4 quasi-experiment design by means of a class test in order to determine the learner’s language of input and language of output in the Social Sciences lesson. The main finding from the observation is that, teachers alternate between isiZulu and English, in order to make lessons understood by learners. The lesson was understood better by learners when both languages were used. Results indicate that home languages play a vital role in educational activities of learners because it is the language they are most familiar with. The main finding from the reading comprehension inventory revealed that, when learners used isiZulu as a language of input and English as a language of output they performed better. Furthermore it was discovered that the language of output played no major role in improving reading comprehension scores of learners. The significant factor was the language of input. It was evident that teachers are reluctant to use translanguaging in their lessons because it is not prescribed in the language in education policy; however when they use the prescribed language (English) they do not receive desired responses/ output from the learners and lessons become less interesting. The study recommends a need to review language policies in place and accommodate for adjustments to allow flexibility in teaching and curriculum content. This would enhance comprehension of the content subject and may improve learners’ academic performance in content subjects.