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This case study examined the English soccer player Marcus Rashford's personal brand and illustrates the transformational difference celebrity athletes can make through social activism and advocacy for philanthropic causes through their skillful use of social media. It employed a textual analysis methodology and drew conceptual insights from the revised Model of Athlete Brand Image to chronicle how Rashford's social activism and philanthropy resonated with his fans, followers, and the public on social media. His authentic social activism and philanthropic advocacy for disadvantaged and vulnerable children gave the nation a "feel-good" story during the COVID-19 crisis and enhanced his personal brand image. This case study recommends that future analyses of celebrity athlete personal brands should consider including three new categories in the marketable life section of the revised Model of Athlete Brand Image: social activism, cobranding partnerships, and awards and honors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite perceived postracial ideologies of American sport, players, coaches, fans, and media have been complicit in reaffirming racial hierarchies through racist microaggressions and remarks. Such racist violations are commonly exposed in the current moment of widespread social media engagement and social justice activism. Subsequently, many violators issue apologies—often employing the conjunction "if"—which hinges the apology on the condition of the targeted group taking offense. We call these conditional apologies nonapology apologies and argue that they fall within a racializing apologia framework, devaluing and questioning the place of those offended in American society and sport, and reinforcing White supremacy. In this paper, we examine apology statements by sports figures and explore the implications of nonapology apologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salespeople are increasingly required to navigate an international environment—having international customers or international peers. However, much remains to be learned about how salespeople are utilizing social media in an international context. This multimethod, multistudy design contributes to international sales research by showing how business-to-business (B2B) salespeople use social media whether they are in a multinational or local firm. With a social capital lens, the authors explore the importance of social media with regard to strengthening salespeople's internal and external connections in an international context. In Study 1, 131 B2B salespeople use social media to develop customer relations (i.e., external connections) to engage in positive publicity and social media advocacy, ultimately leading to better sales performance. Specifically, social media advocacy enhances sales performance only for salespeople in multinationals. In Study 2, with 23 qualitative interviews, the authors contextualize the findings of Study 1 by comparing social media use among salespeople in multinational and local firms. The basis of the exploration involves internal and external connections with the three dimensions of social capital: structural, relational, and cognitive. The authors demonstrate that internal connections with peers on social media allows for increased knowledge transfer and other benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extant literature suggests that firms may gain legitimacy through imitation. But little known is about whom foreign multinational enterprises (MNEs) will imitate, given that they have multiple social referents: home-country peers and host-country industry competitors. Drawing upon category theory, we develop a dynamic imitation model and explicate how MNEs' categorization process is affected by social activism, which causes the shift from self-categorization to categorical imperative. We investigate this model in the context of MNE philanthropy and propose that the social movement may delegitimize MNEs' original self-category and change their imitation target. Using a hand-collected dataset of MNEs' philanthropic donation for the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake in China, we find that MNEs imitate their home-country peers first but shift to host-country industry competitors after an online social movement. This is because the online social movement delegitimizes MNEs as a category and suggests host-country industry peers as the new model for comparison. Further, we find that liability of foreignness impedes whereas firm reputation facilitates an MNE's adaptation after the online social movement. Our paper contributes to the literatures on MNEs' imitation behavior and CSR in emerging market. We also contribute to category theory by integrating self-categorization and categorical imperative and highlighting the role of social movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study investigated the effectiveness of factual and narrative messages in promoting advocacy intentions among viewers of COVID-19 vaccination messaging. In an online posttest only experiment on Qualtrics online software, participants (N = 323) were randomly assigned to one of four conditions related to type of messaging (i.e. factual, narrative, both, control). The final model revealed that both types of messages work in generating advocacy but through two distinct influential pathways. Moreover, a message containing both facts and a narrative proved to be more effective than a message containing only a narrative or only facts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the Surrey Union of Drug Users (SUDU) in British Columbia, emphasizing harm reduction, safe supply, and destigmatization for drug users. As a peer-led group, SUDU actively resists carceral state policies. The analysis explores challenges faced by peer-led groups, including formation, sustainability, and mobilization efforts. It highlights the need for supportive frameworks to enhance peer-led harm reduction initiatives and argues that such advocacy enables alternative knowledge and institutional innovations that are conducive to building a real world abolitionist future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reconstructs the earliest known movement for sex workers' rights in US history. It interprets collective assertions of due process as a strategy to overturn vagrancy laws, which permitted municipal officials to summarily commit 'common prostitutes' to the penitentiary for months. Mass arrests sparked an anticarceral movement of 'streetwalkers' who refused to be contained. Unlike the middle‐class Woman's Rights Movement, which sought equal rights for their own sake, streetwalkers acted to build a world in which they could control their own labour, have sex without punishment and move freely through their city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Novel male contraceptives have been in development for well over half a century, and despite a robust predicted global market for new methods, funding for research and development has been extremely limited. While the pharmaceutical industry previously supported male contraceptive research and development, industry partners are only spectators in the current space, awaiting a product that has been de‐risked by the public sector before re‐entering the field. Current male contraceptive development efforts are thus primarily funded by nonprofit, non‐governmental, and government agencies who also act as the primary advocates for the field. Specific organizations include the International Consortium on Male Contraception, the Population Council, the Male Contraceptive Initiative, the World Health Organization, and the US National Institutes of Health. The funding provided by these public agencies, alongside their social and policy‐based advocacy efforts such as market research, public education, and calls to action have kept the male contraceptive product development space afloat, resulting in a pipeline of potential products advancing towards market approval. However, as these products mature into more expensive clinical stages of development, they continue to face significant funding challenges, which many programs may not overcome. To fully realize the benefits of novel male contraceptive options, it is incumbent on philanthropic entities, impact investors, venture capital, and/or the pharmaceutical sector to provide significant and timely support for male contraceptive research and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Corporations are confronted with growing demands to take a stand on socio-political issues, i.e. corporate social advocacy (CSA), which affects their reputation in the public. Companies use different CSA message strategies, including calling the public to support and act on the issue they advocate. Using reactance theory, the authors investigate the impact of CSA messages with a call to action on corporate reputation in the case of a company's gender equality initiative. Design/methodology/approach: A one-factorial (CSA message with or without a call to action) between-subjects experiment was conducted by surveying 172 individuals living in Switzerland. The CSA messages were created in the context of gender equality. Findings: The authors' study indicates that CSA messages with a call to action compared to those without overall harmed corporate reputation due to individuals' reactance, which is higher for CSA messages with a call to action, negatively affecting corporate reputation. The impact of the CSA message strategy with a call to action on corporate reputation remains significant after controlling for issue alignment and political leaning. Originality/value: Communicating about socio-political issues, especially taking a stand, is a significant challenge for corporations in an increasingly polarized society and has often led to backlash, boycotts and damage to corporate reputation. This study shows that the possible adverse effects of advocating for socio-political issues can be related to reactance. It emphasizes that companies advocating for contested issues must be more cautious about the message strategy than the issue itself. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On October 18, 2019, The New York Times reported that Major League Baseball was eliminating more than 40 teams from its minor league system. Fourteen months later, some teams permanently ceased operations when contraction became official. During those 14 months, fans and community members joined advocacy campaigns to save their teams. Given how minor league fans have unique, community-based identities, social media may help them communicate support for their teams during a threat. Using a framework of social media advocacy, the study sought to (1) understand the advocacy efforts present on social media and (2) the tone and emotions manifest in tweets related to contraction. Using quantitative methods, the study found that most discussions of contraction were negative in tone and contained emotions like anger. The most often used advocacy strategy was information, which may have been a lost opportunity for fans to rally support. As time moved on, tweets contained less negativity, more sadness than anger, and more use of the community advocacy strategy, providing evidence that fans found contraction inevitable. The study makes a contribution by bringing advocacy communication into the discussion of sport fandom and uses social media data to extract fan emotions during identity threats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advocacy has been defined as promoting social inclusion, equality and social justice to empower people - principles closely associated with social work’s professional values. However, in-depth literature on advocacy and the current challenges it faces is sparse. Little is known about the day-to-day realities faced by advocates and the pressures they currently experience. This raises the question of who might advocate for the advocates themselves? This article reports on findings from a larger study to explore local recruitment and retention issues in adult social care from the perspective of different populations of interest in the South of England. A mixed methods approach was undertaken. One group of participants were advocates drawn from LA contracted services (n = 7) who participated in a focus group. Comments relating to the challenges facing advocacy and knock-on impacts on advocates from the recruitment and retention issues currently being experienced in adult social care were themed together and are described. The findings highlight a number of challenges currently facing advocacy and advocates alongside an urgent need for more research to take place within this area. The authors also offer suggestions for consideration to help improve this picture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Digital transnational repression arises when authoritarian states seek to silence dissent from nationals living abroad. Studies on digital transnational repression show that this extension of authoritarianism has negatively impacted dissidents and activists abroad and transnational political and social advocacy. In this article, we identify gender-based digital transnational repression as a form of what Marlies Glasius terms an ‘authoritarian practice’; this type of repression is used to ‘sabotage accountability’ by weaponizing gender to silence dissent and disabling access to information. We argue that researchers investigating transnational repression should pay greater attention to the gender dimensions of this phenomenon, and its unique and disproportionate impacts on women. As women play a central role in the furtherance of human rights and democracy in authoritarian states, their silencing presents a threat to progress towards state accountability, human rights, and democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractSocial studies scholars have argued that environmental issues are social issues, not merely the domain of natural science education. This study conducts a scholarly review of social studies advocacy for Environmental and Sustainability Education (ESE). My analysis focuses on exploring how social studies scholars rationalize the inclusion of ESE in social studies classrooms. Starting with a broad search, I identified 31 articles where the authors explicitly stated their values or assumptions connecting social studies with ESE. I then discussed three themes: civic responsibility, literacy development, and reconstructing relationships (ecocentrism), as these themes reflect both mainstream and marginal trends in US schooling. In justifying the legitimacy of teacher implementation, I argue that literacy development and civic responsibility are likely more accessible for teachers, as these themes align more closely with the professional norms of social studies educators. Conversely, the ecocentrism approach may face significant barriers and challenges, making it difficult to integrate into the school curriculum, given its aim to deconstruct the long existing anthropocentric paradigm in social studies. However, ecocentrism could be incorporated into special programs, such as after-school clubs and field trips." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Health Advocacy is considered one of the most difficult skills to teach. Many medical learners feel ill-equipped in social competencies and identify it as a significant gap in their medical training. Experiential learning has recently been emerging as a more effective method to teach health advocacy. The Post Graduate Medical Education (PGME) Health Advocacy Day is a new experiential learning curriculum designed to teach important competencies of health advocacy and social accountability to post-graduate medical residents at the University of Ottawa in Ottawa, Canada. The objective of this mixed-methods study was to assess resident experiences. Methods: Second-year trainees from all adult residency programs attended the Advocacy Day as part of a mandatory academic day. All participants completed a mandatory pre-and post-session quiz to assess knowledge of key topics before and after the course. We also distributed a voluntary survey to all participants and invited residents to participate in semi-structured interviews to provide feedback on the course. We used descriptive statistics to analyze quiz scores and survey results and conducted a paired t-test of pre and post-test quiz scores. We also performed a thematic analysis of qualitative feedback, specifically survey comments and semi-structured interviews. Results: One hundred and eighty-three residents participated in the Advocacy Day and 112 (61.2%) completed the post-course survey. Ten residents volunteered to be interviewed. Respondents were generally satisfied by the session and felt it was of good quality. Most residents felt the course enhanced their ability to advocate for individual patients or communities (N = 80; 71.5%) and understand patients and families' lived experience with illness (N = 87; 77.5%). Most residents also felt the course improved their knowledge of the impact of social determinants of health (N = 91; 81.2%) and increased their awareness of local resources that can support patients and their families (N = 88; 78.3%). Visiting community sites in-person and meeting persons with lived experiences were highlighted as the most valuable components of the course. Conclusion: Experiential learning can be integrated within post-graduate medical curricula to teach health advocacy competencies. Future studies should examine the longitudinal impact of the curricula, to determine whether shifts in perspectives persist over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Design Sample Measurements Results Conclusion This study was conducted to examine the relationship between public health nurses' holistic nursing and social justice advocacy competencies in terms of their attitudes toward sustainable development goals.Cross‐sectional survey.The study sample consisted of 384 public health nurses.Data were collected with the personal information form, the Attitudes toward Sustainable Development Scale, the Holistic Nursing Competence Scale, and the Social Justice Advocacy Scale.The sub‐dimensions of environment, public, education, and economy were found to significantly affect social justice advocacy, and the indirect effects of 0.191, 0.222, 0.205, and 0.201 were found to be statistically significant with the inclusion of holistic nursing competence in the model, respectively. It was found to explain 32%, 30%, 29%, and 22% of the total effect, respectively.It supports the claim that developing public health nurses' holistic nursing competence and social justice advocacy skills is an important criterion for achieving sustainable development goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literary voice remains unwaveringly rooted in its quest for social advocacy. This is evident in the poetic ingenuity of Joe Ushie where he takes up the responsibility of passing a piercing commentary on the sociopolitical misconducts that threaten to ravage the Nigerian (African) society. In doing this, the poet stands with the common man who is relegated by the political bourgeoisies to the fringes of society. From three of Ushie's collections--Eclipse in Rwanda (2004), A Reign of Locusts (2004) and Lambs at the Shrine (2005), the analysis is conducted under the theoretical anchorage of New Historicism and Marxism, and draws richly from the outlining principles of Stylistics to effectively explore the poet's depiction of the sociopolitical fate of the postcolonial Nigerian nation (and continental Africa). By evoking elements of history, the contemporary, religion, socio-moral conditions and politics, the poet gives a crystal-clear picture of a society in fast decline, and in need of moral reclamation. Also, it analytically surveys devices of style such as symbolism, allusion, indigenous linguistic forms, etc. and how they enhance the effective reflection of society. It is demonstrated, in the end, that through a creative manipulation of literary and linguistic elements, the poet gives a far-reaching outcry against social and political wrongs. His poetic oeuvre thus becomes a reliable channel for the repair of social and political excrescences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the coverage of desecularization in Israeli non-religious public education in national and local newspapers from 2016 to 2022. We conducted a content analysis and coded key elements for each article, such as the activists who carried out or opposed the desecularization activity and their narratives, arguments for and against desecularization, and resistance practices. The dominant media narratives depicted the process of desecularization as intentional and organized. The Ministry of Education appeared to be ambivalent about it: on one hand, it approved and funded desecularization activities, and on the other, it served as an address for complaints. The reports suggest that the sum of micro-processes can add up to a macro phenomenon of desecularization. Teachers and principals were frequently perceived as the initiators and enablers of desecularization. Last, the findings indicate that parents and social activists resist secularization through diverse collective and individual strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a social perspective disability can be identified as a 'disadvantage or limitation of activity' caused by a contemporary social organization that takes little or no account of persons with physical disabilities and excludes them from participation in social activities. This study focuses on the effects of sports, specifically tennis, on disabled individuals. In this respect, the research purposes to examine the social and psychological impacts of tennis on disabled individuals. The phenomenology technique, one of the qualitative research methods, was used in the study. 17 wheelchair tennis players, 10 men and 7 women, who played in the International Wheelchair tennis tournaments held in Antalya between 16 November and 5 December 2023, participated in the research. The data obtained from the interviews were analyzed using the thematic analysis. The data obtained from the study were themed under the umbrella of life routine, social and psychological impact, with the coding made as a result of the interviews. Under the theme of life routine, it was seen that issues such as personal development, sense of accomplishment, getting life in order, holding on to life, accepting disability, and health literacy were emphasized. Socialization, social support, commitment, new friendships, and communication skills stand out as values coded under the social impact theme. Self confidence, happiness, coping with pressure and stress, controlling emotions, focusing, and feeling valuable are the subheadings of the psychological impact theme. It can be said that sports, namely tennis in this study, positively affect individuals' life routines and social and psychological lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The power of athletes to have social impacts is increasingly being acknowledged, and more and more sports stakeholders are recognizing athletes' interests and motivations to engage in social justice action (SJA; e.g. advocacy, activism). This contribution proposes the Athletes' Calling To SJA (ACTS) Mental Health Framework and mental health notes to explore the converse—how SJA impacts athletes, specifically their mental health. The ACTS Mental Health Framework provides an initial conceptualization of how SJA might impact athlete mental health through living a perceived "calling" to engage in SJA and additional potentially relevant factors. Empirical scholarship and sports examples are used to envision, outline, and advance the hypothesis that athlete SJA and engagement with current social issues could serve as mechanisms to support athlete mental health. Mental health considerations ("mental health notes") provide practice considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a reconciliation of intellectual freedom and social responsibility in library and information science (LIS). The conflict between traditional intellectual freedom and social advocacy, integral to understanding a range of issues in LIS ethics, juxtaposes a laissez-faire freedom with social intervention. This study, by contrast, engages with conceptions of freedom within philosophical and LIS literatures, presenting a descriptive conceptualisation of both values through the common rubric of freedom. This method, influenced by the later philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein, echoes Solove's conceptualisation of privacy and provides a conceptual clarity lacking in existing LIS literature. This clarity, it is argued, suggests a path of reconciliation for both values. The argument unfolds in three stages. First, the prominent conception of intellectual freedom within LIS represents an 'anti-censorship' conception. This conception, restricted to passive physical accessibility, conflicts with literature promoting social responsibility. Second, an analysis of freedom within philosophical literature picks out three conceptions: negative, positive and republican. These conceptions, it is argued, translate to LIS literature and represent a full spectrum of viewpoints within the 'intellectual freedom vs social responsibility' debate. Five conceptions in LIS are identified: 'negative conservative', 'negative progressive', 'content neutral', 'republican' and 'freedom as moral action'. The conflict within the 'intellectual freedom vs social responsibility' debate, therefore, represents conflict between conceptions of freedom. Third, this insight paves the way for a reconciliation that tempers and ameliorates the tension between both values. Dimova-Cookson's 'producer-recipient' model suggests how a negative intellectual freedom and a positive social responsibility may sit together in a symbiotic relationship. This understanding, illustrated by practical case studies, provides a fresh perspective on the complex interaction of both values within the LIS profession. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When companies take a stance on sociopolitical issues, it is considered corporate social advocacy (CSA). This article examines to what extent perceived corporate motives of engaging in CSA affect consumer skepticism and brand equity. It is one of the few published studies of consumer attitudes toward companies' CSA involvement. An online survey was conducted (N = 375). It provides evidence that consumer assessments of the motives that inspire CSA are similar to the better-researched motives that inspire CSR. The findings imply that companies need to develop a good understanding of the consumers' attributions when engaging in CSA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the abuse perpetrated by former USA Gymnastics team doctor, Larry Nassar, and the subsequent documentary about the case, Athlete A, gymnasts from around the world turned to social media to share their experiences of maltreatment, using the hashtag #gymnastalliance. The purpose of this study was to explore how the gymnast alliance hashtag has been used on Instagram. A reflexive thematic analysis was conducted by examining the text and images included in 557 Instagram posts that employed the hashtag. The generated themes included: redress previous silencing, disclosing experiences of maltreatment and their impacts, calling for change, and building a community of support. Findings from the analysis are interpreted using athlete advocacy, maltreatment, safeguarding, and information communication and technology literature. Recommendations are posed for future research and practices to improve safe and accessible disclosure and reporting processes for athletes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the United States of America alone, athletes - and particularly professional athletes - have long been utilising their unique positionality as a platform to advocate for social justice and to be actively engaged activists for social change. While social justice advocacy and activism are increasingly seen within professional sports, engagement in such efforts has been more limited among collegiate student-athletes. As such, the purpose of this study was to examine how life skills moderate the relationship between attitudes and behavioural intentions pertaining to social justice among National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) student-athletes. A sample of 218 Division I NCAA student-athletes completed an online survey that assessed their perceived life skills learned in sport, social justice attitudes, and social justice behavioural intentions. The analytical approach included a series of moderation analyses testing the moderation effect of each life skill on the relationship between social justice attitudes and behavioural intentions. Emotional skills, interpersonal communication, and social skills each significantly and positively moderated the relationship between student-athletes' social justice attitudes and social justice behavioural intentions. However, problem-solving and decision-making, goal-setting, time-management, teamwork, and leadership skills had non-significant interaction effects. The results suggest that life skills, especially interpersonal skills beneficial to social interactions, can be assets for student-athletes as they consider progressing towards social justice action. Efforts should also be put forward to better comprehend the role of coaches using an implicit and/or explicit approach to life skills and its impact on their social justice awareness and behaviour intention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In unpacking the theme of 'Sustainable Futures for Teaching and Learning', I explore the discourse of 'grand challenges' for SoTL in the South. I offer provocations to unsettle the premise that these challenges are in fact universally 'grand' and question our acceptance of the trope that what applies to the North applies equally to the South. In higher education (HE), themes like futures thinking and sustainability have enormous purchase as they encourage innovation to shape a better future. I challenge our complicity as SoTL authors in taking up these themes uncritically. I invite us all to consider how much our location and context in the Global South matter as an explanatory framework for the teaching and learning challenges we face and whether we can use our context as a locus of enunciation for the scholar-activist work we are called on to do. As long as our teaching contexts, linked to historical coloniality and the matrices of power, are sub-optimal for our students to thrive and succeed, we have an obligation to activate scholarly awareness and action towards bringing these into balance. My hope is that through collective scholar-activism, we enter a social imaginary where the world is socially inclusive and morally just, where location and context are immaterial to the possibilities that exist for human flourishing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social activists sometimes engage in a form of workplace activism that involves using their employer organization as an unofficial platform to communicate social issue messages to external stakeholders. This type of activism follows a different logic from that of more-familiar citizen activism, in which citizens directly target society and its institutions, and that of organizational-change activism, in which employees aim to influence their employer organization. This article develops and tests theory to understand this phenomenon of organization-as-platform activism, using the National Football League "Take a Knee" employee athlete protests as an empirical context. Drawing on past research on social movements and employee activism, we offer a theoretical comparison of these three forms of activism—citizen, organizational-change, and organization-as-platform—to conceptually distinguish them and to theorize factors that uniquely predict the occurrence of platform activism. We find evidence of predictors associated with the attributes of the organizational platform and those of the intended stakeholder audience. Organization-as-platform activism is associated with the accessibility and openness of the organizational platform for messaging use, the visibility of the organizational platform for message transmission, and the receptivity of the targeted stakeholder audience. As employees increasingly bring their non-work identities and beliefs into the workplace, our findings invite new research on the outcomes of platform activism for organizations, the implications of such activism for organizational stakeholder strategy, and the relation between platform activism and employee prosocial voice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2019, a controversy between the NBA and China broke out. Although their relationship continues today, negative consequences still linger and cloud their future. As a transnational organization, the NBA was involved in a cross-national controversy, aligning with the theory of cross-national conflict shifting. The current study analyzed 703 posts on Weibo and 1,500 tweets by thematic analysis. It revealed diverse themes of online public discussions regarding the NBA–China controversy. It also found that social media speeded up the transmission of cross-national conflict shifting and complicated the cross-national conflict as it shifted back and forth between the home and host countries. Moreover, the study findings showed that when top executives engage in advocacy by taking a public stand on a controversial sociopolitical issue and get involved with cross-national conflicts, it is hard to separate them from the organization they represent. Also, their public stance might lead to public suspicion that they used social advocacy for private interests. Finally, the themes from the social media posts suggested cultural differences and an ideology crash between the host and home countries' publics, which generated grander challenges for transnational organizations to deal with. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Endometriosis is a chronic inflammatory disease that can cause various pain symptoms. Current therapy options do not always provide sufficient pain relief and often cause unpleasant side effects. Recent studies have shown that the endocannabinoid system is involved in the endometriosis pathophysiology, and using Cannabinoids may be a potential therapeutic option. We aimed to determine for the first time, the Cannabis use prevalence, self-rated effectiveness, and the possible reduction in medication in German-speaking countries. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was distributed through endometriosis support and advocacy groups on social media. German-speaking endometriosis patients aged ≤ 18, residing in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland were eligible to participate. Results: Out of 912 participants who provided valid answers, 114 reported using cannabis for self-management. Cannabis was rated as the most effective self-management strategy to reduce symptom intensity (self-rated efficacy 7.6 out of 10). Additionally, ~ 90% of the participants were able to decrease their pain medication intake. The greatest improvement was observed in sleep (91%), menstrual pain (90%), and non-cyclic pain (80%). Apart from increased fatigue (17%), side effects were infrequent (≤ 5%). Conclusion: At the time of the study, Cannabis consumption was still illegal in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, with medical cannabis being rarely prescribed due to complex requirements. Results suggest that Cannabis has become a popular self-management method for treating endometriosis-related symptoms, leading to substantial symptom improvement. Further studies are needed to investigate the best administration methods, dosage, THC/CBD ratio, potential side effects, and long-term effects to provide official recommendations to patients and healthcare providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This qualitative secondary analysis reanalyzes data from a Q methodology study with 66 participants from a variety of library types in Slovenia, South Africa, and the United States. In the original Q methodology study, many participants ranked the statement "librarian as agent of change" as an important conceptualization of reference and information service (RIS). To elucidate and expand this finding, the qualitative data surrounding "librarian as agent of change" were analyzed thematically to understand how participants viewed, or did not view, RIS as making change. Results show that for librarians who perceive themselves as agents of change, making change is an obligation that librarians are particularly suited to do. In addition, change can be viewed on different levels—individual, organizational, and societal. Results show that the pervasiveness of neutrality in RIS prevents some librarians from taking on a role supporting social change and advocacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sizeism is among the few socially acceptable forms of discrimination, creating inequitable access to healthcare for people of size. This scoping review examined peer-reviewed research on sizeism over 20 years and found that counseling journals did not publish articles about sizeism. Counselors need to engage in research to understand and conceptualize sizeism and to address sizeism in counseling with social justice advocacy. Recommendations for wellness-based, size-inclusive, culturally responsive counseling, research, education, and supervision are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The history of the development of the Global Alliance for Behavioral Health and Social Justice was founded on understanding the social determinants of mental health and society and the necessity for multiple disciplines to organize advocacy for human rights and social justice. This led way to a wide cross-section of disciplines working together to engage at the policy level, in legislation, and within community settings as the Community Mental Health Movement developed and made a path for the reformation of many forms within the mental health field. This article reviews some of that interesting history and the importance of understanding those fundamental roots as we also look at the future for what is next in advocacy, social justice action, and policy directions for advancing the lives of those with serious mental illness, who face some of the most oppressive forms of marginalization and rejection of human rights and citizenship. This article will outline social justice action agendas for the organization and diverse collaborative fields to pursue as we embark upon the future and envision the full rights of citizenship for those with serious mental illness. Public Policy Relevance Statement: The Global Alliance played a significant part in the community mental health movement, altering mental health services for the nation, which this article reviews and casts a vision for future social justice action. More advocacy and social justice action are imperative to realize the full rights of citizenship and recovery for those with serious mental illness, which this article delineates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative research methodologies offer many benefits to the counseling field: a thick, vibrant description of a construct or experiences pertinent to a specific group; a critical lens to qualitative research can also propel social justice, advocacy, and systemic change. Despite qualitative research being regularly used in the counseling profession, the majority of this research has been utilized on/with adults, leading to the need for greater guidance specific to youth: children and adolescents. This article is the first in a special issue from The Journal of Child and Adolescent Counseling, on youth-centered qualitative research. In this lead article, we outline concrete, practical strategies for conducting youth-centered qualitative research; this paper is organized according to a qualitative guide by Goodman-Scott, but applied to youth specifically. Given the importance of social justice and advocacy, this article is also grounded in a critical research paradigm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the increasing inclusion of intersections of sexual, racial, and class differences in contemporary feminist theory, there remains an omission in the scholarship in terms of exploring the intersections of religion (Islam), gender, and sexual violence. This article addresses this gap in the literature by focusing on the #MosqueMeToo movement. Using an intersectional lens, the article provides an overview of this movement from current literature as well as content analysis of a number of Twitter (now X) posts. It examines the potential, strength, and impact of the movement and explores how it provides Muslim women with an accessible way to share their lived experiences. Moreover, the article elucidates the current backlash and self-reflections in response to the movement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guided by literature in the theory of corporate responsibility to race, organizational identity theory, and attribution theory, this study investigates the role of preexisting organizational identity in shaping consumer attributions of its CRR motives. The findings from a survey of 610 participants suggested that consumers believe that an organization has public-serving motives to join the fight against racial injustice when they observe the organization's commitment to social justice, especially if the organization behaved morally before instituting CRR practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: People experiencing poverty who live in rural communities may have complex needs as rurality exacerbates their issues. Isolation, stigma, transport difficulties and a lack of services contribute to the challenges experienced by people living in rural communities who experience poverty. For social workers, responses need to be creative and flexible to counter the lack of services or people being unable to access services due to distance and/or a lack of transport. METHODS: I conducted semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 28 participants. Participants self-identified as experiencing poverty and ranged in age from teenagers to over 65s. Transcripts were analysed using applied thematic analysis. FINDINGS: Four themes were identified: stigma, isolation, transportation and access to services. Issues in these areas exacerbated participants' experience of poverty. CONCLUSION: The findings of the study suggest that there is a significant advocacy role for social workers in rural communities regarding access to services and service development, transportation and challenging stigma to improve the lives of people living in rural communities who experience poverty. Further investigation is suggested to explore specific groups experiencing poverty in rural communities, particularly Māori, and to consider other marginalised identity groups and different geographical areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to examine the role of different forms of corporate social advocacy (CSA) in shaping individuals' attitudinal and behavioral intentions towards companies taking their public stand on controversial socio-political issues. With an online experiment as the research method, this study tests whether depicting nonpolitical or political behaviors in CSA messages increases individuals' positive behavioral intentions. Design/methodology/approach: This study uses a single factor between subject online experiment. A total of 135 US young adults were recruited through a Qualtrics online panel. Three social media mockups were created to manipulate three levels of actions in CSA messages (no action, nonpolitical action and political action). Participants viewed one of those social media posts depicting presented actions to counter anti-LGBTQ + legislation in the USA and answered questions about values-driven motives behind CSA, brand preference and positive word-of-mouth (WOM) intention. Findings: Participants displayed higher levels of brand preference when they viewed CSA messages depicting the company's political action intended to repel anti-LGBTQ + legislation. Participants showed more positive WOM intentions towards the company when they perceived its political actions as more values-driven. Practical implications: The findings of this study offer practical insights to companies when designing CSA messages and strategies. The results of this study indicate that the presence of political actions in CSA communication increases individuals' positive behaviors towards companies. The results also suggest that depicting altruistic motives behind CSA leads individuals to talk about companies more in positive ways. Originality/value: This study is one of the early studies investigating the impact of various forms of CSA on individuals' attitudinal and behavioral intentions to companies practicing CSA. This study provides practical implications on how to effectively appeal individuals' favorable attitudes and behaviors towards CSA. In particular, this research presents the importance of action aspects in individuals' attitudes toward corporations' CSA messages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Based on Lasswell's communication model, this study investigates how four categories of factors (i.e. the source, content, medium and receiver) conjointly affect the relational, financial and social outcomes (i.e. what effect) of CSA communication. Design/methodology/approach: With a survey (N = 366), this study found configurations of core CSA communication factors leading to three different CSA communication outcomes. Findings: While this study found multiways to yield three different CSA outcomes, combinational logic indicated the combined effects from source, content, medium and receiver. With content and medium, individuals' connectedness (receiver) to a CSA issue is a core factor leading to a high level of purchase intention and issue advocacy. This study also found that message strategies (i.e. informativeness, factual tone, no promotional tone) are core factors leading to a high level of trust and issue advocacy. Practical implications: With the theoretical guidance, this research contributes to strategic communication practice for various entities involved in advocacy communication by enabling an improved understanding of advocacy communication factors and triggering different communication outcomes. Originality/value: As CSA communication involves multiple strategies, conventional research agenda focusing on correlational and path analysis approaches provide limited understanding of communication practice. To fill this void, this study adopts a configurational approach to understand current CSA communication practices holistically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We take a process perspective to review the literature on corporate responses to social activism and argue that theoretical advances have not kept pace with the extensive and expanding scope of the literature. We identify three critical assumptions in the literature, which we believe can be traced back to two overarching issues: a mechanistic conceptualization that ascribes limited reflexivity to managers and an overreliance on variance theorizing. In order to tackle these challenges and propel future research, we suggest a research agenda that revolves around an enhanced role for managerial reflexivity in theory development and a stronger emphasis on the process-oriented view of the relationship between activism and response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractTaken from a larger, longitudinal multi-case study examining the decisions and choices (pedagogically and professionally) of early career social studies teachers this article analyzes and describes a single case study using the theoretical frameworks of Teaching Like an Activist and The Pedagogy of Teacher Activism. This article describes the pedagogical and curricular choices Ms. Jane, the teacher, makes during her first two years of teaching middle school. Initially, she identified as a social justice educator, but she shifted over the course of the study later identifying as an activist educator as she became more involved in political and social activism in opposition to the presidency of Donald Trump. Both identities impact how she taught and how she engaged professionally at her school site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A phenomenological study was conducted to determine how counselors are experiencing engagement in social justice advocacy. Participants included seven (N = 7) licensed clinical counselors in the United States. Several themes emerged from the data: social justice advocacy as part of counselor professional identity, experiences of emotional discomfort and gratification, advocacy in action on a micro-, mezzo-, and macro-level, skills utilized to be effective advocates, identity impacting advocacy efforts, challenges faced, and advocacy successes. Results highlighted advocacy action steps that counselors can take to support clients. Skills needed to be effective advocates included gaining knowledge of systems, self-awareness of bias and privilege, intentionality and strategies linked with advocacy actions, and use of common counseling skills such as compassion and managing challenging responses. Four main elements were identified for the potential training of counselors: (1) establishing a clear professional identity/role around social justice advocacy, (2) teaching advocacy competencies, (3) education about what advocacy practice looks like, and (4) building skills frequently utilized in advocacy practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For more than three decades, official and independent enquiries have documented the poor outcomes experienced by many young people transitioning from out‐of‐home care (OOHC) in Australia, known as care leavers. Yet, until 2017, most of the state and territory governments cut off financial support to these vulnerable young people at no later than 18 years of age and failed to provide them with the ongoing material and relationship assistance into early adulthood guaranteed to most of their non‐care peers. Australia was regarded internationally as a leaving care laggard. This paper examines the remarkably effective advocacy strategies used by the Home Stretch campaign, formed in 2016, to persuade all Australian jurisdictions to extend OOHC until 21 years. By the end of 2022, every state and territory had agreed to introduce some form of extended care, and Australia was recognised as a global leader in leaving care policy and programmes provision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within IR, scholars are starting to consider difference on the level of ontology rather than epistemology. Other worlds are introduced into IR's political pluriverse, however, these are often encountered in faraway places, thereby playing into the colonial narrative that ontological difference does not exist in the 'West'. This paper introduces another real from within the 'disenchanted North' that is shaped by contemplative activists: people using contemplation as a form of protest. An engagement with contemplative activism challenges our commonly held assumptions about what contemplation and social change are, thereby undermining the institutions of 'science' and 'religion' underlying the universe. It argues that the project of political ontology in IR should consist of two moves: drawing in other, in particular spiritual, realities into the political imaginations of IR and challenging the ontological assumptions underpinning concepts. Consequently, it suggests that the pluriverse in IR should be a methodological rather than an ontological commitment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United States Supreme Court ruled School Corporal Punishment (SCP) constitutional, legalizing the practice in 19 states. Annually, approximately 163,333 students are subject to this practice, and 57,000 incidents involve African American students. Moreover, the lack of Federal advocacy and public knowledge of this social problem is more likely linked to SCP mainly practiced in southern states. Through the lens of Critical Race Theory, a content analysis of SCP documents from 1996 to 2018 was collected from school districts in seven prevalent SCP states using the following terms: SCP, Black students, and Black population. This policy report examines states' SCP policies, identifies factors that influenced policies, and discusses the future of SCP. Findings suggest that SCP negatively impacted the academic achievement and future endeavors of African American students. One recommendation for a successful alternative of SCP strategies is the information involvement of relevant stakeholders and Government officials as several policies excluded members in the implementation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the framing strategies and language features of U.S. news coverage surrounding sexual violence and gender issues across the ideological media spectrum at two pivotal phases of the #MeToo movement: (1) during its initial rise as a hashtag-driven social movement in 2017 and (2) during the Kavanaugh nomination and confirmation in 2018. Using structural topic modeling, community detection, and feature extraction, we reveal a heightened employment of political framing during the Kavanaugh accusations. Topical prevalence and language use in news treatment also showed clear partisan differences, consistent with theories of moral foundation and issue ownership. Implications for research on news coverage of gender rights and framing of social movements are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the Instagram postings of Blair Imani, an influencer who blends lifestyle content with social justice advocacy. Through an analysis of popular posts and follower engagement, I argue that Imani's primary work is not to raise awareness. Instead, she cultivates a community of "Smarties," tied together by a comforting style, positive emotions, and the shared pleasure of being an enlightened insider. This analysis indicates how the ostensibly positive account of a social justice influencer is another element of algorithmically polarized social media, where communities are formed and pleasure is derived via condemnation of presumed others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harold (Hal) C. Slavkin, DDS, the 22nd president of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research (1993 to 1994), died on December 22, 2023. During a career that spanned almost 6 decades, Hal distinguished himself as an international authority on craniofacial biology and an advocate for oral health equity. He served as dean of the University of Southern California's dental school, founded the school's Center for Craniofacial Molecular Biology, created the nation's first PhD program in craniofacial biology, and served as the sixth director of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. Hal's studies of the molecular and cellular underpinnings of craniofacial malformations prepared him to champion translational research later in his career, when his work with patient advocates revealed the importance of applying new discoveries to clinical practice. A visionary thinker, skilled administrator, progressive educator, compelling communicator, researcher, scholar, and mentor, Hal was known as a Renaissance leader. He rejoiced in fostering collaborative synergies among people and organizations. Throughout his life, family was his central grounding force. He and his wife, Lois, advanced a wide range of social and community initiatives and took great pride in their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. We remember Hal for his indelible spirit, unflappable enthusiasm for science, fierce advocacy for social justice, and infectious zest for life. Here, we outline his multidimensional accomplishments through the lenses of academia, government, and nonprofit organizations. Although it is with heavy hearts that we bid goodbye to this remarkable man, our spirits are lightened by the many gifts he left behind. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Expanding on classic theories of stancetaking and theorizing digital activism as nexus analysis, I examine how Omani Arab citizens used discourse and images to canalize a failed food boycott campaign on Twitter (X) into a united negative stance against alleged corruption. I highlight the role of multimodality, impoliteness, indirectness, intertextual references, participation framework and Arabic cultural practices in creating a multi-layered, accreted stance with manifold implicit functions (e.g., defining Omani identity, lamenting and signalling dissent). I argue for the need to widen the scope and level of analysis of stance acts to include interplays between texts, emoji, actions and images. I also highlight the role that stance can perform in expressing dissent and managing cultural face in the understudied Arabic context. I, therefore, demonstrate the multidimensionality of stance acts made visible by social media affordances and user creativity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]