Bolstering commitment to positive social change through group-based interaction. Building on an impressive series of preliminary results, this research uses small group interaction to bolster commitment to work towards long-term goals. The methods explored in the proposal have the potential to boost commitment in the public, private, and community sectors by identifying the key factors responsible for sustaining long-term change. The research is relevant for efforts to combat racism, and to incr ....Bolstering commitment to positive social change through group-based interaction. Building on an impressive series of preliminary results, this research uses small group interaction to bolster commitment to work towards long-term goals. The methods explored in the proposal have the potential to boost commitment in the public, private, and community sectors by identifying the key factors responsible for sustaining long-term change. The research is relevant for efforts to combat racism, and to increase community support for international development and environmental sustainability. Benefits are expected both in terms of the promotion of positive attitudes in society and in overcoming apathy within organisations.Read moreRead less
From the inevitability of prejudice to the origins of social change: The emergence of perceived illegitimacy in intergroup relations. This project examines the social psychological processes underpinning the (il)legitimacy of intergroup relations, prejudice, and social stability and change. To date it is accepted that those who do not perceive a social system (community, culture, society) as politically and morally legitimate are more likely to reject the status quo and seek change. What is miss ....From the inevitability of prejudice to the origins of social change: The emergence of perceived illegitimacy in intergroup relations. This project examines the social psychological processes underpinning the (il)legitimacy of intergroup relations, prejudice, and social stability and change. To date it is accepted that those who do not perceive a social system (community, culture, society) as politically and morally legitimate are more likely to reject the status quo and seek change. What is missing is the crucial analysis of how and when perceived legitimacy is transformed into illegitimacy. The project elaborates a novel and comprehensive approach to the illegitimacy question based on social identity and self-categorization theories and tests it through a major program of survey and laboratory-based research.Read moreRead less
When immigrants and converts are not truly one of us: Examining the social psychology and developmental antecedents of marginalizing racism. Marginalizing Racism, the simultaneous acceptance and rejection of others, is clearly present in Australia. It is not just a matter of thugs on the streets of Cronulla, but of elected politicians expressing Marginalizing Racist views. We believe that examining the social psychology and developmental causes of this insidious form of racism will pave the way ....When immigrants and converts are not truly one of us: Examining the social psychology and developmental antecedents of marginalizing racism. Marginalizing Racism, the simultaneous acceptance and rejection of others, is clearly present in Australia. It is not just a matter of thugs on the streets of Cronulla, but of elected politicians expressing Marginalizing Racist views. We believe that examining the social psychology and developmental causes of this insidious form of racism will pave the way for positive social change. This is not just an academic exercise, but a chance to expose and tackle a form of racism to which the broader public and our own profession appears to turn a blind eye. Moreover, as we expect this research to yield timely and influential discoveries, it will help maintain Australia's position as a world leader in the field of social psychology.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354600
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,000.00
Summary
Sources of Insecurity: Local, National and Global. Globalizing violence and the War on Terror have brought with them an acute sense of insecurity. The present study is intended to map and understand sources of that insecurity, both from ?below? and ?above?. From below, the project analyses the cultural-political and socio-economic conditions of violence on the ground, focusing on the Asia-Pacific region. From above, it documents Western representations of recent arenas of violence. The aim of th ....Sources of Insecurity: Local, National and Global. Globalizing violence and the War on Terror have brought with them an acute sense of insecurity. The present study is intended to map and understand sources of that insecurity, both from ?below? and ?above?. From below, the project analyses the cultural-political and socio-economic conditions of violence on the ground, focusing on the Asia-Pacific region. From above, it documents Western representations of recent arenas of violence. The aim of the project is to research the commonplace claim that it is reassertions of older forms of traditionalism or cultural and civilizational difference that are the well-spring of contemporary global violence, including terrorism.Read moreRead less
Enlightened Explorations?: Revisioning Gender and Sexuality in British and French Exploratory Voyages of the Pacific. This project aims to compare the representations of gender and sexuality on British and French exploratory voyages of the Pacific from the late eighteenth to the mid- nineteenth century. Starting from the islands of Samoa (Tcherkézoff ) and Vanuatu (Jolly), we will consider the centrality of gender and sexuality in categorizations of different ?races? or ?nations? and especially ....Enlightened Explorations?: Revisioning Gender and Sexuality in British and French Exploratory Voyages of the Pacific. This project aims to compare the representations of gender and sexuality on British and French exploratory voyages of the Pacific from the late eighteenth to the mid- nineteenth century. Starting from the islands of Samoa (Tcherkézoff ) and Vanuatu (Jolly), we will consider the centrality of gender and sexuality in categorizations of different ?races? or ?nations? and especially the distillation of the contrast between Polynesia and Melanesia. These voyages were foundational not just for enduring European visions of the Pacific but for Islander perceptions of and relations with Europeans, and later transformations of indigenous patterns of gender and sexuality.Read moreRead less
Intercommunal and Translocal Space in Fairfield: Tracking Indochinese Australian Lives. While providing important socio-cultural information about Lao, Cambodian and Vietnamese communities in western Sydney, this project takes an innovative approach to the study of 'minority' communities in multicultural societies. By locating itself at the points of contact between communities, the proposed research recognises that subjects are often members of multiple social groups, and that they shift back a ....Intercommunal and Translocal Space in Fairfield: Tracking Indochinese Australian Lives. While providing important socio-cultural information about Lao, Cambodian and Vietnamese communities in western Sydney, this project takes an innovative approach to the study of 'minority' communities in multicultural societies. By locating itself at the points of contact between communities, the proposed research recognises that subjects are often members of multiple social groups, and that they shift back and forth across their boundaries. Such a perspective enables one to avoid the fallacy of locating 'the multicultural' in minority subjects/cultures, and thus 'multicultural problems' within particular 'problem communities'. Rather, it situates the multicultural in the interstices between 'mainstream' and 'minority' AustraliaRead moreRead less
The subject of the state? Changing relations between government and Indigenous North Queenslanders. This project will provide a detailed analysis of the relationship between the state and Indigenous Australians in three north Queensland townships. This research is directly relevant to Indigenous social policy at a time when innovative solutions to chronic Indigenous disadvantage are being sought. The project will provide empirical data on the effectiveness of projects promoting practical reconci ....The subject of the state? Changing relations between government and Indigenous North Queenslanders. This project will provide a detailed analysis of the relationship between the state and Indigenous Australians in three north Queensland townships. This research is directly relevant to Indigenous social policy at a time when innovative solutions to chronic Indigenous disadvantage are being sought. The project will provide empirical data on the effectiveness of projects promoting practical reconciliation and mutual responsibility through increased intervention in Indigenous lives. As well as providing input to policy debates at the State and Federal level, the project aims to inform Indigenous community organizations and local Indigenous groups about current changes resulting from a new Indigenous policy environment.Read moreRead less
Art and Human Rights in the Asia-Pacific: The Limits of Tolerance in the Twenty-First Century. The question of human rights is emerging as perhaps the most critical issue of the twenty-first century. This project aims to develop a cross-disciplinary methodology and a set of conceptual frameworks for analysing the interactions between contemporary art and global discourses on human rights in the Asia-Pacific. In the process we address the debate on universality versus cultural specificity in rel ....Art and Human Rights in the Asia-Pacific: The Limits of Tolerance in the Twenty-First Century. The question of human rights is emerging as perhaps the most critical issue of the twenty-first century. This project aims to develop a cross-disciplinary methodology and a set of conceptual frameworks for analysing the interactions between contemporary art and global discourses on human rights in the Asia-Pacific. In the process we address the debate on universality versus cultural specificity in relation to human rights issues, and we seek to place current Australian responses to human rights in the context of the dynamically changing region in which we live.Read moreRead less
Sustainable Development, Cultural Diversity, and Global Transformations: An Ethnography of Agricultural and Environmental Practices in East Timor. Civil unrest, low productivity, and environmental degradation in East Timor, the Solomon Islands, PNG, Nauru, and Indonesia, highlight the new challenges for international development policy. By providing culturally specific analyses of development processes and by advancing new policy directions, the study will enhance the capacities of Australian NG ....Sustainable Development, Cultural Diversity, and Global Transformations: An Ethnography of Agricultural and Environmental Practices in East Timor. Civil unrest, low productivity, and environmental degradation in East Timor, the Solomon Islands, PNG, Nauru, and Indonesia, highlight the new challenges for international development policy. By providing culturally specific analyses of development processes and by advancing new policy directions, the study will enhance the capacities of Australian NGOs, as well as international NGOs with Australian offices, government agencies and Indigenous communities, effectively to tackle acute poverty and environmental degradation in our region. These issues are increasingly pertinent to Australia.Read moreRead less