Blog — Sage Perspectives Blog

Equality Smatters

The number of African American linguists is growing, albeit gradually. Very few of us share my legacy as a Black baby boomer whose life began in poverty, yet I will soon assume the presidency of the Linguistic Society of America. My life reflects a special brand of American exceptionalism that defies easy classification, and my former Stanford student, Professor Tracy Conner, has been kind enough to discuss my journey from Brooklyn, through inner-city Philadelphia as a child and college student.

ResearchMoazzma ArshadJanuary 7, 2022equality, race, discrimination, racism

Social Disparities in Adopting Non-pharmaceutical Interventions During COVID-19 in Norway

In the absence of vaccines to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020 governments had to respond by rely on non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). Socioeconomic inequalities likely influenced the uptake of NPIs. Using Norwegian survey data, we study whether income was associated with increased handwashing, keeping 1 m distance, using facemasks increased use of home office, and less use of public transportation.

Get Your Article Reviewed Faster by Avoiding Plagiarism

When you publish an article with a prominent academic journal, you are participating in a conversation with your colleagues around the world as well as scholars who came before you and will come after you. Anyone who reads your article should be able to easily identify your unique contributions and the works you have built on to make those contributions.

Author Services, Editor's PicksKimberley SimpsonDecember 16, 2021article, research, peer review, plagiarism, citations, academic

Youth centres as foodscapes, and informal learning environments

Although not adequately studied in the research on youth work, food is and has been an integral element of youth centres. This article examines what characterizes youth centres as foodscapes and explores which aspects of youth centres support the food-related learning of young people. We merge the traditions of youth work research, food education and learning.

ResearchDeepa LintoDecember 16, 2021youth centres, youth work, learning environment, informal learning, Finland

Supply-side Readiness for Universal Health Coverage: Assessing Service Availability and Barriers in Remote and Fragile Setting

The study was conducted to a) Evaluate the service readiness and b) Ascertain supply side barriers inhibiting service provisioning in rural, remote and fragile district in India. We employed a mixed method study design encompassing Service Provisioning Assessment of entire network of public health facilities using Service Availability and Readiness Assessment (SARA) module of WHO in conjunction with Indian Public Health Standards Guidelines (IPHS).

Cultural Similarities and Variations in the Conceptions of Happiness and Unhappiness: A Comparison between an individualistic and collectivistic culture

The present study investigates the conceptions of happiness and unhappiness among university students from Italy and Honduras. A total of 193 Italians and 172 Hondurans took part in a questionnaire study. Respondents were asked to write down the things that made them happy (happiness sources) and those that made them unhappy (unhappiness sources).

ResearchDeepa LintoDecember 2, 2021Culture, happiness, unhappiness, Italy, Honduras

The Beautiful and the Fit Reap the Spoils: Body Image, Electronic Media Communication, and Well-being Among Early Adolescents

The effects of electronic media communication (EMC) and social media on young people’s health and well-being remain under debate, with no conclusive evidence on the connection between the two. A negative perceptual body image acts as a moderator of the relationship between the intensity of EMC and well-being, whereas the positive relationship between EMC disappears under the condition of a negative body image.

ResearchDeepa LintoNovember 25, 2021media, young people, mental health, Gender, culture, teenagers, Electronic media communication

World Scientists' Warnings into Action, Local to Global

Human civilization stares out over a cliff edge. As a species in ecological overshoot, our journey is impossible to continue on its present pathway. Six priority areas for global action were underlined in the World Scientists’ Warning of a Climate Emergency paper, published in 2019, which has now been endorsed by a total of 14,594 scientists from 158 countries.

ResearchKimberley SimpsonNovember 22, 2021climate change, atmosphere, COP26, Environment, Environmental changes

Steps to Strengthen Your Reviewer Profile

It is widely acknowledged that there is a lack of formal training for early career researchers trying to become peer reviewers, especially how to be invited to review for a journal. In order to increase your chances of being selected as a reviewer, here are some tips to strengthen your reviewer profile on our online submission and peer review systems.

Author Services, Editor's PicksMoazzma ArshadNovember 12, 2021peer review, journal review, reviewer, Publons, ORCID

Consumer Value Preferences in Healthcare

Advances in healthcare service research emphasize a value-driven approach in healthcare by pressing the need to acknowledge what matters to the patient against the conventional approach of what should be provisioned in the service. This research study adopts a consumer-centric perspective of value creation, and explores consumer value preferences in healthcare services, using netnography of online consumer reviews of cancer patients.

ResearchDeepa LintoNovember 11, 2021Consumer value, Service experience, Value creation, Cancer patients, Healthcare

Tips for an effective journal article title

What do the words “arrests “, “exorbitant”, “extraordinary”, and “destruction” have in common? At first glance, you might say “absolutely nothing”. My response, as Editor-in-Chief of International Journal of Toxicology, would be that non-scientific words such as these are not appropriate for use in the titles of journal articles that present the results of biomedical research.

Author Services, Editor's PicksMoazzma ArshadNovember 10, 2021research, journal, article, title

No ifs or buts: Public foundation leaders’ perspectives on evaluation

Philanthropic foundations provide grants to all sorts of nonprofit organisations to help them achieve their mission. To do this, management within these philanthropic foundations engage in various evaluation processes, such as evaluating a nonprofit organisation’s grant application. But what exactly are they evaluating, why are they evaluating it, and what do they think about evaluation? Little is known about foundation leaders’ perceptions on evaluation or what influences those perspectives; so, we set out to change that.

The Policy of Free Electricity to the Agriculture Sector in a developing nation

The Indian central government is pursuing state governments to replace free power supply to agriculture with the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). This article examined the free power policy from the perspective of various stakeholders and suggested alternate policies based on a field survey in the state of united Andhra Pradesh (AP), India, in the year 2018.

Language for Sex and Gender Inclusiveness in Writing

Over the last few years, many position statements and policies regarding gender inclusive language for transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) people have been published. This “new” trend follows on from advances made by feminists who made it very clear that language must be unbiased towards and inclusive of women.

ResearchKimberley SimpsonNovember 2, 2021Gender, inclusivity, writing, language

Being and Doing LGBTQ+ Research

Over the years, I have spoken to many different researchers about what they choose to research. Within the social sciences, in particular, it is quite common to see someone researching a topic that is personally important to them. That tendency has been reflected in my own research career to date, where I have spent a lot of time studying bisexuality.

Research, Editor's PicksKimberley SimpsonOctober 28, 2021LGBT, bisexuality, Gender, LGBT+, identity

Does circadian rhythm affect accuracy of PCR tests for SARS-CoV-2?

Accurate detection of the virus that causes COVID-19 is a vital component in all containment and mitigation strategies for the current global pandemic crisis. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests are commonly used in hospital and clinic settings because they are highly specific, but false-negative tests are common, up to 30% and particularly in early infection.

Research, Editor's PicksMoazzma ArshadOctober 28, 2021PCR test, COVID-19, SARS-coV-2, circadian rhythm

50 Years of the Journal of Black Studies

The idea of the Journal of Black Studies (JBS) was born in 1968 when a young academic named Molefi Kete Asante approached SAGE founder Sara Miller McCune with an idea for a journal that would respond to the Black studies movement as well as a public call for equality, justice, and nonviolence. At the time there was no comparable journal, and Sara saw this journal as a vital addition to social science scholarship. The first full volume was completed in 1971.

Business Incubation Centres in Universities and Their Role in Developing Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

Our article focuses on the need to provide a strong impetus for establishing business incubation centres at universities for progressive creation of innovation start-ups. The study reviews the current status of business incubators affiliated with universities in India. It also explores the variables such as location, affiliation and ease of doing business which help facilitate innovation and entrepreneurship.

Environmental Protection and Development of Technology-intensive Industries: The Case of New Energy Vehicle Industry in Korea

Korea, being one of the leading producers of automobiles, has been shifting its attention to eco-friendly new energy vehicles (NEVs) facing the threat of global warming. Since the 1990s, Korea has tried to promote the electric vehicles industry by providing various subsidies and infrastructure. The Korean government’s active NEV promotion policy has stimulated the expansion of production scale and commercialisation of NEVs.

ResearchDeepa LintoOctober 21, 2021Korea, Infrastructure, Environmental, New energy vehicles