Blog — Sage Perspectives Blog

Colonial Hangover and ‘Invited’ Migration: Hong Kongers to the UK

Protests in Hong Kong over plans to allow extradition from Hong Kong to mainland China is going on since mid-2019. These reforms are seen as a threat to Hong Kongers’ freedom. The protesters expanded their demands for democratic reform and opposition to Beijing’s introduction to a new national security law. Following the continued protests, the UK government invited over five million Hong Kong residents to relocate to the country. The purpose of this article is to delve into why the UK welcomes Hong Kong residents to apply for citizenship.

ResearchDeepa LintoJune 16, 2022Hong Kong, China, Brexit, COVID-19, UK

Why is it hard to reverse the rise in obesity?

Obesity is a recognized public health hazard. This puts a strain on the body, as well as on health care systems. It arises because the intake of energy exceeds that needed for exercise and maintenance of the body’s integrity, and is therefore converted to fat. In an effort to reduce obesity in the population, governments can increase the tax on foods and drinks seen as undesirable, but is it likely to be enough?

Editor's Picks, ResearchMoazzma ArshadJune 14, 2022obesity, public health

Pandemic-Led slowing of Asian economies

This study focuses on tracing the early economic impacts of COVID-19. The pandemic has unleashed a global shock impacting all economies in several ways. The lockdowns have brought economic activity to a standstill, with the closure of businesses and halting of travel, trade and commerce. Even as the impact on sensitive sectors as trade, tourism and remittances are already becoming visible, it is imperative to understand how these are impacting economies in Asia. This article studies these impacts on Thailand and Sri Lanka.

ResearchDeepa LintoJune 11, 2022Pandemic, Thailand, Sri Lanka, COVID-19, Asia

Influence of Gender Diversity in Boards on Family and Non-family Businesses: Towards Innovation and Creativity

This article aims to understand better the impact of the diversity of gender in boards on the innovation and creativity of companies in the context of the structure of business—family businesses and non-family businesses. Based on women’s participation in decision-making and family firm literature, we argue that women directors/executives’ impact on decision-making will rely on their relative power and credibility within the board.

ResearchDeepa LintoJune 9, 2022Family firms, Gender Diversity, Business

Learning to listen: Storytelling infused with stigma

Stigma is a troubling barrier to good research. It presents a double challenge to the researcher: an ethical one (research might subject stigmatised individuals and groups to harm) and an epistemological one (stigma creates silences, making it hard to gather data). In my PhD research with African migrant women living in Ireland, I wanted to explore life experiences of gender-based violence, and particularly the stigma that surrounds those experiences. How could I ensure that my research participants were not inadvertently exposed to more stigma because of my inquiry? And how I could practice ethical research, but still interrogate the most private and taboo topics, including violence, rape, and personal and collective feelings of shame?

New Monthly Webinar Series on How to Get Published

SAGE is pleased to announce a new webinar series focused on the academic publishing process. This monthly series will conduct a deeper dive into the journal world, providing expert advice to researchers and authors on how to get published in a peer-reviewed academic journal.

THE CURIOUS CASE OF REDUCING AUTOMOBILE USE

There is a lot of interest in, and emphasis on, trying to motivate people to shift to alternative and more sustainable modes (means) of transportation for their travel as nations attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, render communities more sustainable and livable, and combat ill effects of climate change. The latest bipartisan infrastructure bill has hundreds of billions of dollars of investments aimed at enhancing transit, bicycle and pedestrian transportation networks, implementing strategies to better manage and reduce automobile traffic, and motivating the traveling public to eschew the use of the automobile for daily travel. Policymakers and the public alike are counting on these investments and strategies to deliver a more sustainable mobility future.

Editor's Picks, ResearchMoazzma ArshadMay 31, 2022Automobile, transportation, travel, United States

2022 World Conference on Research Integrity: SAGE’s approach to research integrity and preserving trust

SAGE is proud to sponsor the 7th World Conference on Research Integrity, with its focus on research integrity in relation to inequality. Find out more about SAGE’s role in fostering research integrity in an unequal world.

Editor's Picks, Author ServicesMaria Pia TissotMay 26, 2022research, integrity, SAGE, conference

Sankofa: African American Music Education

Sankofa is an intriguing African symbol that has implications for African American music education. It is derived from the Twi and Fante language of the Akan tribe in West Africa. Sa means returning, ko – go and fa – look, seek, take. When adapted, translated, and applied to music education of African Americans, it requires looking back in time to identify and document inequities and advancements in order to create a more equitable music education for African Americans, now and in the future. In this Special Issue of the Journal of Historical Research in Music Education articles focus on music education during the twentieth century, particularly from the years leading up to the Civil Rights Movement (1954–1968) to the end of the century.

Vascular Ultrasound in Space: Evaluation for Risk of Deep Vein Thrombosis During Spaceflight

May 3, 2022 – Today in Vascular Medicine, Dr James Pavela and colleagues published a report of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) occupational surveillance program to screen astronauts for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) during spaceflight. Eleven astronauts with matching terrestrial (on earth) and in-flight ultrasound evaluations were included in the study.

Marijuana toxicosis in 2 donkeys

The prevalence of the marijuana use has increased over the past decade with the changing state-wide legislative landscape in the United States. There are now stores in various states that sell this product for recreational use in humans. This in turn has resulted in more veterinary visits for our canine companions who were exposed to their owner’s marijuana and were negatively affected. This article highlights a new species that is also susceptible to adverse effects from THC exposure and demonstrates important clinical signs for veterinarians to look out for.

DEI at SAGE Journals: Reflections on our pledge a year in

In July 2021, the SAGE Journals team released a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) pledge shaped in complement to SAGE’s signing on to the Royal Society of Chemistry’s joint commitment for action on inclusion and diversity in publishing. With almost a year of work behind them, they reflect on 2021 highlights and offer 2022-2023 ambitions.

Editor's Picks, Industry NewsMaria Pia TissotApril 25, 2022DEI, SAGE Journals, representation, Diversity, equality

Influence of Religion and Spirituality in Cancer Care

In the United States, there are nearly 2 million new cancer diagnoses each year. After these patients are diagnosed, most patients will have to make significant, life-altering decisions regarding their treatment and care. While some decisions may seem straight forward, many patients face uncertainties surrounding diagnosis and prognosis, challenging treatment‐related decisions, as well as consideration of prolonged therapies that do not come with any guarantees of cure. To make these incredibly difficult decisions, many patients will reflect on their own values and belief systems. For many patients, this will include their religious and spiritual beliefs.

Editor's Picks, ResearchMoazzma ArshadApril 20, 2022religion, spirituality, cancer, cancer care

Creating Space for Diversity in Our Research

As researchers, we are part of the knowledge production system and if our research fails to represent the population, then our research is inevitably biased – but how do we know if our research is inclusive? Here are three questions that might serve as a starting point.

Research Methods, Editor's PicksMaria Pia TissotApril 13, 2022Sussex Hive, Diversity, DEI, LGBTQIA+

Emerging Technologies at Work: Policy Ideas to Address Negative Consequences for Work, Workers, and Society

In the first article of the ILR Review’s new series on “Novel Technologies at Work”, Diane Bailey provides a critical view on conventional wisdom that technological change is an unstoppable force—a wave of “creative destruction.” Mark Zuckerberg’s motto of “move fast and break things” crystalizes this idea. So, when emerging technologies have negative consequences, many feel powerless to alter these tsunamis of invention. According to Bailey, however, this does not need to be the case. But first we need to understand the problem at hand.

ResearchMoazzma ArshadApril 7, 2022emerging technology, technology, policy

Autism in Women and Girls

Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition characterised by differences in the way people process the world and interact with others around them. We are academics who work closely with autistic people and their families to conduct research into the mental health and wellbeing of autistic people, including girls and women. This blog post describes some of the health areas where we know autistic women and girls may be uniquely affected, and which we feel are priorities for future research.

Editor's Picks, ResearchMoazzma ArshadMarch 31, 2022autism, autistic, neurodevelopment, autism awareness day

Making Sense of What We Hear About Ukraine: An Interview with Dr Daniela Dimitrova

Every war updates what fills the arsenals, and the Russia-Ukraine war – with its thermobaric rocket launchers, hypersonic missiles and Javelin anti-tank weapons systems – is no different. In the digital age, the information battles that accompany every war are no different, and the current conflict is seeing the immediacy and rawness of social media (and active efforts at disinformation) crafting how the rest of the world sees the war.

To help bring some order to how we can filter and understand information about the war Martha Avtandilian, publisher of social science journals with SAGE Publishing (the parent of Social Science Space), interviewed Daniela Dimitrova, the editor-in-chief of Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly.

Research, Editor's PicksMoazzma ArshadMarch 24, 2022Russia, Ukraine, Russia-Ukraine war, war, conflict

The DNA damage repair landscape in Black women with breast cancer

Black people have the highest cancer mortality rate of any racial or ethnic group. Among Black women, breast cancer makes up about a third of all cancer diagnoses, with ER+ breast cancer being the most common. Black women with ER+ breast cancer are 42% more likely to die of the disease than white women.

This study examined gene expression in breast tumor and normal samples from 185 Black patients and compared them to samples from white women, revealing significant molecular differences in DNA repair in breast tissue that could help explain why more Black women die from ER+ breast cancer. The work suggests that addressing the disparity could be as simple as changing the timing of existing breast cancer treatments for Black women.

Editor's Picks, ResearchMoazzma ArshadMarch 18, 2022black woman, ethnic identity, race, breast cancer

Equitable Access to Higher Education

Of the various less-than-comfortable narrative strands of the status quo that the COVID-19 pandemic has succeeded in showing up in stark relief—our rather troubling (if somewhat half-hearted) complacence about the systemic blind-spots that continue to colour the prevailing culture of a clearly inequitable higher education policy-framework—easily features among the most worrying, and thus, among those precise pulse-points that carry tremendous potential to help build the post-pandemic reset better, stronger and palpably fairer. In this piece, the authors endeavour to elaborate upon this and supplement the same with a brief analysis of India’s year-old National Education Policy 2020.

ResearchDeepa LintoMarch 17, 2022Higher Education, National Education Policy, Pandemic, COVID-19, Education