Social theory Books

Book SynopsisThe authors develop a theoretical framework to explain how and when public and non-public warnings about future conflicts affect decision-making in Western states and international organisations. For scholars and practitioners working on conflict prevention, strategic surprise, and advocacy in peace, intelligence and communication studies.Trade Review'Meyer, De Franco, and Otto show that the problem of warning needs to be conceptualized broadly and seen as part of an interactive foreign policy process, with important warners being not only government officials, but NGOs, the media, and informal advisors. The sophisticated analysis is supported by detailed case studies drawing on a wide variety of unusual sources, and the result is a book of great interest.' Robert Jervis, Adlai E. Stevenson Professor, Columbia University and author of How Statesmen Think'Warning about War is essential reading for all those who study and work in the field of conflict and atrocity prevention. It makes a significant contribution to our understanding of when warnings about violence are heeded, and what warners could do to make their messages more persuasive. Meyer, de Franco and Otto argue that warnings about conflict take place in the wider context of foreign policy-making, and they provide an innovative conceptual and theoretical framework for explaining when and why warnings have an effect on foreign policy-makers. Case studies include the Rwandan genocide and the more recent Russian-Ukrainian conflict.' Karen Smith, London School of Economics and Political Science'A fascinating study of how and when warnings about future conflict are listened to. The authors show that warnings are rarely as clear or as numerous in the actual event as they later seem in hindsight, making the job of warning of and preventing conflicts and humanitarian crises even more difficult than many believe.' Erik J. Dahl, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey'There has been a surge of academic interest in improving conflict predictions, often based on the premise that early warning can help promote early action to prevent conflict outbreaks or limit escalation, but often very little attention to how policy makers respond to prediction and when it is likely to motivate action. Popular discourse often tend to see conflicts and disasters as predictable, and criticize politicians for failing to act, with limited attention to the problems of hindsight bias and the difficulties in predicting conflict ex ante. This book summarizes a sustained research program on when warnings are likely to lead to action and what makes warnings more or less persuasive. It will deserves to be read by all scholars interested in conflict prediction, conflict management, and how to bridge the gap between research and policy.' Kristian Skrede Gleditsch, University of Essex and Peace Research Institute, Oslo'Warning about War: Conflict, Persuasion and Foreign Policy makes a tremendously valuable contribution to the study of and strategy for conflict prevention, and the 'warning-response gap' in particular. It draws on extensive research, integrates literatures across subfields too often treated separately, and builds its analysis through mixed methodologies. In so doing it both advances theoretical understanding of these crucial issues and delineates policy recommendations to help close the warning-response gap.' Bruce W. Jentleson, William Preston Few Professor of Public Policy, Duke University'This sophisticated analytical treatment of the theory of political conflict will interest specialists and professionals studying or involved in conflict resolution.' J. A. Rhodes, ChoiceTable of Contents1. Conflict warnings as persuasion attempts; 2. A theory of conflict warning as persuasion in foreign policy; 3. Inside-up warnings within states and international organisations; 4. Outside-in warnings I: persuasion by NGOs; 5. Outside-in warnings II: persuasion by journalists and media organisations; 6. (Mis-)identifying warnings and the problem of hindsight bias: the case of the Rwandan Genocide; 7. What makes individual officials persuasive warners? The case of the 2004 Darfur crisis; 8. Explaining differences in persuasiveness: the EU members states and the 2008 Five-Day War in Georgia; 9. Warning within EU institutions and the Ukrainian-Russian conflict of 2013–14; 10. When are warnings heeded and what can warners do?; References; Index.

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Book SynopsisPrompted by the 'affective turn' within the entire spectrum of the social sciences, this books brings together the twin disciplines of political psychology and the political sociology of emotions to explore the complex relationship between politics and emotion at both the mass and individual level with special focus on cases of political tension.Trade ReviewThis collection represents the state of the art with regard to the sociology of emotions. The essays, by leading scholars in the social sciences, clearly demonstrate the fundamental importance of affect in the study of political action and institutional behaviour. I know of no better introduction to this growing field. Its publication could not come at a better time. Ron Eyerman, Center for Cultural Sociology, Yale University, USA Emotion in Politics manages in a very successful manner to bring together theoretical issues in the political sociology and psychology of emotions and empirically oriented studies on a variety of recent political developments. This combination clarifies theoretical debates on the micro-macro distinction, the reason-passion or interest-emotion distinction, the shortcomings of the rational choice approach etc. At the same time it shows the importance of taking seriously into account the emotive dimension in dealing with topics ranging from the Arab Spring and the Greek socioeconomic crisis to the analysis of protest movements and the xenophobic practices in several EU countries. On both the theoretical and empirical level the book contributes in an important way to the rapidly growing literature on the emotion-politics nexus. Nicos Mouzelis, European Institute, London school of Economics, UKTable of ContentsIntroduction; Nicolas Demertzis 1. The Theory of Affective Intelligence and Liberal Politics; George E. Marcus 2. Understanding Anxiety and Aversion: The Origins and Consequences of Affectivity in Political Campaigns; Tereza Capelos 3. Inside Stories: Oscar Wilde, Jean Améry, Nelson Mandela and Aung San Suu Kyi; Dennis Smith 4. Repression of Emotion: A Danger to Modern Societies?; Thomas Scheff 5. Feeling the Greek Financial Crisis; Bettina Davou and Nicolas Demertzis 6. Extremem Nationalism and the Hatred of the Liberal State; Barry Richards 7. Trauma and the Politics of Fear: Europe at the Crossroads; Catarina Kinnvall 8. Collective Fear and Societal Change; Jack Barbalet and Nicolas Demertzis 9. Emotions of Protest; Dunya van Troost, Jacquelin van Stekelenberg and Bert Klandermans 10. Revolutionary Potential under Soviet-Type Regimes: The Role of Emotions in Explaining Transitions and Non-Transitions; Steven Saxonberg 11. Affects in the Arab Uprisings; Wendy Pearlman 12. Emotions and Nationalism: A Reappraisal; Jonathan Heaney Conclusion; Nicolas Demertzis

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Book Synopsis1. Introduction2. Sociology and Disasters 3. Accidents, Disasters and Revelation4. The New Normal5. Riskworld? New Species of Trouble 6. Political Economy, I: Capitalism and Disaster7. Political Economy, II: Capitalism as Disaster8. Everyday Disaster: Notes on Low Visibility Catastrophe 9. ConclusionsTrade Review“A very interesting book that reviews a large amount of literature, both theoretical and conceptual, and re-presents this in an accessible manner. … It will be of interest to those working in the field of disasters as it brings together rich description of the work of a number of key researchers into one text. … To those sociologists who have not yet engaged with the issue of disaster, you could start nowhere better than with this text.” (Sarah Bradshaw, American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 122 (4), January, 2017)Table of Contents1. Introduction2. Sociology and Disasters 3. Accidents, Disasters and Revelation4. The New Normal5. Riskworld? New Species of Trouble 6. Political Economy, I: Capitalism and Disaster7. Political Economy, II: Capitalism as Disaster8. Everyday Disaster: Notes on Low Visibility Catastrophe 9. Conclusions

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Book SynopsisCan society operate without gender and even biological sex classifications? Queer Post-Gender Ethics argues that we could exist, formulate our relationships and be sexual in more androgynous ways. Outlining a political vision for how a post-gender sociality might be achieved, it presents queer social practices for a truly gender neutral world.Trade Review“This text challenges the reader with the analysis of theory and practice and does encourage a critical reading and thinking of selected theorists to prompt a move past normative notions of sex/gender. This book encourages the reader to consider new ways of thinking and it questions normative sex/gender assumptions charting the expansive possibilities of moving beyond the constraints and limitations of either/or binaries.” (Nikki Fairchild, Women's Studies International Forum, Vol. 57, July-August, 2016)“In Queer Post-Gender Ethics, Lucy Nicholas offers a utopian model for post-gender selfhood, one that moves beyond the presumed inescapability of binary gender and into an imaginative ‘androgynous ethos’ featuring an ‘ethics of reciprocity.’ … Queer Post-Gender Ethics is especially useful for those exploring the limitations and pleasures of gender in advanced queer and feminist theory classes and discussion groups as a productive response to the question of whether binary gender is, or should be, truly eradicable.” (Contemporary Sociology, Vol. 45 (1), January, 2016)Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. The Resilience of Bigenderism 2. Diagnosing and Transcending Sexual Difference 3. Gender Justice 4. Philosophical Arguments for Post-Gender Ontological Ethics 5. Queer Futures and Queer Ethics: Sketching Inexhaustibly Reciprocal Androgyny 6. The Politics of Implementing Post-Gender Ethics: Beyond Idealism / Realism 7. The Fully Armed Self: Cultivating Post-Gender Subjects 8. Ethical Post-Gender Sexual Relationships and Communities Conclusion: Utopian Realism

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Book SynopsisThis book argues for a modern version of liberal arts education, exploring first principles within the divine comedy of educational logic. By reforming the three philosophies of metaphysics, nature and ethics upon which liberal arts education is based, Tubbs offers a profound transatlantic philosophical and educational challenge to the subject.Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. Antiquity: Finding Virtue in Necessity 2. The Seven Liberal Arts: Varro's Secret Path 3. Renaissance Humanism 4. Bildung and the New Age 5. Metaphysical Education 6. Natural Education 7. Social Education 8. Divine Comedy of Barbarian Virtue 9. The Work of Education

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Book SynopsisFeminism is not dead. This groundbreaking book advances a radical and pioneering feminist manifesto for today's modern audience that exposes the real reasons as to why women are still oppressed and what feminist activism must do to counter it through a vibrant and original account of the global Reclaim the Night March.Trade Review“This book is a highly informative historical resource. … the book talks about the radical feminist movement in the UK from 1970’s to the present. Mackey presents the feminist movement in waves. … the book is very relevant to historians and educators who want to promote discourse about the differences between the second and third waves of the feminist movement.” (Meltem Ince Yenilmez, Journal of Global Analysis, Vol. 6 (2), 2016)"Amidst all the lies and distortions about the radical feminist movement here comes a truthful account of its proud history, and where we are today. A brave and compelling book." - Julie Bindel, author and feminist activist "Convincing ... clear and succinct. Mackay's energy in rebuilding the feminist movement that she wants to see has been quite remarkable. This book, which is her account of the successes and challenges of this task, is a useful undertaking, and places it within its historical background and current global reach." Lynne Segal, Times Higher Education "Tireless activist and rigorous philosopher Finn Mackay takes on the hot-button issues in this new book. She has a way with words that breathes new life into Radical Feminism. I agree with her 96 percent of the time." - Susan Brownmiller, author of Against Our Will: Men, Women and Rape "Today's younger feminists will find this new book useful and inspiring. This is the kind of book that soon to be wonder women have on the shelves for years to come with pride. I would recommend this book to all new to feminism and those of us that want to give the next generation something to ensure they start on the right foot. I will be buying a copy for my niece." - Nimco Ali, Daughters of Eve and The Girl Project "Finn Mackay studies the movement from the point of view of the women's marches; the highs of those moments; the nib of organizing - she knows all the angles. Mackay is a great organizer herself - she would be fun to know." - Kate Millett, author of Sexual Politics "Finn Mackay ... is well-known among feminists for her energy and positivity as a campaigner, her practical approach to political organizing and her ability to speak in a straightforward, engaging way to both feminist and general audiences. All those qualities are also visible in her book." - Debbie Cameron, Trouble & Strife "Radical Feminism is [an] interesting text looking into recent feminist organisations and the political questions they face. Mackay's ... dedication to a movement which seeks to highlight an important issue and empower women cannot be doubted." - Socialist Review "A powerful new book by a former Menwith Hill peace camper, grounded in dozens of interviews with feminist activists around the UK. Radical Feminism provides a guide to the development of the women's liberation movement since the 1970s, deals with the challenges of queer theory, and centres itself in the history and politics of the Reclaim The Night marches against male violence against women." - Peace NewsTable of Contents1. Introduction: Why March through this Book? 2. Surf's Up: Surfing the Second Wave 3. Feminist Tendencies 4. From Brussels to Leeds, San Francisco, Delhi: The Global March of Reclaim the Night 5. Tending To Borders 6. Repetitions Per Decade: Voices of Activists Past and Present 7. From 'Women' To 'Mixed' 8. Inclusion and Exclusion on Reclaim the Night 9. Motivations and Destinations: What do Feminists Want? 10. Conclusion: The Rally and After-party

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Book SynopsisAndrew Wilkins is Reader in Education at the University of East London, UK.Antonio Olmedo is Reader in Education Policy Sociology at the University of Bristol, UK, and Honorary Reader at IOE, UCL's Faculty of Education and Society, University College London, UK.Trade ReviewA fine contribution to the field of education governance ... it certainly makes for a great introductory text for postgraduate, doctoral, and early career researchers, as asserted in the series editor’s foreword, but such is its merit, I feel, that it is an appropriate read for even the most advanced and celebrated scholars ... The greatest strength of this book is that it will encourage readers to consider the interests, motives, and intentions of those in power- there is ample evidence in this book to give cause for concern. * Journal of Education Policy *Reading these chapters ... I had the impression that I was in a room packed with extremely knowledgeable researchers, each with an important piece of the jigsaw which would contribute to our understanding of the trajectory of global education governance. That they have given us insight into their research toolbox, with which we can go on to explore our own interests in this area, is to be highly commended. The book is a valuable contribution to this area of research. * Management in Education *An important contribution to the literature on governance ... This book will be useful not only to researchers in this area, but also to post-graduate researchers and undergraduates who are working towards the end of their degrees as well as a wider audience interested in the impacts of governance on educational policy and practice. * Educational Review *Covering algorithmic control, digital governance, machine learning, the corporate parasitisation of service provision, assessment as both regulation and accountability, performance and performativity, hegemony, signallage and disorientation, and actors and agency, this is an invaluable toolkit for educators, educational researchers and activists, in understanding the methodological implementation of neoliberal governance. * Richard Hall, Professor of Education and Technology, De Montfort University, UK *A crisis in economically and politically just forms of education governance provides the backdrop for this collection’s consideration of social theory. This is a thought-provoking and stimulating collection that positions education governance as a powerful mechanism for working through this crisis towards fostering more democratic and equal societies. It provides new ways of understanding and interpreting both the problematics and possibilities of the data, evaluation, knowledge and institutional regimes that govern education. It is highly significant in moving theorising in this space forward and a must read for educators, scholars and researchers in the field of education governance. * Amanda Keddie, Professor of Education, Deakin University, Australia *“Education governance” often gets kicked around in policy and reform circles, treated generically and atheoretically, with little thought given to assumptions undergirding the concept. It is not often that such a set of first-rate scholars can be convened to direct their expertise towards such a deep concern. Yet Wilkins and Olmedo have assembled a stellar group of papers from leading theoreticians and researchers to shine some light on this issue. This volume will be the go-to source for serious thinking on education governance for the foreseeable future. * Christopher Lubienski, Professor of Education Policy, Indiana University, USA *As the editors note in their lucid and engaging introduction to this wide-ranging book, governance has been enjoying a growing popularity in social and educational research and writing; yet it is not always clear to the uninitiated reader quite what the term ‘governance’ signifies. This timely and logically-structured collection comes to the rescue of such readers, with clearly written and accessible contributions from cutting-edge international scholars that locate governance in wider conceptual and theoretical networks and illustrate its critical purchase through case studies of policy and practice. As such, the book will serve as an invaluable resource for novice researchers looking for an authoritative pedagogic resource, as well as for established academics seeking inspiration, providing both groups with an essential point of reference in social and educational research for years to come. * Matthew Clarke, Professor of Education, York St. John University, UK *This book is a must-read for academics interested in ‘education governance’ as an area of research and an object of critical inquiry. * Scottish Educational Review *Table of ContentsForeword, (Kenneth J. Saltman, University of Massachusetts, USA) Introduction: Conceptualising Education Governance: Framings, Perspectives and Theories (Andrew Wilkins, University of East London, and Antonio Olmedo, University of Bristol, UK) Part I: Data Regimes 1. Digitizing Education Governance: Pearson, Real-time Analytics, Visualisation, and Machine Intelligence (Ben Williamson, University of Stirling, UK) 2. Learning Personalization: Technics, Disorientation and Governance (Greg Thompson, Queensland University of Technology, Australia) 3. Dispositions and Situations of Governance: The Example of Data Infrastructure in Australian Schooling (Sam Sellar, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK, and Kalervo N. Gulson, University of New South Wales, Australia) Part II: Evaluation Regimes 4. Exploring the Role of School Inspectors in Implementing and Shaping Inspection Policy: A Narrative Approach (Jacqueline Baxter, The Open University, UK) 5. How Can Transnational Connection Hold? An Actor-Network Theory Inspired Approach to the Materiality of Transnational Education Governance (Nelli Piattoeva, University of Tampere, Finland) Part III: Knowledge Regimes 6. Revealing Market Hegemony through a Critical Logics Approach: The Case of England’s Academies (Natalie Papanastasiou, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain) 7. Test-based Accountability and the Rise of Regulatory Governance in Education: A Review of Global Drivers (Antoni Verger, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, and Lluís Parcerisa, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain) 8. Making Education News in Chile: Understanding the Role of Mediatization in Education Governance Through a Bourdieuian Framework (Eduardo Santa Cruz, Universidad de Chile, and Cristian Cabalin, Universidad de Chile, Chile) Part IV: Institutional Regimes 9. Preschool Teacher Agency and Professionalism: A Bourdieuian Approach to Education Governance (Ondrej Kašcák, Trnava University, and Branislav Pupala, Trnava University, Slovakia) 10. Ever Greater Scrutiny: Researching the Bureaucracy of Educational Accountability (Mark Murphy, University of Glasgow, UK) 11. Transformation and Control: What Role for Leadership and Management in a ‘School-led System’? (Howard Stevenson, University of Nottingham, UK) Index

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Book SynopsisAndrew Dole is a Professor of Religion at Amherst College, USA.Trade ReviewMarx, Nietzsche, and Freud have shined a light on the roles of hidden motives, unacknowledged dispositions, and repressed desires in human behavior, and the critical study of religion today would not be possible without their contributions. In this important and jargon-free book, Andrew Dole provides an incisive rereading of the “suspicious explanation” that runs as a common thread running through historical materialism, genealogy, and psychoanalysis. Dole is among the sharpest scholars using philosophical tools to improve the academic study of religions, and his new book offers an original account that will reframe the three masters of suspicion in contemporary terms. * Kevin Schilbrack, Professor of Religious Studies, Appalachian State University, USA *Dole’s book provides a theoretical basis for understanding claims about causation and social actors. He unpacks the way that three of the most important social theorists employ suspicion as a way to explain broad social contexts. In doing so, he demonstrates the resonance of their suspicion-based interpretations—their hermeneutics of suspicion—with more contemporary conspiratorial thinking. In providing a genealogy for suspicious interpretations, Dole does a service to scholars researching conspiratorial belief today. * Benjamin E. Zeller, Associate Professor of Religion, Lake Forest College, USA *This fascinating study reconsiders the contribution of Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Sigmund Freud to modern intellectual currents by shifting attention from their substantive research fields to their practice of explaining large-scale social and historical phenomena through recourse to hidden agents, resulting in what Andrew Dole terms "suspicious" explanations. This is an original study that forges likes between three distinct fields to create new knowledge. * Carole M. Cusack, Professor of Religious Studies, the University of Sydney, Australia *Conspiracy theories can be seen as a popularised version of critical theory, and Reframing the Masters of Suspicion applies this perspective to some of the foundational figures of the field. Critical theory has much to tell us about conspiracy theories, but this timely book challenges scholars to consider what conspiracy theories might say about our theoretical toolbox. * David Robertson, Lecturer in Religious Studies, The Open University, UK *Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Introduction 1. Suspicious Explanation, A Primer 2. Classic Suspicion: Marx 3. Classic Suspicion: Nietzsche 4. Classic Suspicion: Freud 5. Conclusion: Paradigms of Suspicion Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisHow do we account for experiences of trauma and memory in multicultural and 'globalized' societies?Trade Review'An excellent, deeply absorbing volume.' - Professor Stephen Frosh, Birkbeck College, University of London 'A significant affirmation and expansion of the new field of trauma and memory studies, World Memory inscribes local cases into global contexts. Its rich theoretical essays draw on psychoanalysis, postcolonial theory, personal testimony and aesthetic and critical discourses to make convincing claims for the broad applicability and explanatory power of the notion of world memory. Readers will find that this book's impressive comparative scope yields surprising insights into the possibilities and the limits of identification and empathy.' - Marianne Hirsch, Dartmouth College, USATable of ContentsIntroduction; J.Bennett & R.Kennedy Trauma and memory: A new imaginary of temporality; A.Huyssen Bad memories: The poetics of memory and the difference of culture; D.Losche Anthropology as eulogy: On loss, lies and license; J.Loureide Biddle Re-collecting Proskurov; A.Brennan VERNACULAR LANGUAGES OF TRAUMA Language as a skin; A.Scott Aged bodies as sites of remembrance: Colonial memories in diaspora; S.Soo-Jin Lee Re-membering bodies, producing histories: Holocaust survivor narrative and Truth and Reconciliation Commission testimony; H.Grunebaum &Y.Henri Constructing shared histories: Stolen Generations testimony, narrative therapy and address; R.Kennedy & T.Wilson AESTHETIC LANGUAGES OF TRAUMA Bearing witness to ripples of pain; F.C.Ross Impossible memories and the history of trauma; E.Faye Tenebrae after September 11: Art, empathy, and the global politics of belonging; J.Bennett Wounds of repetition in the age of the digital: Chris Marker's cinematic ghosts; T.Murray Index

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Book SynopsisOnce little known outside of Haiti, Vodou flags (drapo Vodou), dazzling in color and imagery, have become popular commodities in the international art market. Works by such notable Haitian artists as Silva Joseph, Antoine Oleyant, and Yves Telemak now grace the walls of museums, art galleries, and private homes throughout the world.The fascinating, colorful collection of drapo Vodou included in this book reveals the importance of Vodou flags in the Haitian culture. Shimmering with sequins and reflected light, they capture the attention of Vodou practitioners and art lovers alike.In showcasing the Vodou flags and the artists who create them, this book also offers a striking revelation of the gods (Iwa) that inhabit the Vodou spirit world.

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Book SynopsisAn exploration of American ideas of utopia through the lens of one millennial''s quest to live a more communal life under late-stage capitalismTold in a series of essays that balance memoir with fieldwork, Heaven Is a Place on Earth is an idiosyncratic study of American utopian experiments?from the Shakers to the radical faerie communes of Short Mountain to the Bronx rebuilding movement?through the lens of one woman?s quest to create a more communal life in a time of unending economic and social precarity.When Adrian Shirk?s father-in-law has a stroke and loses his ability to speak and walk, she and her husband?both adjuncts in their midtwenties?become his primary caretakers. The stress of these new responsibilities, coupled with navigating America?s broken health-care system and ordinary twenty-first-century financial insecurity, propels Shirk into an odyssey through the history and present of American utopian experiments in the hope that they might offer a way forward.Along the way, Shirk seeks solace in her own community of friends, artists, and theologians. They try to imagine a different kind of life, examining what might be replicable within the histories of utopia-making, and what might be doomed. Rather than ?no place,? Shirk reframes utopia as something that, according to the laws of capital and conquest, shouldn?t be able to exist?but does anyway, if only for a moment.

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