As diversas formas de ação coletiva promovidas pelas mulheres ao longo da história têm sido capazes de oferecer respostas concretas para a superação de sua condição de subordinação dentro da sociedade. Nesse ínterim, o trabalho remunerado e a participação política têm se constituído enquanto processos que contribuem para a construção de sua autonomia econômica, política e social. Este trabalho buscou pesquisar um movimento popular organizado por mulheres que surgiu na década de 1970, na periferia sul da cidade de São Paulo, a União Popular de Mulheres de Campo Limpo e Adjacências (UPM). Por meio de seis entrevistas realizadas com pessoas atuantes no período de fundação da entidade e de pessoas que trabalham nela atualmente foi possível desenhar a trajetória histórica dessa organização, e construir reflexões observando os diferentes papéis dos sujeitos envolvidos, bem como a peculiaridade de cada período histórico. Com a análise da consciência política das atrizes e atores envolvidos na UPM, na perspectiva da Psicologia Política, buscamos nos debruçar sobre as construções e desconstruções desse coletivo acerca do protagonismo feminino e do desenvolvimento de uma sociedade mais justa e igualitária, na perspectiva da economia feminista e da economia solidária, e entender os limites e potencialidades das práticas da UPM para a transformação social da realidade em que vivem. / The many varieties of collective action promoted by women in the course of history have been able to provide concrete responses for overcoming their subordinated condition in society. In this process, paid work and political participation are factors that contributed to the consolidation of their economic, political and social autonomy. The present study investigates the União Popular de Mulheres de Campo Limpo e Adjacências UPM (Popular Union of Women of Campo Limpo and Surrounding Neighborhoods), a social movement created by women in the 1970s decade in the poor outskirts of São Paulo, in Brazil. Through the analysis of six interviews with former and present members of the entity, this study traces the historical trajectory of this organization and elaborates reflections about the specific roles of each subject and about the particularity of its different phases. Through the study of UPM members political consciousness under the perspective of Political Psychology, this study aims to investigate their constructions and deconstructions regarding feminine protagonism and the development of a more fair and equalitarian society within the horizons of feminist and solidarity economy and, furthermore, to understand the potentialities and limits of UPMs actions and practices for social change.

Thesis advisor: James Lubben / Thesis advisor: Sara M. Moorman / Every year, more than three million allegations of childhood maltreatment are received by child protective services, many of which involve cases of abuse or neglect inflicted by the victims’ parents. A number of studies found that negative consequences of childhood maltreatment can last for a lifetime. Despite the long-term impact of childhood maltreatment, later-life relationships between adult victims of childhood maltreatment and their abusive parent have rarely been examined. This dissertation aims to address the gap in the literature by examining how adult victims of childhood maltreatment relate to their abusive parent when the parent becomes old and requires long-term care assistance. This three-paper dissertation utilized existing data sources: Wisconsin Longitudinal Study and National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States. The first paper examined the mediating effect of intergenerational solidarity with the aging mother in the association between maternal childhood maltreatment and adult psychological functioning. The second paper used longitudinal data analysis to compare long-term changes in affectual solidarity with aging mothers between adults with a history of childhood abuse and those without. This paper also examined moderating effects of the correlates of childhood abuse (i.e., poor social competency and lack of emotional regulation) in the association between childhood abuse and affectual solidarity with the aging mother. The third paper focused on the caregiving situation in which adult victims of childhood abuse provided care to their abusive parent. This paper investigated whether and how providing care to the abusive parent was associated with psychological distress among abused adult children, and whether self-esteem mediated the association. By revealing the dynamics of later-life relationships between adult victims of childhood maltreatment and their abusive parent, this three-paper dissertation not only contributes to creating new knowledge to the aging literature, but also provides future direction for social work practice and policy. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Social Work. / Discipline: Social Work.

A semântica da amizade tem sido articulada, historicamente, aos ideais de igualdade-fraternidade, caracterizando-se por uma semântica familialista que associa o amigo à figura do irmão. No entanto, alguns autores apontam que a semântica familialista pautada na prerrogativa de intimidade e familiaridade privilegia processos de homogeneização e supressão da alteridade, podendo configurar práticas intolerantes, de desumanização e descriminação do outro. Portanto, eles propõem a desarticulação amizade-familiaridade, destacando a amizade como relação intersubjetiva privilegiada de experimentação política precisamente por sua qualidade de imprevisibilidade no vínculo com a alteridade. O presente trabalho buscou investigar e discutir a qualidade política da amizade, visando analisar, no âmbito das relações cotidianas, a relação de amizade como vínculo intersubjetivo “agonístico" de experimentação que possibilita deslocamentos e transformações nas subjetividades, no qual ações políticas inovadoras podem ser perfazer. Buscando compreender como os laços de amizade podem constituir relações privilegiadas de experimentação de formas outras de relacionamento, incompatíveis com os modelos individualistas e excludentes do capitalismo, entrevistou-se trabalhadores de cooperativas populares sobre as suas histórias de amizade. As narrativas demonstraram o uso polissêmico da palavra amizade/amigo; o amigo não aparece somente qualificado como irmão, mas a amizade extrapola as qualidades familiares por aquilo que ela em si mesma informa: o espaço dialogante no qual se conversa abertamente numa condição de igualdade política que é iluminado como qualidade própria da amizade. Os resultados dessa pesquisa destacam a relação de amizade como espaço privilegiado de escuta atenciosa, de acolhimento e trocas de experiências. As narrativas desvelaram laços de amizade como relações de produção de subjetividade num vínculo repleto de trocas de conhecimentos e aprendizagens, nos quais os amigos modificam-se, potencializam habilidades, aguçam sonhos ainda não realizados. A contemporânea fragilidade dos laços sociais também foi constatada, os sujeitos da pesquisa destacam o isolamento social, o individualismo, relações de impedimento da palavra e desconsideração do outro. Não obstante, os laços solidários que florescem entre amigos nas classes populares escapam aos imperativos neoliberais e resistem à situação de opressão, revelando modos criativos e astuciosos de enfrentamento de condições espoliantes que constituem resistência e organização política, contribuindo para reverter situações de extrema dificuldade e penúria. / The semantic of friendship has been articulated, historically, to the equality, fraternity ideals, characterizing itself for familial semantic that associate the friend to the figure of the brother. However, some authors point that the familial semantic privileges homogenization processes and suppression of alterity, being able to configure intolerable practical, of discrimination of the otherness. Therefore, they consider the disarticulation friendship-familiarity, detaching the friendship as privileged intersubjective relation of politics experimentation for its unexpected quality in the bond with alterity. This research investigated the quality politics of the friendship, aiming at to analyze, in the field of the daily relationship, the friendship relation as traumatic intersubjective bond of experimentation that it makes possible transformations in the subjectivities, in the which action innovative politics they can be to complete. Searching to understand as the friendship bows they can constitute privileged relations of experimentation of relationship forms others, incompatible with the individualistic and exculpatory models of the capitalism, workers of popular cooperatives had been interviewed about theirs histories of friendship. In accordance with the narratives some meanings for the friendship had been found. The friend is not qualified only as brother, but the friendship exceeds the familiar qualities for what it in same itself informs: the dialogue that promotes an equality politics condition. The results detach the friendship relation as privileged space of considerate listening, of shelter and exchanges of experiences. The narratives had demonstrated bonds of friendship as relations of production of subjectivity in a full bond of exchanges of knowledge and learnings, in which the friends modify themselves, they strengthen theirs abilities, and theirs dreams are stimulated. The contemporary fragility of the social bows also was pointed, the citizens of the research detaches the social isolation, the individualism, relations of impediment of the word and disrespect of the other. On the other hand, the solidary bows that blossom between friends in the popular classrooms escape to the capitalists imperatives and resist the oppression situation, disclosing creative ways of confrontation of espoliantes conditions that constitute resistance and organization politics, contributing to revert situations of extreme difficulty and poverty.

O objetivo desta pesquisa, que se situa no campo de estudos Trabalho e Educação, foi contribuir para a produção de um estado da arte sobre a educação/formação em Economia Popular Solidária. Para isso, analisou-se 7 teses e 14 dissertações defendidas entre 2006 e 2014, no Brasil e uma tese defendida em Portugal, com pesquisa realizada no Brasil. Realizou-se a caracterização dessas produções científicas considerando autor, título, ano de produção, universidade de origem, programa de pósgraduação, linha e/ou grupo de pesquisa, o objeto de pesquisa e a abordagem teóricometodológica (considerando o paradigma, os principais conceitos e autores utilizados e a metodologia). Cinco desses trabalhos, que investigaram atividades de formação estruturadas, foram analisados em profundidade considerando a atividade/curso, os objetivos, a abordagem, a metodologia, presença e/ou tratamento dos saberes dos sujeitos, conteúdo, quem realiza, quem financia e, a relação com o movimento ou a política nacional da Economia Solidária. Utilizou-se como metodologia procedimentos de construção de estado da arte indicados por Ferreira (2002), Romanowski e Ens (2006) e Romanowski (2001). A maioria das produções foi produzida no ano de 2012 e com maior concentração na região Sudeste do Brasil. Predominam abordagens teóricometodológicas numa perspectiva crítica. Isso é, tanto numa perspectiva da Teoria Crítica, quanto da crítica materialista de Karl Marx Os autores mais citados, que têm estudado, a partir de diferentes áreas de conhecimento, a Economia Solidária são: Luiz Inácio Gaiger, Paul Singer, Cláudio Nascimento, Lia Tiriba. As produções científicas do corpus da pesquisa foram realizadas na grande área do conhecimento das Ciências Humanas, nas subáreas de Ciências Sociais, Educação, Geografia e Psicologia; e, na Área de Ciências Sociais Aplicadas na subárea de Administração. As metodologias de pesquisa utilizadas são, principalmente, a combinação de pesquisa de campo com revisão bibliográfica, utilizando como instrumentos entrevistas, formulários, observação participante e diário de campo. Em relação às cinco produções que pesquisaram atividades de formação mais estruturadas, identificou-se que são analisadas 8 incubadoras universitárias, um CFES, SENAC (um programa privado, com curso gratuito), 2 cooperativas (uma de formação e outra de produção) e uma associação nacional para ensino/assessoria de empreendimentos. As atividades de formação variam desde assessoria jurídica a formação econômico-política da ES, sendo que, em alguns casos, há a presença dos saberes dos sujeitos nos conteúdos e na abordagem das mesmas. Muitos desses cursos são possibilitados via editais de universidades ou de governos. Em relação aos processos metodológicos, têm-se desde autogestionários a conteúdos e dinâmicas pré-estabelecidos. Há uma preocupação em proporcionar um real processo educativo de conhecimentos técnicos, científicos e/ou sociais/culturais. Os trabalhos, em sua maioria, baseiam-se, fundamentalmente, na perspectiva históricocrítica, orientando-se pela Teoria Crítica e pela crítica materialista. Como vocábulos em evidência de frequência, encontrou-se: economia solidária, formação, trabalho, autogestão, educação, educação popular, saber e emancipação. / The objective of this research, which is located in the field of studies Labor and Education, was to contribute to the production of a state of the art on education/formation in Solidary Popular Economy. For that, we analyzed 7 theses and 14 dissertations defended between 2006 and 2014 in Brazil and a thesis defended in Portugal, with research carried out in Brazil. The characterization of these scientific productions was carried out considering author, title, year of production, university of origin, postgraduate program, line and/or research group, research object and theoretical-methodological approach (considering the paradigm, the main concepts and authors used and the methodology). Five of these studies, which investigated structured training activities, were analyzed in depth considering the activity/course, objectives, approach, methodology, presence and/or treatment of subject knowledge, content, who performs, who finances and relation to the national Solidarity Economy movement or policy. State-of-the-art construction procedures indicated by Ferreira (2002), Romanowski and Ens (2006) and Romanowski (2001) were used as methodology. Most of the productions were produced in the year 2012 and with greater concentration in the Southeast region of Brazil. Predominate theoretical-methodological approaches in a critical perspective. This is, both from the perspective of Critical Theory, and from the materialist critique of Karl Marx. The most cited authors, who have studied, from different areas of knowledge, Solidary Economy are: Luiz Inácio Gaiger, Paul Singer, Cláudio Nascimento, Lia Tiriba The scientific productions of the corpus of the research were carried out in the great area of the knowledge of the Human Sciences, in the subareas of Social Sciences, Education, Geography and Psychology; and in the Area of Applied Social Sciences in the Administration subarea. The research methodologies used are mainly the combination of field research with bibliographic review, using as instruments interviews, forms, participant observation and field diary. In relation to the five productions that searched for more structured training activities, it was identified that 8 university incubators, one CFES, SENAC (a private program with a free course), 2 cooperatives (one training and one production) national association for teaching / business consultancy. The training activities range from legal advice to the economic and political formation of the ES, and in some cases there is the presence of the subjects' knowledge in the contents and their approach. Many of these courses are made possible through university or government bids. In relation to methodological processes, we have from self-management to pre-established contents and dynamics. There is a concern to provide a real educational process of technical, scientific and / or social / cultural knowledge. The majority of the works are based on the historical-critical perspective, guided by the Critical Theory and the materialist critique. As words in evidence of frequency, we found: solidarity economy, formation, work, self-management, education, popular education, knowledge and emancipation.

塗爾幹的機械團結理論和有機團結理論假設了同步一致性/互補配合性的儀式表演可以提升群體內的團結感。已有的心理學研究通過實驗發現同步一致性的群體表演促進了群體內的合作行為。本研究在上述實驗的基礎上，進一步檢驗了互補配合性促進群體內團結感的假說，并對二者的結果進行了比較。在實驗中，100名參加者以4人為一組被隨機分配到“同步一致擊鼓“、“互補配合擊鼓“和“非協調擊鼓“(控制組)三個實驗條件下；進而報告其信任感、同組歸屬感和愉悦感水平；最後參加一個標準化的、包含五輪決策任務的公共物品博弈。實驗結果表明，互補配合性的擊鼓表演與同步一致性的擊鼓表演都能促進人們在公共物品博弈中的合作行為。 / The Durkheimian theory of mechanical solidarity and organic solidarity hypothesized that synchrony/complementarity promotes social solidarity. Previous psychological experiments suggested that synchronous ritual performance improves the level of cooperation among group members. This study replicated their experimental design while further testing the complementaritysolidarity hypothesis to make a comparative analysis. In this experiment, 100 participants in groups of four were first randomly allocated to one of three conditions: synchronous drumming, complementary drumming, and asynchronous drumming (control); then they self-reported on questions about in-group trust, same-group feeling, and happiness; and finally, they played a five-round standardised public good game. The experimental result revealed that both the complementary and the synchronous drumming promoted cooperative behaviour in a social dilemma situation. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Liu, Yue. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2012. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 38-39). / Abstracts also in Chinese; appendixes in Chinese. / Introduction --- p.1 / Literature review --- p.3 / Social solidarity as a solution to the problem of social order --- p.3 / Ritual performance and social solidarity --- p.4 / Synchronous ritual and mechanical solidarity --- p.6 / Complementary ritual and organic solidarity --- p.10 / Method and hypotheses --- p.12 / Participants --- p.12 / Materials --- p.13 / Design --- p.14 / Procedure --- p.17 / Result and analysis --- p.19 / Discussion --- p.23 / Appendix --- p.25 / Chapter Appendix 1. --- Recruitment message and application sheet --- p.25 / Chapter Appendix 2. --- Consent form --- p.26 / Chapter Appendix 3. --- Instruction for subjects --- p.27 / Chapter Appendix 4. --- Evaluation questionnaire for the drumbeat task --- p.31 / Chapter Appendix 5. --- End questionnaire --- p.33 / Chapter Table 1. --- T-test result for synchronous vs. asynchronous condition (one-tailed) --- p.35 / Chapter Table 2. --- T-test result for complementary vs. asynchronous condition (one-tailed) --- p.36 / Chapter Table 3. --- T-test result for experimental vs. control condition (one-tailed) --- p.37 / References --- p.38

Magister Legum - LLM / The global state of the environment is deteriorating daily because of challenges posed by environmental degradation, including climate change. In recognition of the mounting global environmental crisis and its detrimental impact on the enjoyment of human rights, there is a growing call for the recognition of what is generally referred to as a human right to a clean environment, otherwise referred to in this study as an international environmental right. Proponents of an international environmental right hold a firm view that such a right will prevent or mitigate actions that are responsible for environmental degradation and thus contribute to environmental protection. This study seeks to determine the nature of the relationship between the environment and human rights and whether the proposal for the recognition of an international environmental right to address global environmental concerns that pose a threat to the enjoyment of human rights has merit. In determining the viability of recognising an international environmental right, a number of theories underpinning the recognition of new international human rights, the status of the right in existing international human rights agreements, political willingness and support of states, the notion of global constitutionalism, customary international law sources such as soft law instruments, international declarations etc., are considered.

Consensus scholarship notes that the ethics described in the Confucian textual corpus focuses its attention primarily on concrete relationships, specific roles, and reciprocal duties. This has occasioned concern about whether Confucian ethics can offer adequate moral guidelines for interactions between people who have enjoyed no prior contact. In response, this dissertation suggests that early Confucianism does guide interactions with strangers, but that this guidance is to be found less in its ethical concepts or moral precepts than in its embodied ritual practices. To substantiate this claim, I carefully apply theories drawn from the fields of cognitive science, cognitive philosophy, American pragmatism, and ritual theory to several early Confucian texts: the Analects, Mencius, Xunzi, and the ritual manuals of the Liji and the Yili. From pragmatism and cognitive philosophy, I assemble lenses of conceptual and pre-conceptual meaning and use them to examine the effects of ritual practice on the creation of group boundaries and the generation of solidarity. In so doing, I reveal that the solidarity generated by embodied practice and physical co-presence shapes the boundaries and structure of early Confucian groups as much as concepts or shared values. I further outline the neural and psychological processes by which the physicality of Confucian ritual practice creates pre-conceptual solidarity, then highlight the ways that solidarity is framed and given a meaningful direction by the varied Confucian exemplars. Ultimately, I demonstrate that mutual engagement in ritual practice allows strangers to bond quickly, without the benefit of prior relationship or shared proposition. This, I argue, is the heart of the Confucian treatment of strangers. Ritual practice simultaneously creates a relationship between new contacts and energizes that relationship with strong, pre-conceptually-generated solidarity. This dissertation also analyzes a number of related topics, including the relationship between ritual practice and group boundaries and the influence of the body upon concepts and categorization. In its broadest goals, this study offers insight into the rich character of early Confucian physicality, suggests novel guidelines for the analysis of contemporary Confucianism, and reflects possible ways in which solidarity might be formed between members of groups with different value orientations.

Orientador: Luís Alexandre Fuccille / Resumo: A redemocratização brasileira regulamentou as principais Políticas Públicas, que ampliaram as bases da organização do modo de produção e das relações sociais. A crise estrutural do capital tem criado impactos políticos e sociais que aprofundam as estratégias de reestruturação produtiva e de Estado, que flexibilizam e precarizam direitos. Como resposta, surge a Economia Solidária como um viés alternativo à garantia, criação e manutenção de postos de trabalho, e posteriormente, institucionaliza-se enquanto política pública para geração de trabalho, emprego e renda. A proposta desta dissertação tem como objetivo geral a questão das práticas desta Economia Solidária no município de Franca/SP: como estão organizados os empreendimentos solidários localmente (em termos econômicos e sociais) e quais seus desafios e perspectivas. Para isso, intentou-se ater às mudanças observadas no seio das organizações sociais e na garantia de direitos, entre os anos 1995 e 2016. Pretendeu-se fazer uma análise acerca dessas proposições à luz do método materialista-histórico-dialético, utilizando estudos bibliográficos, documentais e coleta e análise de dados, obtidos por meio de mapeamentos realizados por órgãos do Governo Federal, na busca da apreensão da totalidade e seus processos mediativos – contextualizando preceitos da práxis de organizações de trabalhadores. Os resultados apontam para uma política pública atrelada a interesses em cooptar organizações coletivas para a funcionalidade do sistem... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The Brazilian redemocratization regulated the main public political, this expanded the basis of production modes and social relations. The structural crisis of capital creates a political and social impacts that deepen the strategies of productive and state restructuring, easing right flexible and precarious. As a response, the Social Economy emerges as a alternative bias for garantee, creation and maintence of Jobs post, and posteriorly, in institutionalized as a public policy for the generation of work, employment and income. The purpose of this dissertation has as general objective the question of the practices of this Social Economy in the city of Franca/SP: how are local solidarity enterprises organized (in economic and social terms) and what are their challenges and perspectives. For this, it was intended to stick to the changes observed within social organizations and the guarantee of rights, between the years of 1995 and 2016. It was intented to make a analysis about this propositions all the light of this materialist-historical-dialectical method, using bibliographic studies, documentals and collection of data analysis searching, obtained through mapping carried out by Federal Government agencies, seeking the apprehension of the totality and its mediative processes - contextualizing precepts of the praxis of workers organizations. The results pointed to a public politic linked to interests in collective companies for the use of the capitalist system, and the social e... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Un essai clinique consiste en un ensemble de principes épistémologiques élevé au rang d’instrument d’action publique. Sa fonction est d’établir l’efficacité des traitements dans un cadre assurant la légitimité sociale de la production du savoir médical et pharmacologique. D’un point de vue organisationnel, il repose sur un ensemble de micro-activités administratives permettant de garantir la faisabilité d’un protocole de recherche, la sécurité des patients et la fiabilité des données produites.Cette thèse propose une analyse sociologique de cette « administration de la preuve » que sont les essais cliniques et, ainsi, de compléter les études qui se sont jusque-là essentiellement consacrées à l’étude des droits des patients, à l’activisme thérapeutique ou encore à l’organisation épistémique de la recherche. L’expression d’ « administration » renvoie d’abord aux procédés méthodologiques mobilisés durant le déroulement d’un essai pour prouver l’efficacité d’un traitement. Elle renvoie ensuite aux activités administratives déployées par la pluralité d’acteurs qui composent l’essai pour recruter des patients, coordonner des cliniciens et contrôler la production des données cliniques. Etant donné l’hétérogénéité des travailleurs investis dans un essai et les différents univers normatifs qu’ils véhiculent, les imprévus organisationnels susceptibles de compromettre le cours des choses et les relations atypiques de contrôle qui bouleversent l’économie traditionnelle des hiérarchies professionnelles, comment ces acteurs parviennent à s’inscrire dans cette organisation bureaucratique que sont les essais cliniques et quel type de solidarité sous-tend cette administration de la preuve ? Pour répondre à cette question, nous proposons de saisir la bureaucratie en personnes et en actes et de tenir compte de la matière du travail administratif, des temporalités engagées dans la mise en place et la réalisation d’un essai, ainsi que des dynamiques relationnelles qui se jouent entre les promoteurs et les investigateurs, ainsi que leur personnel de renfort. A partir d’un travail documentaire, d’observation de réunions et d’une cinquantaine d’entretiens conduits auprès d’investigateurs, de techniciens d’études cliniques, de responsables d’études cliniques, d’attachés de recherche, de méthodologistes, ou encore de biostatisticiens nous soutenons que le fonctionnement d’un essai clinique procède d’une forme de solidarité particulière : la solidarité procédurale. La notion désigne la capacité des procédures administratives (consentement, notification d’événements indésirables, etc.) à cadrer et stabiliser dans la durée les actions et interactions des différents acteurs engagés dans la réalisation d’un essai clinique et supposés suivre un protocole de recherche. Après être revenu sur l’histoire de la bureaucratisation de l’évaluation des médicaments, nous suivons pas à pas les étapes des essais, allant de la conception d’un protocole de recherche jusqu’au gel d’une base de données afin de décrire la dynamique sociale propre à la solidarité procédurale. / A clinical trial consists of a set of epistemological principles used as a public policy instrument. Its function is to establish the effectiveness of treatments within a framework that ensures the social legitimacy of the production of medical and pharmacological knowledge. From an organizational point of view, it is based on a set of micro-administrative activities to ensure the feasibility of a research protocol, patient safety and the reliability of the data produced.This thesis proposes a sociological analysis of the “administration of evidence” that clinical trials are, and thus, to complete the studies that have so far been essentially devoted to the study of patients’ rights, therapeutic activism or the epistemic organization of research. The French term “administration” refers first of all to the methodological procedures used during the conduct of a trial to prove the effectiveness of a treatment. It then refers to the administrative activities deployed by the plurality of actors in the trial to recruit patients, coordinate clinicians and control the production of clinical data. Given the heterogeneity of the workers involved in a trial and the different normative universes they convey, the organizational contingencies that may compromise the course of events and the atypical control relationships that disrupt the traditional economy of professional hierarchies, how do these actors manage to fit into the bureaucratic organization that clinical trials are and what type of solidarity underlies this administration of proof? To answer this question, we propose to approach the bureaucracy in persons and in activities and to take into account the subject matter of the administrative work, the time involved in setting up and carrying out a trial, as well as the relational dynamics that are played out between the sponsors and the investigators, as well as their support staff. Based on documentary work, observation of meetings and about fifty interviews with investigators, clinical study technicians, clinical study managers, research associates, methodologists and biostatisticians, we maintain that the functioning of a clinical trial is based on a particular form of solidarity: procedural solidarity. The notion refers to the ability of administrative procedures (consent, reporting of adverse events, etc.) to frame and stabilize over time the actions and interactions of the various actors involved in the conduct of a clinical trial and expected to follow a research protocol. After reviewing the history of the bureaucratization of drug evaluation, we follow the steps of the trials step by step, from designing a research protocol to freezing a database to describe the social dynamics of procedural solidarity.

This study examines a Greek civil society organization, which is struggling to cope with the precarity caused by the environment of crisis. By looking into the austerity that prevails in Greece, I aim to discuss the connection between the Greek society and the organization, as both of them are struggling with the consequences of the crisis which brings them into a precarious position. The methods used during the fieldwork were mainly participant observation in the space of the organization, and interviews as well as informal conversations with the members and recipients of the Solidarity Association. By analyzing their discourses introduced in the thesis through ethnographic stories, I claim that the interplay between precarious labor and precarious life transforms the organization into a space of silence. I suggest that this deadening of life should not only be seen as an outcome of the long period of living under harsh conditions, but also as one of the factors which brings the organization into dissolution. By looking at the disintegration of the Solidarity Association, I discuss that its solidarian culture turns into a philanthropic one due to individualistic behaviors which I argue are one of the outcomes of people’s precarious living. This thesis focuses more on what precarity does rather on what it is and it should be seen as a contribution to the understanding of the influence that precarity has on an organization placed in the context of contemporary austerity-ridden Greece.