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No description available.

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There is increasing psychological interest in the impact of celebrity adoration in contemporary society. Such work has primarily been built around the Celebrity Attitude Scale among adult samples, and has examined the relationship of this measure with various aspects of psychological well-being. However, little work has focused on the place of celebrity adoration within the life of young people. Research among adolescents is of particular interest given their developing identities, as well as their explicit interest with figures in the media and popular culture. The present research among a sample of Northern Irish had six related aims: first, to provide a critical review of the celebrity worship literature, and in particular that relating to the development and deployment of the Celebrity Attitude Scale; second, to establish the level of celebrity worship among young adolescents in Northern Ireland; third, to identify the types and characteristics of the celebrities worshipped; fourth, to examine the appeal of fame among Protestant and Catholic adolescents; fifth, to identify sex differences in the conceptualisation of celebrity idols; and sixth, to examine the commonalities between the two religious communities (Protestant and Catholic) in terms of celebrities adored. A convenience sample of 806, adolescents aged between 11 and 19 years, were drawn from five schools in Northern Ireland. All respondents completed the Celebrity Attitude Scale, a revised version of the 10-item Parasocial Interaction Scale and qualitative items on celebrity adoration. All measures were completed during class time. First, a theoretical literature review was presented. Second, methodological issues surrounding the Celebrity Attitude Scale were highlighted. Third, psychometric structure of the Celebrity Attitude Scale was evaluated in terms of factor structure and temporal stability. Fourth, the level of celebrity worship among the present sample of Protestant and Catholic adolescents was computed and compared to previously published scores. Fifth, qualitative and quantitative differences in celebrity adoration by males and female adolescents were highlighted. Sixth, commonalities and differences between the two religious communities (Protestant and Catholic) in terms of the types and characteristics of the celebrities were explored. The overall findings indicated that in the lives of young people in Northern Ireland, like elsewhere, celebrity worship has an important place. As such, there are a number of important policy related issues. Finally, it is proposed that shared heroes or celebrity figures chosen between Catholics and Protestant may provide the focus for cross-community contact.

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Tuberculosis (TB) continues to be one of the world’s most devastating and deadly diseases. Its reach is not confined to developing countries, but is manifest in pockets of high infection in cities like London, and among vulnerable groups such as the homeless. To date, the majority of research on TB in London has been quantitative, and little has drawn on the experiences of homeless people living with the disease. A qualitative Grounded Theory study was undertaken to provide insight into the experience of being homeless with TB in London. The Grounded Theory approach was utilised to systematically collect and analyse data from 16 in-depth interviews of homeless people with TB at three Central London TB/chest clinics. The result is the emergence of the theory of Survivalising, which reveals a basic social process experienced by homeless people with TB, with four distinct social patterns: Zoning-out, Bottoming-out, Self-realisation and Healing. Zoning-out relates to the daily quest to survive the harsh realities of social exclusion. Personal health is neglected, overshadowed by the desire for inner escape. Bottoming-out represents a personal crisis point where individuals are no longer able to view themselves, or the world, in the same way - creating a catalyst for positive change. Self-realisation sees a new conceptual order accepted, fundamental attitudes toward life and living transformed and interest in seeking health and social services increased. Healing is about fixing a fractured existence, rebuilding relationships, restoring health and building a new and better life. Adherence to TB treatment becomes a high priority. The results of this study contribute to the overall body of research knowledge on TB, and provide a theory to augment our understanding of the homeless-TB experience. Survivalising enables health professionals and policy makers to conceptualise and deliver appropriate TB care, according to the unique requirements of individuals.

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This thesis is based on fieldwork carried out in 1988-89 in a rural community within Mcnz, a highland Amhara society of Northern Shewa, Ethiopia. It considers two sets of interactions operative in a Peasants' Association. These are, firstly, the relationship between the State and the peasantry and secondly, relations between men and women. In both cases the focus of analysis is on understanding and explaining the position and the channels of actions of the subordinate group - the peasantry and women. In the first of the empirical chapters, the effects of the State and the community's attitudes to it arc considered in the context of the activities of various associations, cooperatives, campaigns and ministries through which the State administers the population. The following chapter focuses on the particular policy, the Villagization campaign. The complexity of its overall effects on a heterogeneous population are illustrated. Consideration is given to areas of mismatch between Government theory and practice, between what the State conceives and what the peasantry understand to be happening, between the impact of the State on men and on women. Having explored the significant areas of the society in which there is State involvement, the thesis is increasingly devoted to the areas of people's lives which the State has not penetrated. Some activities are more visible than others, both to the State and within society. In Mcnz, ploughing is a male domain which cannot exist without crop processing, a female domain. Livestock husbandry, and other activities such as spinning and fuel production show the ways in which women arc marginalized, while accounting for their vital role in the economy. The phenomenon! of marital instability and the relationship between spouses points to the hardship and dissatisfaction in unions. It also demonstrates women's ability to play an active role in decisions that affect their position. Neither State nor Church have had much success in regulating the forms of contracts and numbers of marriages an individual goes through. Government policies have been directed at the household as a single unit, oblivious of the frequency of divorce, the demographic cycle of the household and the stratifications within it. The identity and valuation of women is established, at least in part, by their rcproductory abilities; and life giving events are firmly within their domain. Yet women's experiences, such as menstruation and pregnancy, arc camouflaged; their blood has to be purified through holy water and the mediation of a priest. The burdens of biology and the social constructions of womanhood arc not considered by the State. Similarly, death is a crucial occasion in which the State plays no part. Despite its attempts at radical transformation, the State has made little attempt to affect lifecycle events, its priorities being established elsewhere. The dominant Orthodox Christian religion is one which gives power to men, however, women find support, particularly in the figure of Mary and, in addition, they prevail in an alternative, socially marginalized and eclecit spirit-belief system. The various forms of religion, in particular the spirit-belief system, exist despite the conflicting ideologies of a State inbued with Socialist modernizing values. The State ideology has had little impact on rural beliefs and its local legitimacy rests, in part, on a manipulation of Christianity. The empirical data presented in the body of the thesis is brought together in the final chapter. The interrelationships emerge between different spheres of State intervention, between the household economy, religion, marital relations and lifecycle events. All these considerations combine to show how women are oppressed, but also how women take control; to show how peasants are constrained and influenced by the State, but also how peasants' lives remain directed by themselves and the battle against limited resources.

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