Trata o presente trabalho de um estudo sociológico que tem por objeto a Saúde Pública abordada através de um de seus principais pontos de estrangulamento: o poliqueixoso. São levadas em consideração as condições de saúde/doenca desses doentes na situação de atores sociais culturalmente envolvidos pelas regras determinadas tanto pelas Políticas de saúde, quanto pela rotinização dos seus hábitos. A compreensão ampla desse processo visa evitar o reducionismo dos fatos, buscando compreender a relação existente entre os sujeitos adoecidos e a realidade sócio-histórica que os cerca, configurando seu cotidiano, imiginário e sistema de representação sociais. Na condição de usuários dos Serviços de saúde, os poliqueixosos aqui referidos são identificados a partir da especlalidade Cardiologla, ocasião em que apontam sintomas não clinicamente diagnosticados ou organicamente confirmados, o que, no entanto, não os afasta do continuado processo de busca pela saúde. Na medida em que rotinizam suas ações em nome do alcance de tratamentos eficazes e de cura, ritualizam seus corpos e as doenças que neles se instalam, edificando imaginários e identidades, enquanto constroem \"metáforas\" típicas ao seu estado adoecido, numa narrativa também adoecida, tomadas neste trabalho como fundamento do discurso sobre saúdc, doença, tratamento, cura, articuladas segundo as regras da contradição, da desesperança e da alienação. O poliqueixoso ora apontado como objeto de análise sociológica, à medida em que articula em metáforas uma riqueza linguisticamente enunciada, denuncia suas condições miseráveis enquanto espécie humana. / This paperwork comprises a sociological study that has its object the Public Health brought up through one of its main blocking point: the \"poliqueixoso\". It has been taken into considerations the health-sick conditions of all sick people, as if they were social actors culturally involved by the sanitary rules imposed, not only by the health policy, but also by their daily routine habits. The ample comprehension of this process aims to avoid the minimization of the facts, seeking to understand the existing relation between sickened people (or individuais) and the social and historical sorrounding reality, confiauring their everyday and imaginary life and all systems of social presentations. As users of all healthy services the \"poliqueixoso\" here described are identified, beginning from heart specialists, when and where they point out the symptoms not clinically contihuous process of seeking for health. As they routinize their actions as an effort to reach efficient treatment and cure, they ritualize their bodies and sickness, building up imaginary facts and entities, while they create typical metaphors of their sickened state, in a sickened narrative too, taken in this paperwork, as the foundation of a speech about health, sickness, treatment and cure based on the rules of contradiction, hopeless and alienation. The \"poliqueixoso\" here pointed out as an object of socilogical analyses, as he enunciates himself in metaphors a richness linguistically uttered, he reveals his miserable conditions as a human being.

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The focus of this study is the American military family. The primary purpose is to examine the family from the paradigm of a distinct occupational subculture and, substantiating that existence, to understand the implications of work-family role conflict of the military family. The objectives are to substantiate the military as an occupational subculture and explore military work and family conflict through participative observation techniques and, to a lesser extent, thematic analysis. The research questions are "Is the military an occupational subculture?", and "How does the work-role of the service member affect the family?" A pilot survey instrument based on the seven tenets of an occupational subculture (Trice, 1993) was developed to ascertain the level of subcultural affiliation of the respondents. In total, 78 members of the military (Army) were interviewed using the instrument. Examination of thematic responses from spousal surveys complement the overall analysis. The findings indicate a strong affiliation within the Army that would support the supposition that the Army is an occupational subculture. Respondents exhibited affiliation with all seven tenets above the 75% level that had been established as a benchmark. Taken together, thematic analysis of spouse perceptions viewed through a subcultural paradigm, and service members interviews, converged to demonstrate the probability of the military as a distinct occupational subculture. As such, the military has the capability to influence members and their families through infrastructure (both formal and informal), social, and perceptive requirements. Subcultural forces may provide powerful conformance tools for the membership. Obvious implications for acknowledging the uniqueness of the military family as a distinct subculture within American society are important. To retain a viable fighting force, Army family policy must be responsive and understanding of the military family entity. Preliminary results indicate that further exploration of the military with a subcultural perspective could enhance soldier readiness. Further studies should focus on the military family as the primary support mechanism for soldiers serving in the modern military. Additional study on families leaving the military to a civilian environment would provide insight into the mechanics of subcultural transitions. / Graduation date: 1997

The goal of this dissertation is to investigate the impact that historical (and cultural) contexts have on the production of theories and concepts. In specific, I am interested in the relationship between historical and cultural contexts and the production of theoretical knowledge. I define historical periods in theory as modernist and an "after-modern" context, which comprises poststructuralism, postmodernism and post-Marxism. My case is the life and work of Antonio Gramsci; a "classical theorist" whose work remains salient across the social sciences and humanities. I hypothesize that in order to understand the historiography of knowledge in the social sciences, from the classical period to the present, significant points of "departure" in theory (e.g. Gramsci, Marxism, psychoanalysis, feminism) need to be viewed contextually. By extension, a better way to fully understand Gramsci's insights, and their endurance, for the study of race, sexuality, culture and politics is to situate his methodology, theories, and concepts historically. In the dissertation propose two ways to test this hypothesis: 1. I provide an historically grounded interpretation of Gramsci's political thinking (a orienting place for much of Gramsci's thought) which includes, for example, changes in his perspective about the strategic role of specific political groups, e.g. social movement organizations, in achieving political goals; 2. I embed his theoretical and conceptual framework within the theoretical discourses prevalent during his time, which would include, for example, the rise and predominance of Italian positivist criminology as a racial discourse. I also hypothesize that in this case, such an interpretation is necessary to fully and accurately understand the potential contribution of Gramsci's theoretical framework to contemporary theoretical discourses in both the social sciences and humanities-based disciplines. This dissertation is organized around the following sets of questions. My originating question, which establishes the analytical framework for the dissertation, is: What impact does historical (and cultural) contexts have on the production of theories and concepts? As it pertains to my specific case, the life and work of Antonio Gramsci, I sharpen the point by asking: In the context of the originating research question, In what ways have the historical (and cultural) contexts effected the production of theories and concepts in Gramsci's work? This dissertation represents a contribution to the sociology of ideas as well as to classical theory by providing a new lens through which to look at the early contributions of sociological knowledge. Further, each individual section?which represents explorations of specific theoretical rubrics?may lead to contributions within these distinct areas.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Brown University, 2002. / Available in film copy from University Microfilms International. Vita. Thesis advisor: Ellen Rooney. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online.

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Sport events have been studied predominantly in isolation from other genres, as single events that have economic or social impacts mainly for urban communities. Yet, the apparent economic and social value of recurring small-scale sport and cultural events in rural communities call for strategic and integrated planning in policies for rural development. This requires that instead of assessing the economic or social benefits of a certain event, a series of interrelated events that comprise a host community's event portfolio can be synergized to derive outcomes through a holistic planning approach that places in concert the economic and social planning of different events. From this perspective, this study examines the event portfolio of a rural community. Ethnographic methods were employed and fieldwork was conducted in Fort Stockton, a small community in South-West Texas. Data collection included participant observation, interviews, review of archival materials and social network analysis. The results show that Fort Stockton's event portfolio is an embedded and eclectic assemblage of sport and cultural performances, collective imaginary and thematic preoccupations of the community that are presented as suitable for spectation. The instrumental connectivity of events bolsters the capacity of the portfolio to serve multiple purposes although strategic cross-leverage is not employed. Thematic continuities among events in the portfolio reaffirm and establish the projected meta-messages within and outside the community. A conceptual synergy lies at the core of each event, which dramatizes the ideological conflict between individualism and collectivism, and translates it to community identity, civic esteem, and economic benefit addressing the public discourse in Fort Stockton and mobilizing resources for event implementations. The institutional framework of Fort Stockton constitutes the basis of its capacity to capitalize on its event portfolio. Event organizers operate within an informal event network that frames their cooperative efforts to host events. Therefore, the event portfolio stands as an embedded system in which an integrated approach is taken about economic and social development by creating synergies between sport and cultural events and in turn using them for consolidating the community and fostering tourism. Finally, the theoretical and practical implications that derive from the study are discussed.

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This study aimed to investigate if the strength of athletic identity affected the rankings (or salience hierarchy) of 6 every-day life roles among 100 elite South African Swimmers. The link between performance and athletic identity was also investigated along with an investigation of the effects of age and gender. There was found to be no interaction between athletic identity and ranking of life roles; only the athlete role was found to be significantly different between high and medium athletic identity groups. A difference was found between elite and non-elite athletes in the ranking of life roles. There was also no association between athletic identity and performance. As age increased athletic identity decreased, and gender was found to have no influence on athletic identity. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2005.

Contemporary Western legal storytelling relies heavily on images and discourses in popular culture to secure meaning and give credibility to certain legal arguments. This thesis focuses on the legal stories told in the trial of a celebrity in Western society. As a system of meaning, the celebrity sign operates on the levels of signification and affect. The ambiguous semiotic power of the celebrity sign forces an examination by the legal audience regarding the "real" nature of the celebrity. Reality and truth are seen to emanate from this private self. Moreover, the affective power of the celebrity sign guarantees that, at times, emotion will dictate how much credibility will be given to particular celebrity legal stories and what stories will be considered plausible by a jury. In the trial of a celebrity "Other" — that is, one of the celebrated few who defies the white male norm -- celebrity legal storytelling looks towards issues of race, class, and gender, in addition to celebrity, in order to secure meaning and effect credibility. The aesthetic acceptance of the celebrity "Other," along with discourses of authenticity in Western society, work to shape what is considered credible and true in a courtroom. These factors place limits on the semiotic and affective power of the celebrity "Other" and, thus, on what celebrity legal stories will be accepted as truth in the courtroom. Looking specifically at the 1949 acquittal of jazz singer, Billie Holiday, and the 1994 acquittal/partial conviction of gangsta rapper, Tupac Shakur, this thesis will demonstrate the ways in which law, culture, race, gender, class, and the celebrity intersect in the Western mass media and how this intersection affects legal process and the trial tactics utilized in the trial of a celebrity "Other."