ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Since the reunification of Germany, a debate on the professional activities of GDR psychotherapists has rised up. This debate is partly conducted by the spirit of coming to terms with the past and partly by legitimizing therapeutic activities in the GDR. The aim of this work is to show in individual patterns the professional self-image of selected GDR psychotherapists. The study focused from a sociological perspective with the intention of differentiating this topic. In course of this, the range of political positioning of GDR psychotherapists will also be determined on a case-by-case basis and it will be shown how this was shaped in the often named "niche of psychotherapy". METHODS: Based on-biographical interviews, educational biographical trajectories of GDR psychotherapists were reconstructed. The interviews were analyzed using grounded theory in a circular process of material selection and theory development. According to the principle of maximum contrast (theoretical sampling), four women were selected for reconstruction from a sample of 39 interviews from the joint project Seelenarbeit im Sozialismus (Soul Work in Socialism) and analyzed using Teifel's (2005) coding guide based on educational theory. RESULTS: Within the four cases, extremely individual educational biographies emerge on the levels of the coding strategy (meaning/structure perspective and mode of action), each showing different characteristics with regard to their ability to adopt a reflexive stance and the adoption of professional agency. The cases also show different characteristics with regard to their different positions on the system of GDR. DISCUSSION: The results of the case reconstructions can be summarized in an overarching scheme. This shows that the role of each individual's educational access, their educational paths and their individual practice of action must be seen in relation to the influence of the political system and the ability to adopt a professional attitude. The psychotherapists of the GDR cannot be understood per se as a group acting subversively against the state.
Subject(s)
Psychotherapists , Psychotherapy , Humans , Female , Germany , Psychotherapy/methods , Political SystemsABSTRACT
Society's problems cannot be alleviated via mere policy interventions, whether individual- or system-level, when the system is the problem. To bring about true and lasting change to the better, we must replace the present global political-economic system - oligarchic capitalism backed by the power of the state - with one that would let the people take charge of their lives.
Subject(s)
Political Systems , HumansABSTRACT
This paper offers a novel interpretation of the 1890 British Ultimatum, by bringing to the front of the stage its techno-diplomatic dimension, often invisible in the canonical diplomatic and military narratives. Furthermore, we use an unconventional historical source to grasp the British-Portuguese imperial conflict over the African hinterland via the building of railways: the cartoons of the politically committed and polyvalent Portuguese artist and journalist Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro (1846-1905), published in his journal Ponto nos iis, from the end of 1889 and throughout 1890. We argue that the Ponto nos iis cartoons played a so far overlooked role in the unfolding of British-Portuguese affairs, as they shaped at a distance a diplomatic exchange with the British satirical journal Punch. Attacking and counterattacking his fellow cartoonists in Britain, Pinheiro surged into the role of informal diplomat. This cartoon visual and public diplomacy unfolded in the pages of both journals and was tied to the two countries' colonial conquests in Africa, where the Portuguese and British empires were competing to dominate the African hinterland through large technological systems. Hence the cartoons made visible to wider audiences the otherwise hidden role that technologies played in the two countries' affairs. In turn, the cartoons aimed at persuading the Portuguese public and ruling classes alike that only regime change, from monarchic to republican, would restore the wounded Portuguese national pride.
Subject(s)
Diplomacy , Portugal , Africa , Colonialism , Political SystemsABSTRACT
Energy poverty and climate change are major concerns for the emerging seven countries. Therefore, this study explores the economic growth impact on reducing energy poverty and ecological footprint in the emerging seven economies from 2000 to 2019. Energy poverty is measured using three disciplines: availability poverty, accessibility poverty, and affordability poverty. We applied a new dynamic method, "bias-corrected method of moments estimators (2021)," for long-run outcomes. This study used the environmental Kuznets curve-approach to measure economic growth's scale effect and technique effect to reduce energy poverty and ecological footprint. Importantly, the study explores the mediating role of politically stable institutions in mitigating environmental and energy poverty. Our findings validate that energy poverty and ecological footprint could not reduce at the initial stage of economic growth. However, the later development stage shows a positive effect on reducing energy poverty and ecological footprint. These results validated an inverted U-shaped Kuznets curve hypothesis for emerging seven. Further, the result found that strong political systems are more quick-witted and have the legislative power to swiftly implement beneficial policies to pull out of the vicious circle of energy poverty. Further, environmental technology significantly reduced energy poverty and ecological footprint. The causality analysis entails that a bidirectional exists between energy poverty, income, and ecological footprint.
Subject(s)
Economic Development , Poverty , Income , Political Systems , Carbon DioxideABSTRACT
How does a regime change influence elite mobility? By collecting data on elites after the Meiji Restoration in Japan in 1868, through which Japan transitioned from a feudal regime to a modern regime, we provide new evidence that the impact of the regime change on elite mobility varies across the stages of the regime change. We analyze the impact of the regime change from two aspects: (1) the composition of elites or elite membership and (2) the internal hierarchy within them. The regime change opened an opportunity for commoners to join the elite group. After the Meiji Restoration, the share of elites whose fathers were commoners in the former regime increased, as did the influence of meritocracy on elite ranks. However, once the new regime was established, the elite hierarchy started to reflect the social stratum of the former regime and the influence of meritocracy declined.
Subject(s)
Political Systems , Social Status , Humans , Japan , Political Systems/history , History, 19th CenturyABSTRACT
After the general societal and political change in November 1989 in Czechoslovakia, the subject "History of Psychology" became the stable component of curriculum of studying psychology at the Department of Psychology of Faculty of Arts of Charles University in Prague. The author of this paper has taught "History of Psychology" in Czech since 1998 for more than 20 years all students of psychology and he is teaching this subject the students of ERASMUS+ program from whole Europe, studying at Charles University in Prague, now. Indivisible part of the curriculum is represented by the history of Czechoslovak and Czech psychology. In References, the most important publications in the field of history of Czechoslovak and Czech psychology are presented.
Subject(s)
Communism , Isoflavones , Male , Humans , History, 20th Century , Czech Republic , Czechoslovakia , Europe , Political SystemsABSTRACT
The spread of online political misinformation has ramifications for political polarization, trust in political systems, and the functioning of democracy. In this article, we advance findings on investigative behaviors-actions aimed at determining the veracity of information encountered online-in response to political misinformation. Across three preregistered studies (N = 889), we find that investigative behaviors increase accuracy discernment of political misinformation (Study 1), that intellectual humility reliably predicts investigative behaviors in this context (Study 2), and test a novel fallibility salience manipulation to increase intellectual humility (Study 3). We discuss the implications of these findings for reducing the impacts of political misinformation.
Subject(s)
Politics , Social Media , Humans , Communication , Trust , Political SystemsABSTRACT
This article examines collaborative environmental governance under authoritarian political structures. Building on the theoretical frame of authoritarian environmentalism, it peruses fieldwork material collected during 2009-2019 to determine the most prominent features of recent collaborative governance efforts in the field of water management in Vietnam, a historically seasonal flooding-dependent country. A key feature is technocratisation, where top-down management structures and practices prioritise technocratic solutions to environmental challenges over deliberation, awareness raising, and integration of local knowledge. Another equally important feature is authoritarian intensification, by which increasingly complex environmental management functions, coupled with the state's determination to retain political control, reinforce authoritarian governance. We jointly refer to these features as captured collaboration, signifying a strong authoritarian regime dominance in both vertical and horizontal relations of environmental governance. However, while captured collaboration still appears to be a defining collaborative characteristic, the article acknowledges rising calls for deliberative government in Vietnamese society. This is particularly outspoken in relation to the highly contested issues of hydropower construction and enhanced floods, debates that simultaneously have paved the way for a burgeoning, though much delayed, paradigm shift.
Subject(s)
Conservation of Natural Resources , Environmentalism , Environmental Policy , Vietnam , Water Supply , Political SystemsABSTRACT
This article outlines the significant organizational and scientific changes that occurred in Bulgarian psychology after the fall of the totalitarian regime in 1989. These included the establishment of new university and research centers in psychology, the abolition of ideological censorship in psychology publications, free choice of research methodology and methods, free communication, and exchange of ideas with foreign psychologists, and the development of psychoanalytic practice and psychological services. The liberalization of the social conditions for the development of science, in general, made psychology a much sought-after science and practice. In this time of social transition, its authority grew significantly due to the fact that its calling was to study and solve, above all, the problems of the people, especially as they were faced with new social conditions. In the last 30 years, psychological science in Bulgaria has been significantly humanized. These changes allowed scientists to propose new methodological approaches not only to the study of the psyche, but also to the study of both Bulgarian and foreign history of psychology. Although in the last 30 years not all measures taken in the institutional management of the psychological science were positive, Bulgarian psychology was given a new opportunity to join the international scientific community.
Subject(s)
Political Systems , Psychology , Humans , BulgariaABSTRACT
Energy security, job development, and minimal environmental damage are just a few of the reasons why green energy technologies have gained popularity. Still, developing these technologies in underdeveloped countries is sluggish due to several bottlenecks. To find and prioritize the bottlenecks to development of green energy technologies (GETs), this study has used the case of South Africa. In this study, technical, financial, social, regulatory, geographical, and institutional bottlenecks are six headings under which 22 bottlenecks are further subdivided. For prioritizing these bottlenecks, a Multi-Objective Optimization based on Ratio Analysis (MOORA) strategy combined with an Evaluation based on Distance from Average Solution (EDAS) method was used. The top three bottlenecks impacting the GETs' development involved social, institutional, and regulatory, whereas in sub-headings, corrupt political systems, knowledge of the public, and fixed investments were revealed to be the most significant hurdles. In addition to that, a framework is also developed for assessing how each bottleneck hinders the development of green energy technologies. The results of this study recommend that formulation of policy using the bottom-up approach is important. Notably, politicians at the highest levels should work together to bolster government agencies so that they can monitor and carry out the policies designed to advance GETs. Building the institutional capacity of government offices is crucial for eliminating corruption in political offices and progressing GETs in South Africa.
Subject(s)
Developing Countries , Technology , South Africa , Investments , Political SystemsABSTRACT
O objetivo deste estudo foi testar um modelo teórico-explicativo para as representações sociais sobre o cenário sociopolítico brasileiro de 2017, de acordo com as seguintes relações: as representações seriam influenciadas diretamente pela confiança nas instituições, e essa confiança, determinada pelas simpatias ideológicas. Participaram 164 estudantes universitários - cuja idade média era 24 anos - que responderam a escalas intervalares. Realizaram-se modelagens de equações estruturais para testar o modelo teórico proposto. Os resultados indicaram: adequabilidade do modelo; dois grupos de variáveis apresentando relações positivas entre as variáveis do mesmo grupo e negativas na comparação intergrupos. No primeiro grupo constaram as variáveis: ideias-força de esquerda, confiança nos movimentos sociais, avaliação do governo Dilma e avaliação das políticas de esquerda; no segundo: ideias-força de direita, confiança nas instituições de controle, confiança na mídia, avaliação do governo Temer e avaliação das políticas de esquerda. Concluiu-se que a confiança institucional e a simpatia ideológica ancoravam as representações sociais do cenário brasileiro na população universitária estudada.(AU)
The aim of this study was to test an explanatory theoretical model about the social representations about Brazilian social-political scenario in 2017, based on the following relations: representations were directly influenced by the trust in institutions, and this trust, determined by ideological sympathies. A sample of 164 college students - whose average age was 24 years - answered interval scales. We performed structural equation modeling to test the proposed model. The results indicated: the suitability of the model; two groups of variables presenting positive relations in the in-group comparison and negative relations in the comparisons between groups. The first group showed the variables: Leftist ideas-forces, trust in social movements, evaluation of Dilma's administration, and evaluation of Leftist policies; the second: Rightist ideas-forces, trust in control institutions, trust in the media, evaluation of Temer's administration, and evaluation of Leftist policies. In conclusion, the institutional trust and ideological sympathies anchored the social representations of the Brazilian scenery for the studied university population.(AU)
Este estudio tuvo como objetivo probar un modelo teórico explicativo de las representaciones sociales en el escenario sociopolítico brasileño de 2017 según las siguientes relaciones: las representaciones estarían directamente influenciadas por la confianza en las instituciones, y esta confianza, determinada por las simpatías ideológicas. Participaron en este estudio 164 estudiantes universitarios, con edad media de 24 años, quienes respondieron a escalas intervalares. Se llevaron a cabo modelos de ecuaciones estructurales para probar el modelo teórico propuesto. Los resultados indicaron: adecuación del modelo; dos grupos de variables que presentaban relaciones positivas entre las variables del mismo grupo y negativas en la comparación intergrupal. El primer grupo incluía las variables: ideas-fuerza de la izquierda, confianza en los movimientos sociales, evaluación del gobierno de Dilma y evaluación de las políticas de la izquierda; el segundo: ideas-fuerza de la derecha, confianza en las instituciones de control, confianza en los medios de comunicación, evaluación del gobierno Temer y evaluación de las políticas de la izquierda. Se concluyó que la confianza institucional y la simpatía ideológica funcionaron como fundamentos de las representaciones sociales del escenario político brasileño en la población universitaria estudiada.(AU)
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Adolescent , Adult , Middle Aged , Young Adult , Politics , Students , Universities , Culture , Trust , Ethics, Institutional , Social Representation , Morals , Ownership , Philosophy , Political Systems , Poverty , Psychology , Psychology, Social , Public Policy , Quality of Life , Rationalization , Safety , Salaries and Fringe Benefits , Science , Authoritarianism , Social Change , Social Problems , Social Responsibility , Social Sciences , Social Security , Social Values , Socialism , Socioeconomic Factors , Sociology , Technology , Technology, Industry, and Agriculture , Thinking , Unemployment , Women , Behavior , Labor Relations , Black or African American , Brazil , Ill-Housed Persons , Adaptation, Psychological , Attitude , Ethnicity , Economic Development , Child Advocacy , Child Welfare , Surveys and Questionnaires , Liability, Legal , Civil Rights , Negotiating , Public Sector , Private Sector , Disabled Persons , Communication , Communism , Privacy , Constitution and Bylaws , Feminism , Guideline Adherence , Modernization of the Public Sector , Crime , Civil Conflicts , Personal Autonomy , Capitalism , Access to Information , State , Legislative , Democracy , Aggression , Human Rights Abuses , French Revolution , Economics , Education , Emotions , Employee Grievances , Employment , Environment , Job Market , Population Studies in Public Health , Sanitary Supervision , Agribusiness , Industrial Development , Diplomacy , Work-Life Balance , Sexual and Gender Minorities , Fascism , Political Activism , Stakeholder Participation , Extremism , Social Oppression , Freedom , Gender-Inclusive Policies , Respect , Leadership and Governance Capacity , Corruption , Solidarity , Outdated Modernization , Social Programs , Indigenous Peoples , Environmentalism , Environmental Justice , Sociodemographic Factors , Social Vulnerability , Citizenship , Socio-Environmental Responsibility , Hierarchy, Social , Human Rights , Individuation , Jurisprudence , Leadership , Lobbying , Mass Behavior , Mass Media , Military Personnel , Occupational GroupsABSTRACT
Este artigo tem por objetivo identificar e discutir alguns estratagemas psicológicos utilizados por movimentos conservadores e autoritários recentemente difundidos no Brasil - em especial, pelo Movimento Escola sem Partido -, em relação a temas como sexualidade e gênero, que atualmente foram incluídos como essenciais à formação escolar. Com esse propósito, empenhamo-nos em compreender a perspectiva cultural em que se apoiam e o modo como a articulam, ideologicamente, para inviabilizar o debate sobre eles. A partir da análise dos Projetos de Lei 246/2019 e 1859/2015, identificamos estratégias conservadoras que, autoritariamente, deslegitimam sua inclusão na formação escolar. Dentre elas, pareceu-nos urgente investigar a instrumentalização da religião, pois favorece a subordinação da crença religiosa, sobretudo associada ao conservadorismo moral imbricado na tradição cristã brasileira, ao discurso político autoritário. Assim como os movimentos fascistas que, nos Estados Unidos da década de 1930, reivindicavam um ordenamento autoritário e opressor da sociedade por meio do apelo a conteúdos religiosos instrumentalizados para esse fim, atualmente, o discurso religioso também é utilizado como forma de suscitar adesão ao conservadorismo social e político e de justificar preconceitos arraigados. Constatamos que a instrumentalização da religião é uma forma de justificar a permanência de valores conservadores na escola e na sociedade, bem como de reiterar o modelo de família heterossexual monogâmica e a ordem patriarcal. Por meio de estratagemas como esses, os movimentos conservadores e autoritários, articulados em função da negação da diversidade sexual e de gênero, impedem que a escola se constitua como espaço democrático e diverso.(AU)
This paper identifies and discusses the psychological ploys employed by recent conservative and authoritarian movements in Brazil, particularly the School without Party movement, against topics like sexuality and gender, which are currently included as essential to school education. To do so, we sought to understand their cultural basis and how they are ideologically articulated to prevent school debate around these topics. By analyzing Bills 246/2019 and 1859/2015, we identified some conservative strategies that authoritatively delegitimize their inclusion in school education. Chief among them is the instrumentalization of religion, since it favors subordinating religious belief, mainly associated with traditional Christian moral conservatism, to authoritarian political discourse. Similar to the fascist movements in the 1930s United States that claimed an authoritarian and oppressive ordering of society by appealing to religious content, religious speech is currently instrumentalized to encourage social and political conservatism adherence and to justify deep-seated prejudices. Religion instrumentalization is used to justify upholding conservative values at school and in society, as well as to reiterate the monogamous heterosexual family model and patriarchy. Through such ploys, authoritarian and conservative movements, articulated around denying sexual and gender diversity, prevent the school from becoming a democratic and diverse environment.(AU)
Este artículo tiene por objetivo identificar y discutir algunas de las estratagemas psicológicas que utilizan los movimientos conservadores y autoritarios, difundidas recientemente en Brasil, en particular por el Movimiento Escuela sin Partido, con relación a temas como sexualidad y género, que actualmente se incluyeron en la formación escolar. Con este propósito, se pretende comprender la base cultural en la que se han apoyado y cómo la articulan ideológicamente para hacer inviable el debate sobre ellas. A partir de análisis de los Proyectos de Ley 246/2019 y 1859/2015, se identificaron estrategias conservadoras que, autoritariamente, deslegitiman la inclusión de estos temas en la formación escolar. Entre ellas, parece urgente analizar la instrumentalización de la religión, porque favorece la subordinación de la creencia religiosa al discurso político autoritario, sobre todo asociada al conservadurismo moral presente en las vertientes del cristianismo brasileño. Al igual que los movimientos fascistas en los Estados Unidos en los años 1930 que reivindicaban una planificación autoritaria de la sociedad mediante un llamado a contenidos religiosos instrumentalizados, actualmente se utiliza el discurso religioso como forma de promover la adhesión al conservadurismo social y político y de justificar los prejuicios. Se constata que la instrumentalización de la religión es un modo de justificar la permanencia de valores conservadores en la escuela, así como de confirmar el modelo de familia heterosexual monógama y el orden patriarcal. Estos estratagemas que son utilizados por los movimientos conservadores y autoritarios, articulados en función de la negación de la diversidad sexual y de género, impiden que la escuela sea democrática y diversa.(AU)
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Politics , Religion , Schools , Sexuality , Gender Identity , Political Systems , Psychology , Psychology, Social , Public Policy , Rationalization , Role , Science , Sex Education , Authoritarianism , Social Class , Social Environment , Social Security , Socioeconomic Factors , Stereotyping , Teaching , Thinking , Transsexualism , Mainstreaming, Education , Bisexuality , Technological Development , Mental Health , Ethics Committees , Communism , Cultural Diversity , Feminism , Life , Address , Modernization of the Public Sector , Culture , Capitalism , Public Power , Delivery of Health Care , Democracy , Protestantism , Racial Groups , Reproductive Rights , Economics , Education , Education, Professional , Educational Status , Methodology as a Subject , Population Studies in Public Health , Reproductive Health , Sexism , Mentoring , Fascism , Political Activism , Interdisciplinary Placement , Ethnocentrism , Extremism , Social Oppression , Gender Mainstreaming , Sexual Vulnerability , Gender Norms , Gender Binarism , Gender Studies , Gender-Inclusive Policies , Respect , Public Nondiscrimination Policies , Freedom of Religion , COVID-19 , Government , Hierarchy, Social , Human Rights , Individuality , Lobbying , MoralsABSTRACT
People desire agentic representations of their personal and collective selves, such as their own nation. When national agency is put into question, this should increase their inclination to restore it, particularly when they simultaneously lack perceptions of personal control. In this article, we test this hypothesis of group-based control in the context of political elections occurring during socio-economic crises. We propose that people who are reminded of low (vs. high) personal control will have an increased tendency to reject traditional political parties that stand for the maintenance of a non-agentic political system. We experimentally manipulated the salience of low vs. high personal control in five studies and measured participants' intentions to support traditional and new political parties. Across four of five studies, in line with the predictions, low personal control reduced support for the main traditional conservative party (e.g., Partido Popular (PP) in Spain, the Republicans in France). These results appeared in contexts of national economic and/or political crisis, and were most pronounced when low (vs. high) national agency was made salient in Studies 4 and 5. The findings support the notion that rejecting the stability of the national political system can serve as a means to maintain a sense of control through the collective self.
Subject(s)
Political Systems , Humans , France , SpainABSTRACT
Literature on social networks and elections has focused on predicting electoral outcomes rather than on understanding how the discussions between users evolve over time. As a result, most studies focus on a single election and few comparative studies exist. In this article, a framework to analyze Twitter conversations about the election candidates is proposed. Using DeGroot's consensus model (an assumption that all users are attempting to persuade others to talk about a candidate), this framework is useful to identify the structure and strength of connections of the mention networks on the months before an election day. It also helps to make comparisons between elections and identify patterns in different contexts. In concrete, it was found that elections in which the incumbent was running have slower convergence (more closed communities with fewer links between them) and that there is no difference between parliamentary and presidential elections. Therefore, there is evidence that the political system and the role of the incumbent in the election influences the way conversations on Twitter occur.
Subject(s)
Social Media , Humans , Politics , Political Systems , Social NetworkingABSTRACT
O presente trabalho busca investigar as condições de possibilidade para o testemunho das vítimas da ditadura militar brasileira. O fim da ditadura foi marcado por um Projeto de Lei de Anistia que impossibilitou uma investigação jurídica e a produção de espaços para que as vítimas pudessem falar sobre o que viveram e sofreram. Partimos da hipótese de que essa impossibilidade trouxe consequências para o modo com que o país se organizou pós-ditadura, de tal forma que parte da sociedade nega os abusos cometidos pelo regime e pede por seu retorno. Há uma política do esquecimento que atravessou não só o modo com que a ditadura militar se organizou, mas também a forma com que os testemunhos das vítimas do regime foram silenciados, pois mesmo quando tentam falar sobre o que viveram, seus testemunhos não reverberam na sociedade. Portanto, há um não querer saber e um silêncio que marcam qualquer tentativa das vítimas do regime de testemunhar
Ce travail montre une recherche sur les conditions de possibilité du témoignage des victimes de la dictature militaire brésilienne. La fin de la dictature a été marquée par un Projet de Loi D'amnistie qui a rendu impossible une enquête judiciaire et la création d'espaces qui permettant aux victimes de parler sur ce qu'elles ont vécu et souffert. Nous partons de l'hypothèse que cette impossibilité a eu des conséquences sur la manière dont le pays s'est organisé après la dictature, de telle manière qu'une partie de la société nie les abus commis par le régime et appelle à son retour. Il y a une politique de l'oubli qui a traversé non seulement la manière dont la dictature militaire s'est organisée, mais aussi la manière dont les témoignages des victimes du régime ont été réduits au silence, parce que même lorsqu'ils essaient de parler de ce qu'ils ont vécu, leurs témoignages ne se répercutent pas dans la société. Par conséquent, il y a un refus de savoir et un silence qui marque toute tentative de témoignage de la part des victimes du régime.
This work seeks to investigate the possibility conditions to the brazilian dictatorship victims' testimony. The end of the dictatorship was marked by an Amnesty Law Project that made it impossible for legal research to happen, so as the production of spaces for the victims to talk about what they have lived and suffered. We start from the hypothesis that the impossibility brought consequences to the country organization mode after the dictatorship, in a way that part of the society denies the abuses committed by the regime and still asks for his return. There is an oblivion politics that not only over the dictatorship's organization, but also trough the way that the victims' testimony were silenced, because even when they try to talk about what they lived, their testimonies don't make a sound in the society. Therefore, it remains something close to a "dont want to know about that" and a silence that marks any attempt for the regime victims to testify.
Subject(s)
Humans , Political Systems , Mental Recall , Crime Victims/psychology , Politics , Torture , BrazilSubject(s)
Fascism , Reproductive Rights , Humans , Political Systems , Reproductive Health , Women's RightsABSTRACT
In the late 1940s in Spain, a group of young scholars, most of them newly appointed university lecturers, gained control of Arbor, the promotional journal of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC: The Spanish National Research Council), the institution that General Franco had founded after the Spanish Civil War (1936-9) to organize Spanish science. This group constituted the intellectual core of the more reactionary, Catholic traditionalist faction of Franco's regime, and they coveted greater political power, in competition with other factions of the regime. Lacking the opportunity to launch an overt political campaign within a dictatorship, the group started a fight for the cultural conquest of Spain. In this cultural struggle for hegemony, journals, magazines, cultural associations, publishing houses, newspapers, and cultural centers became their weapons. By analyzing this faction's views on and activities within the popularization of science, particularly regarding theories of evolution, this article argues that popular discourse on science played a critical role in the cultural struggle both as a "safe" channel in which to forward their claims and as a tool to gather popular attention through topics of general interest. A covert political campaign was conducted through the popularization of science and this, in turn, fueled the construction of a public sphere for science in a dictatorial context. Scientific popularization became a much-appreciated tool to achieve cultural hegemony and, as such, it also became a central element in constructing and legitimating the ideological foundations of Franco's regime.
Subject(s)
Catholicism , Political Systems , Humans , SpainABSTRACT
The study of science popularization in dictatorships, such as Franco's regime, offers a useful window through which to review definitions of controversial categories such as "popular science" and the "public sphere." It also adds a new analytical perspective to the historiography of dictatorships and their totalitarian nature. Moreover, studying science popularization in these regimes provides new tools for a critical analysis of key contemporary concepts such as nationalism, internationalism, democracy, and technocracy.