Your community space for news and opinion in sociology
Live Last read · last published · next check
By Laura Batstra & Sami Timimi More than 10 years ago, counselling psychologist Paul Moloney published his book The Therapy Industry: The Irresistible Rise of the Talking Cure, and Why It Doesn’t Work. “I’m not ill, I’m hurt”, words from Scottish mental health service user David Adam, is the title of chapter 5 about the hidden injuries of social inequality. In our article ‘Is more psychotherapy a…
Climate change and environmental degradation affect us all. Yet concern about these issues is far from evenly distributed. People’s willingness to prioritize the environment, make sacrifices for sustainability, or even believe in climate change varies sharply by social class. Why is this the case? My new study, published in The British Journal of Sociology, uses detailed survey data to map how…
‘Through fields of uneven fortune and lean harvests, untiring hands of the farming communities across the Global South cultivate life and hope against the odds.’ In agricultural societies of developing economies, small-scale farmers rise early to farm the lands that have sustained their families for generations. Their labour, however, extends far beyond local needs—these crops fuel regional…
It starts with the gentlest of prompts. A phone buzzes softly with a reminder: “Leave early to avoid traffic.” Then, a streaming service cues up a show before the viewer has even started to scroll. A grocery app nudges the user with a “smart list” of suggested items based on prior shopping. These little acts of attention slide so seamlessly into daily life that they commonly go unconsidered. But…
The Body in Extremist White Supremacy[1] Sociology has not taken bodies seriously. This is well documented.[2] But it’s especially so in scholarship of the far right – and that’s even more glaring given that bodies are implicated in the gruesome actions of its adherents.[3] There are two embodied practices that featured prominently in the narratives of the 47 former members of white supremacy…
Children who experience violence, adversity, or other forms of injustice often suffer in silence, hidden behind closed doors or silenced by fear and shame. To activate meaningful support systems, these experiences bust be brought to light and made visible to those in a position to help. When children interact with professionals who could provide support, their voices frequently encounter…
There has been exciting and robust practice and policy attention aimed toward the population of young people have spent significant time in the care system and who may face life largely on their own when they reach adulthood. A range of negative circumstances may have led to their need for out-of-home care (e.g., abuse, neglect, abandonment) and while in care they may have faced additional…
Imagine being a doctor, an engineer, or a teacher—forced to leave behind not only your profession, but also your country, your family, and your friends. Then imagine crossing multiple borders and arriving in a host country with professional aspirations, only to discover that your qualifications no longer count, and that you are viewed not as a professional but as a humanitarian burden. This is the…
Slavery, in its modern guise, remains a pervasive issue. In South Asian countries, which are predominantly agricultural societies and home to nearly one-quarter of the world’s population, this issue often goes unseen and unnoticed (Bose & Jalal, 2022; Kara, 2017). The perspectives on slavery within these regions vary significantly compared to the modern world, featuring the hidden and complex…
Almost seven million Ukrainians have fled Ukraine since Russia’s large-scale invasion in February 2022. Seeking refuge in other European states, they were welcomed. However, recent analyses have emerged which point to an increasing discrimination against Ukrainian refugees who were displaced by Russia’s aggression, including in previously supportive nations like Poland. The shifting treatment and…
