Social science forum 105-106 (XL)
Editorial: Dear readers
Tanja Oblak Črnič, Natalija Majsova (co-editors) and Rok Smrdelj (book reviews editor)
Neoconservative opposition to the politics of equality: The anti-gender movement in Slovenia
Rok Smrdelj, Roman Kuhar
ABSTRACT: In the article, we address the emergence of the anti-gender movement in Slovenia. Based on content analysis of studies on the anti-gender movement in Slovenia, the main actors of the movement, their arguments, discourses, action strategies, transnational links with ideologically related foreign movements, and the reasons for their successful mobilisation are discussed. We frame the overview of these topics by considering the thesis of the anti-gender movement’s double “legacy” according to which on one hand the movement’s activities indirectly created a political opportunity for the legalisation of marriage equality and, on the other, reshaped the structure of the public debate on sexual and gender rights via the successful introduction of “gender theory” as a mobilising concept. Through the mentioned thesis, we highlight the complexity of the social effects of the anti-gender movement, which constitutes neo-conservative opposition in the field
of equality policies today.
KEY WORDS: anti-gender movement, gender theory, gender ideology, LGBTIQ+, abortion
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Networks of power: Gender representation, power relations and political participation in three national parliaments
Jure Skubic
ABSTRACT: The paper delves into the unequal power relations and gender representation in Spanish, Slovenian and British national parliaments. We employ qualitative content corpus analysis alongside quantitative methods to examine the participation of male and female parliamentarians in debates on key political topics such as healthcare, migration, education, energy, and finance. The interplay between political gender representation and the concept of political power is
also explored. Our findings underscore the persistence of gendered and male-dominated political landscapes wherein the political representation of women alone neither warrants their participation in debates nor grants them equal political power. Women parliamentarians face considerable barriers in delivering fewer speeches and having their arguments acknowledged. We argue that these disparities contribute significantly to the enduring inequalities in national politics.
KEY WORDS: argumentative power, structural power, parliamentary debates, politics, inequality
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Socio-ecological modelling of support factors to mitigate the risks of PTSD in Slovenian military families
Janja Vuga Beršnak, Maja Škafar, Gašper Ferme
ABSTRACT: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) occurs because of a variety of stressful situations and can be alleviated by a combination of support factors across different socio-ecological levels. The study investigates the impact of support at different socio-ecological levels on risk factors for PTSD in military families. A survey of 366 Slovenian service members and their spouses or intimate partners was conducted. We ran a basic regression model of risk factors for PTSD and later 6 two-stage hierarchical regression analyses to determine how the effect of risk factors on PTSD changes when support factors are added. On the micro
level: 1) work environment support lessens the negative impact of general health and depression on PTSD; 2) spousal/intimate partner support is beneficial for women; and 3) family support offsets the negative impact of work on PTSD. On the meso and macro levels, community and military support ease the negative impact of the direct work environment, while macro national support significantly contributes to reducing PTSD.
KEY WORDS: risk factors model, socio-ecological modelling, support factors, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
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Time trends in youth mental health between 2008 and 2019 in Slovenia and the United States
Minea Rutar
ABSTRACT: A growing body of evidence shows that youth mental health issues have become prevalent since 2010. Current research is disproportionately focused on trends in English-speaking countries, making the generalisability of the evidence unclear. The paper presents comparative analysis of suicide rates, anxiety, depression, and general psychological distress symptoms among young Americans and Europeans, with a focus on Slovenian trends. The results show that the prevalence of anxiety disorders and milder symptoms of psychological distress has been growing among young people in both the United States and Slovenia, as well as across Europe. The rise in suicide rate and the prevalence of severe depression seems to be limited to the United States. The disproportionately stark rise in
mental illness among American youth calls for a more thorough understanding of what causes youth mental health time trends.
KEY WORDS: youth, mental health crisis, generation Z, time trends
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The cultural character of european countries and reactions to the COVID-19 crisis: Collectivism, attitudes regarding freedoms, political trust, and conspiracy beliefs
Janez Štebe
ABSTRACT: In the study, we present findings on Slovenia compared to other European countries. We explore how support for and compliance with preventive measures is related to the national cultural characteristics of Collectivism vs. Individualism, tightness and attitudes regarding freedom, aggregate measures of trust in government, and how common conspiracy beliefs are. The analysis of various data from different existing sources, merged on the country level, shows that countries which are low on following and supporting the preventive measures are grouped among those prevailingly collectivist in character. This contrasts with what has been shown in many studies on the global level. We show that the same collectivistic character also nurtures lower levels of political trust and lower levels of support for the limitations on freedom, together with stronger conspiracy theory beliefs, which is consistent with the explanation that a specific type of collectivism exists in certain regions of Europe.
KEY WORDS: collectivism, tightness, freedom, following preventive COVID-19 measures, vaccination
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Open (citizen) science: Prospects and open issues
Frane Adam, Maruša Gorišek
ABSTRACT: The article discusses the significance of open science, notably the concept of citizen science, within a broader sociopolitical and socio-scientific context. The authors point out the ambivalence of these concepts and the lack of critical reflection on possible negative implications. They argue that while open and citizen science can benefit researchers and cognitively active citizens by enriching knowledge and fostering opportunities for social innovation, there are risks and unintended consequences that may influence scientific autonomy. The authors caution against the illusion that ad hoc citizen science projects bring exceptional, immediate results, warning that the open science movement could be used to divert attention from more pressing issues and anomalies within the scientific domain.
KEY WORDS: Open science, citizen science, socialisation of science, scientification of society, science policy
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Defining the focusing event concept and operationalising it for the Slovenian context
Sara Bauman
ABSTRACT: In the article, we focus on operationalising the definition of an anthropogenic focusing event in the context of Slovenia. The concept of a focusing event was formulated by Kingdon (1984) and further developed by Birkland (1997, 2006). Both authors developed the concept for the USA, which differs from Slovenia in several important respects that can have a considerable impact on research that uses this concept in Slovenia. In the article, we reconstruct and operationalise the notion of a focusing event. The definition of the term is built according to the public policy definition of a focusing event (in Slovenian legislation) and how academics have defined such an event (Birkland, 1997). The result is a definition of an anthropogenic focusing event that is be precise and specific enough for
guiding research in the area of Slovenia.
KEY WORDS: Focusing event, public policies, accidents, definitions
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The sociology of theatre in an age of uncertainty and liquid societies
Tomaž Toporišič
ABSTRACT: The article looks at the possibilities for the sociology of theatre in an era of liquid modernity (Bauman), uncertainty, and individualism. Namely, the fields of research proposed by G. Gurvitch in the 1950s, J. Duvignaud in the 1960s, and M. Shevtsova and P. Pavis in the 1990s remain relevant today. However, sociology of theatre must engage in a dialogue with cultural studies (R. Williams, S. Hall), critical social theory (T. W. Adorno), gender and sexuality studies (J. Dolan), postcolonial studies (E. Said/G. Spivak), race studies (H. Young), reception studies (H. R. Jauss), and the renewed semiotic of Fischer-Lichte in the aesthetics of the performative. By taking these steps, the sociology of theatre can provide insights into the dynamic relationship between theatre and society.
KEY WORDS: sociology of theatre, socio-semiotics, cultural studies, liquid modernity, performing arts
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Book reviews
Majda Hrženjak
Andreas Reckwitz: Družba Singularnosti. O strukturnih
spremembah moderne. Ljubljana: Založba Krtina, 2023.
Mirt Komel
Sandor Ferenczi: Psihoanalitične študije.
Ljubljana: Studia Humanitatis, 2022.
Maja Zadel
Veronika Bajt: Etnična diskriminacija:
strategije raziskovanja in merjenja.
Ljubljana: Mirovni inštitut, 2022.
Miran Lavrič
Gašper Mithans in Nadja Furlan Štante (ur.): Izzivi medreligijskih
in medkulturnih stikov in možnosti vzpostavitve dialoga.
Koper: Znanstveno-raziskovalno središče Koper, Annales ZRS, 2022.
Boris Vezjak
Svetlana Slapšak: Grožnja in strah: razraščanje
sovražnega govora kot orodja oblasti v Sloveniji.
Spremna beseda: Erik Valenčič.
Ljubljana: Založba /*cf, 2022.
Lucija Dežan
Mojca Medvešek, Romana Bešter in Janez Pirc: Mnenja večinskega prebivalstva Slovenije o priseljevanju, priseljencih in integraciji.
Ljubljana: Inštitut za narodnostna vprašanja, 2022.
Primož Krašovec
Gilbert Simondon: Imagination and Invention
Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2022.
Jože Vogrinc
Raymond Williams: Televizija: tehnologija in kulturna forma.
Ljubljana: Založba FDV, 2022.
Prevod: Dejan Jontes, Breda Luthar in Maruša Pušnik.