Researchers’ racial and gender identities influence their outcomes in academia and the field of political science. This letter interrogates how researcher identity affects the research process: specifically elite interview recruitment. Within an ongoing research project we embed a pre-registered audit experiment randomizing the gender of the researcher conducting outreach to estimate whether there are differences in interviews scheduled holding all other confounders constant. We find that when outreach is conducted by a woman, elites are more likely to schedule an interview. This letter contributes to our understanding of bias and inequality during the research process. In addition, our study offers a new approach to audit experiments that limits deception and wasted time for elites.

La communication constitue un élément déterminant dans la participation sociale des personnes aînées. Or, les interactions entre ces dernières et le personnel d’institutions publiques, dont les bibliothèques, demeurent peu étudiées. Cette étude visait donc à identifier les composantes déterminantes de l’interaction entre les personnes aînées et le personnel de la bibliothèque. Des entrevues individuelles et de groupes ont été menées auprès de 10 personnes employées et de 19 personnes aînées avec et sans troubles cognitifs ou de communication, puis analysées qualitativement. Un modèle théorique représentant comment l’interaction en bibliothèque est influencée par des facteurs relatifs à la personne aînée (ex.: besoin d’interaction), la personne employée (ex.: stratégies de communication), l’environnement (ex.: achalandage) et la modalité (ex.: téléphone) a été développé. L’identification de ces facteurs pourra soutenir les bibliothèques dans l’adaptation de leurs modes de fonctionnement pour promouvoir la pleine participation sociale des personnes aînées.

This paper offers a socio-legal historical analysis of the process of formulation and evolution of Chinese marine insurance law by transplanting foreign laws, with a view to grasping from the material of legal history and social reality the deeper significance of the imported law’s relation to tradition, ideology and environmental context. The key argument is that this perspective reveals how transplanted law emerges as an authorless product shaped by social forces and processes. It is created by the operation of institutional arrangements of law-making, which provide the platform for the interplay of diverse traditions and interests generated by the social environment of the importing jurisdiction. This research integrates several lines of discussion of legal transplantation that lack connection, highlights the impact of the transplanting process and contributes to current theoretical debates by proposing potential interdisciplinary research for future studies of legal transplantation.

Older adults were particularly vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic, necessitating significant efforts to avoid contamination. This extraordinary situation posed an increased risk of mental pressure, and the ability to handle stressful situations is affected by several aspects. Therefore, this study aims to explore the coping strategies employed by older adults during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. A sample of 41 Swedish older adults aged 70–85 participated in phone interviews regarding their experiences with social distancing due to COVID-19. The interviews were conducted between April and May 2020, with nine follow-up interviews conducted in November and December 2020. The findings revealed results that despite the challenging circumstances, the participants demonstrated a strong mindset and resilience. Strategies utilised to improve their wellbeing and manage the situation included following recommendations, accepting the situation and maintaining a positive outlook. The influence of previous experiences on their coping strategies was evident. Additionally, the participants expressed a longing for their relatives and a need to adopt new technologies to manage their everyday lives. The follow-up interviews indicated no significant changes in worry or behaviour; if anything, participants were less worried at the beginning of the pandemic. This study contributes to the ongoing discussion on vulnerability among older adults by highlighting the diverse range of coping strategies employed during a prolonged crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic. It demonstrated that though they are medically vulnerable, they are situationally resilient and, in many ways, well set to handle a challenging situation. During crises, older adults might need practical assistance. On the other hand, they can be a resource regarding mental preparedness during crises. Further research should explore the possibilities of balancing the needs of older adults and, at the same time, viewing them as a resource during long-time crises.

Qualitative interviews of farmers were carried out as part of a project focusing on developing animal welfare assessment systems (AWASs) in dairy, pig and mink production systems (26 farms in total). The aims of the interviews were to investigate farmers’ perceptions and experience of how an AWAS worked, and to explore their expectations for future use of AWASs. All interviews were taped, transcribed and analysed using a grounded-theory approach. The importance of different elements of the AWAS differed between farmers, and between farmers and the AWAS project implementation group. More direct associations between welfare assessment and production results (and other ‘common measures ‘) were requested by farmers. The whole AWAS ‘package’ was viewed as being too complex and expensive for most farmers, particularly as it involved multiple assessments over time. A range of themes emerged from the analysis. One of these, here referred to as ‘us and them’, is explored and discussed in this paper. Farmers were concerned that the AWAS could be used negatively in relation to consumers and political decisions, and they underlined that if the AWAS was to be used as a decision support tool (ie a system to assist them in making decisions about improvements in their herds and to guide their initiatives and improvements), it should include dialogue and details of local farm conditions. Qualitative interviews were found to provide valuable insight into farmers’ perceptions and expectations of animal welfare assessment methods.

During their early political socialization young people start to recognize their agency as political actors and to develop their political identity. This article presents the findings of a comparative study across different types of youth activism in two cities, Athens and Cologne, which differ in their youth cultures of participation and the opportunities they provide to mobilize. Our data derive from in-depth qualitative interviewing, which is considered to be most fruitful for the exploration of the reasons behind activists' trajectories. We identified three groups of influences: micro-, meso- and macro-level influences, with micro-level influences being most visible in the path of social movement-related activism, meso-level influences being dominant in the path of partisan activism, and macro-level influences prevailing in grassroots activism. Finally, the implications of the differential impact of the studied socio-spatial contexts are critically discussed.

By ratifying the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2018, Ireland has undertaken inter alia the obligation to implement ‘an inclusive education system at all levels and lifelong learning’, as required by Article 24. However, concerns have been repeatedly expressed about the practice of inclusive education in Ireland in terms of admission policies, funding, school choice and reduced timetabling. This paper investigates whether, and to what extent, the current approach to special educational needs (SEN) in Ireland complies with the aim of ensuring an inclusive educational system in which children with disabilities are valued and empowered. Ireland is an interesting case-study due to its history of marginalisation of children with disabilities and its relatively recent engagement with the concept of inclusive education. By using a socio-legal approach, drawing on qualitative interviews with key stakeholders in education combined with a legal analysis of relevant primary and secondary sources, it examines the current practices relating to the education of children with disabilities in Ireland.

What constitutes a ‘good place to grow old’? This study aimed to characterise salient features of built and social environments that are essential to support low-income ageing residents. Seated and mobile interviews were conducted with community-dwelling older participants (aged 55–92, mean = 71 years) in three distinct socio-economic and geographic samples of the Minneapolis (Minnesota, United States of America) metropolitan area. The interviews prompted participants to evaluate their homes and neighbourhoods, and probed for particular socio-spatial characteristics that impact residential wellbeing. Qualitative thematic analyses focused on 38 individuals living in subsidised housing and homeless shelters. Four interrelated themes encompassed essential residential qualities: (a) safety and comfort, (b) service access, (c) social connection, and (d) stimulation. These broad ideals, when achieved, enabled participants to cultivate residential wellbeing and fulfilling place attachment. Analyses of the empirical data complicate theoretical assumptions by recognising unequal access to, irregular opportunities for and potential dangers of place attachment. Rich descriptions of participant homelessness, health hazards, crime, lack of supportive infrastructure and social isolation illustrate how place attachment is not inherently positive or necessarily attainable; rather, it is problematic and can involve risk. This article extends geographical gerontology's address of socio-spatial inequalities by focusing on disadvantaged ageing individuals.