Vol. 13 No. 1 (35) (2022)

View Vol. 13 No. 1 (35) (2022)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.46991/BYSU:F/2022.13.1
Published: 2022-07-14

Political Sociology

  • Political Sociology

    Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict Through the Prism of Horizontal Inequalities: Theoretical Overview

    Hayk Smbatyan
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    Abstract

    This paper is a theoretical overview that designs and proposes a novel analytical framework within sociology of conflict for studying the origins of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict at group level. This article discusses the theories on horizontal inequalities and sociopsychological infrastructure in intractable conflicts, focusing on the question of the emergence of the Karabakh movement. Building on the synthesis of macro and micro theoretical approaches, the paper reflects upon possible ways of exploring the roots of the conflict by bridging social structure with social agency, and morphological knowledge with individual experience. Thereby, stemming from the central arguments of the examined theories, I construct an epistemological scheme, thus essentially capturing the main findings of this theoretical-methodological overview. The analytical framework brought forward in this paper may potentially serve as a foundation for operational design of a meso-level analysis of the causes of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

    References

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    BarTal, D. (2001). Foreword: Meanings of "Psychology as Politics". Political Psychology, 22(2), 219-226. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/0162-895X.00235

    BarTal, D. (2007). Sociopsychological Foundations of Intractable Conflicts. American Behavioral Scientist, 50(11), 1430-1453. Doi:

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    Shahnazaryan, N., Sukhashvili, J., & Banu, Z. (2019). Stories of Help and Rescue: the Georgian-Ossetian and Nagorno-Karabakh Conflicts. Caucasus Edition: Journal of Conflict Transformation, 4(2), 84-116.

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    Smbatyan, H. (2018). Sociological Interpretation of Nagorno-Karabakh Voluntary Movement in the Context of the Four-Day War. Collection of Scientific Articles of YSU SSS, 262-270. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/2Yc02wl

    Smbatyan, H. (2021). Civilian Participation in Interstate War: Unfolding Voluntary Collective Action in Nagorno-Karabakh War. Pax et Bellum Journal, 4(1), 57-69. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/3uyuf4V

    Smbatyan, H., Jumayeva, L., Hasanova, N., & Grigoryan, E. (2019). Reflections on Scenarios on the Peaceful Resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict in Armenia and Azerbaijan. Caucasus Edition: Journal of Conflict Transformation, 4(1), 122-151. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/3t4BoHQ

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Theory of Sociology

  • Theory of Sociology

    Arshile Gorky’s life in USA. The hard way of search of identity

    Lyudmila Harutyunyan, Hripsime Dayan
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    Abstract

    The life and formation of the great Armenian artist Arshile Gorky in the USA and the search for his own identity is examined in the traditions of the sociological theory of symbolic interactionism, based on the analysis of the rich documentary material left by the artist himself and his contemporaries. The key to understanding the essence of the artist's identity is his statements about himself as a "child of Ararat", an artist who carries in himself the values of the images and colors of the lost homeland (Van, Khorgom). An analysis of the history of the search for identity shows that despite the socio-cultural problems caused by racist policies and the reality of early 20th century American society, Arshile Gorky remained faithful to his purpose and mission: in his paintings he was able to preserve the image of the lost homeland. He used his brush to recreate the image of Western Armenia. He did not change his national identity, and remaining faithful to the inherited principles nurtured himself "mighty as a giant, but tender at heart, like a child". With his art, Arshile Gorky was able to achieve the freedom he strived for.

    References

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    Burke, P. (2020), Kivisto, Peter (ed.), "Identity", The Cambridge Handbook of Social Theory: Volume 2: Contemporary Theories and Issues, Cambridge University Press, vol. 2, pp. 63-78. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316677452.005

    Crossman, A. "Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity." ThoughtCo, Aug. 28, 2020, thoughtco.com/stigma-notes-on-the-management-of-spoiled-identity-3026757.

    Gorky Adoian, A. (2005), Letters. Edited by Seyranouhi Geghamyan. Graber, Yerevan 2005

    Gorky, A. (2018) The plow and the song. A life in letters and documents. Edited by Matthew Spender, Hauser and Wirth Publishers, Zurich.

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Methodology and Methodics

  • Methodology and Methodics

    Visual, Audial and Artistic Methods in Social Research The Young People Creating Belonging Project

    Sarah Wilson, Elisabeth-Jane Milne
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    Abstract

    This article reflects on the use of sensory and creative methods to explore feelings of belonging among young people in state care across Scotland. The concern was to understand how these young people, many of whom move frequently between short-lived placements in foster families and residential units, construct a sense of belonging in circumstances that differ considerably from conventional and often idealised notions of ‘home’. Sensory and creative methods, employed here within relatively unstructured interviews, proved invaluable to understanding difficult-to-articulate, ambivalent, emotional, and aesthetic aspects of belonging. Their use illustrates the potential of moving beyond a reliance on the verbal and textual in qualitative research. Notably this article demonstrates how the use of such methods in data collection and representation can highlight the significance of research participants’ agency and creativity however difficult their affective and financial circumstances. As such, these methods also facilitate a greater appreciation of the complex personhood of research participants who may otherwise ‘appear’ in research outputs only as exemplars of particular social problems.  

     

    References

    Adams, M et al. (2007) ‘The 24-hour city: residents’ sensorial experience’ Senses and Society (Special Issue: The Senses and the City) 2(2): 201-217. doi.org/10.2752/174589307X203092

    DeNora, T (2000) Music in Everyday Life. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN: 9780511489433

    Gordon, A (2008) Ghostly Matters: Haunting and the sociological imagination. London: University of Minnesota Press.

    Klocker, N. (2007) ‘An Example of Thin Agency: child domestic workers in Tanzania’. In Panelli R

    Punch S and Robson E. (eds.) Global Perspectives on Rural Childhood and Youth. ISBN 9780203942222

    Mason J (2018) Affinities: Potent connections in personal life. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. ISBN: 978-0-745-66463-7

    May V (2011) ‘Self Belonging and Social Change’, Sociology, 45(3): 363-378. doi.org/10.1177/0038038511399624

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    Pink, S (2009) Doing Sensory Ethnography. London: Sage.

    Rivera Cusicanqui, S (2020) [2010] Ch’ixinakaz utxiwa: On decolonising practicecs and discourses (Critical South) Oxford: Polity Press.

    Rose, G. (2007) Visual Methodologies. London: Sage.

    Wilson, S., Houmøller, K., Bernays, S. (2012) ‘‘It just feels nice to go home to a nice home, and not, some house’: Taking account of the sensory construction of difficult family relationships in domestic spaces’ Children’s Geographies, 12(1): 101-113. doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2011.638172

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  • Methodology and Methodics

    Researching Social Movements: Methodological Choice

    Gayane Harutyunyan
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    Abstract

    In the second half of the 19th century, the world was confronted with large-scale social movements, which changed the relations between the citizen and the state once and for all. Particularly, the emergence of the Suffragette movement, then Vietnam’s anti-war movement, as well as the influence of many other smaller, local, short-term social movements, raised new questions for the scientific community. How to study social movements? Which method is more convenient and how to apply it? What kind of knowledge can be developed by studying social movements, how can society benefit from that knowledge? There are many answers to these questions, which are contradictory even today.

    This article is an attempt to present the features of the main sociological methods of studying social movements, which play a key role in the exploration of the phenomenon. The article discusses the peculiarities of such research methods as observation, case study, grounded theory, survey and analysis of documents from the perspective of studying social movements.

    References

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    Bruce, C. (2007). “Questions Arising about Emergence, Data Collection, and Its Interaction with Analysis in a Grounded Theory Study”. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 6(1), pp. 51–68.

    Bryant. A., Charmaz, K. (2010), Introduction: Grounded Theory Research: Methods and Practices. Handbook of Grounded Theory (eds. Bryant A., Charmaz K.) 2nd ed. London: Sage publications, pp. 1–28.

    Castells, M. (2012). Networks of outrage and hope: Social movements in the Internet age (2nd ed.). Cambridge, U.K.

    Della Porta, D. (2014). Social Movement Studies and Methodological Pluralism: An Introduction. Methodological practices in social movement research (eds. Della Porta, D.), Oxford, pp. 1-20.

    Mattoni, A. (2014). The Potentials of Grounded Theory. The Study of Social Movements, (eds. Della Porta D.) Oxford University Press pp. 21-42.

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    Snow, D., Trom, A. (2002). The case study and the study of social movements. Methods of social movement research, (eds. Klandermans, B., Staggenborg, S.) University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, pp. 146-172.

    Wolfson, T. (2012). From the Zapatistas to Indymedia: Dialectics and orthodoxy in Contemporary social movements. Communication, Culture & Critique, 5(2), pp. 149–170. DOI: 1753-9137.2012.01131

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