Sociological research investigating boys' masculinity performances has commonly recognised the importance of peer group cultures in identity construction. Whilst such work has undoubtedly offered important and useful frameworks for... more
Sociological research investigating boys' masculinity performances has commonly recognised the importance of peer group cultures in identity construction. Whilst such work has undoubtedly offered important and useful frameworks for interpreting and understanding boys' behaviour in schools, the article argues that social psychological theories of intergroup relations also proffer important insights. Drawing upon interview and survey data, the article focuses on the existence of intergroup bias between peer groups in two secondary schools and demonstrates how a social identity framework can assist in providing a fuller and more complex understanding of boys' masculinities than sociological insights alone. Furthermore, it is suggested that gender work strategies designed to address and ultimately help some boys restructure their constructions of masculinity, which recognise the range of complex sociological and social psychological processes at work, are likely to more effective than those that offer partial insights. As such, strategies that draw upon work on masculinities and upon social psychological theories of intergroup relations may be particularly effective.
It is now well acknowledged that parents can have a central role in supporting sensible alcohol use and reducing alcohol misuse amongst young people. However, little research has considered how communication and supervision in relation to... more
It is now well acknowledged that parents can have a central role in supporting sensible alcohol use and reducing alcohol misuse amongst young people. However, little research has considered how communication and supervision in relation to alcohol actually takes place within the family. Drawing upon interviews with the parents of young people aged 13–17 years (n = 40), this article describes the strategies that many parents use in communicating, monitoring, and supervising alcohol use within the family. The findings revealed that many parents lack the guidance needed to convey ‘sensible drinking’ messages to young people, and wish for greater information and support about young people and alcohol.
Aims: 'Gay' businesses can be important settings through which to deliver health promotion interventions to vulnerable populations, such as men who have sex with men (MSM) regarding HIV prevention. This article draws on data from the... more
Aims: 'Gay' businesses can be important settings through which to deliver health promotion interventions to vulnerable populations, such as men who have sex with men (MSM) regarding HIV prevention. This article draws on data from the European Everywhere project, which represents the first scheme to develop and pre-test a common framework for HIV/STI prevention in 'gay' businesses across eight European countries.
Objective: 'Gay' businesses providing physical and virtual sex spaces for men who have sex with men (MSM) have been shown empirically to be useful sites for public health and health promotion interventions.
Health promotion Public health Qualitative research s u m m a r y Objectives: The number of adults who smoke is decreasing, yet this decreasing trend is not spread evenly across the population, with the greatest number of smokers in the... more
Health promotion Public health Qualitative research s u m m a r y Objectives: The number of adults who smoke is decreasing, yet this decreasing trend is not spread evenly across the population, with the greatest number of smokers in the routine/ manual worker (R/M) population. This study aimed to gain insight into the beliefs, behaviours and cessation needs of R/M smokers working on construction sites to inform the potential development of a work-based smoking cessation service.
International student mobility amongst and between countries has become increasingly common and forms a central feature of the global higher education system. This paper examines the key learning experiences relating to the student... more
International student mobility amongst and between countries has become increasingly common and forms a central feature of the global higher education system. This paper examines the key learning experiences relating to the student mobility component of the Canadian-European Initiative for Health Promotion Advanced Learning (CEIHPAL) project. CEIHPAL was a unique and innovative project that fostered advanced intercontinental education and learning in health promotion from 2005–2008. With co-funding from the European Commission and the Canadian Government, the project facilitated institutional, student and faculty cooperation, by developing a high level of international communication. In particular, this paper focuses on the student mobility component and experiences of the CEIHPAL programme, a central part of the project activities. Feedback from both Canadian and European students themselves is used to document their participation in the programme, including the benefits derived from taking part as well as the problems and difficulties they encountered.
The social identity approach (SIA) is one of the most influential theories of group processes and intergroup relations worldwide. However, we argue that the dominance of (post)positivist research methods in SIA work limits the extent to... more
The social identity approach (SIA) is one of the most influential theories of group processes and intergroup relations worldwide. However, we argue that the dominance of (post)positivist research methods in SIA work limits the extent to which it enables an understanding of the complexities of intergroup relations in schools. Drawing on qualitative data from two research studies, we highlight important questions and issues that are obscured by traditional psychological approaches to studying intergroup relations. In particular, we focus on the complex interplay among discourses about popularity within schools, constructions of gender identities, and intergroup relations. In doing so, we demonstrate the benefits that qualitative research may have for social psychological intergroup theories (and their applications) and, specifically, the SIA. We highlight how qualitative data can add considerable richness to understandings of intergroup relations and draw attention to inconsistencies and contradictions that otherwise may go unnoticed.
