BiblioVault - Books about Groups

Acting Out In Groups

Laurence A. Rickels

University of Minnesota Press, 1999

Beyond Pluralism

The Conception of Groups and Group Identities in America

Edited by Wendy F. Katkin, Ned Landsman, and Andrea Tyree

University of Illinois Press, 1998

      Pluralist or multiculturalist, proudly ethnic or disappearing into the
        melting pot, people come in all persuasions. This volume attempts to bridge
        the gap that has developed between pluralists and multiculturalists, advocates
        of the academic canon and defenders of diversity, celebrants of ethnic
        heritage and critics of racial ascription. Contributors explore the nation's
        pluralistic framework as a historical creation, looking at group relations
        in the United States and how they have been conceptualized in the past.

[more]

Citizens and Groups in Contemporary China

Victor C. Falkenheim, Editor

University of Michigan Press, 1987

Citizens and Groups in Contemporary China began with two symposia held in 1977 and 1978. The first, a workshop on “The Pursuit of Interest in China,” was held in August 1977 at the University of Michigan, and was organized by Michel Oksenberg and Richard Baum. It was supported by a grant from the Joint Committee on Contemporary China of the Social Science Research Council and the American Council of Learned Societies, using funds provided by the Andrew Mellon Foundation. Its principal goal was to use detailed case studies to explore the relevance of interest group approaches to the study of Chinese politics. The second, a panel organized by the editor for the 1978 Chicago meeting of the Association of Asian Studies, sought to apply participatory approaches to the role of social groups in the Chinese political process. The striking degree of overlap in the focus, methodology, and participants in both meetings suggested to a number of the paper writers that there was a need for a more eclectic approach which would focus simultaneously on individual and group actors. The recognition that a volume based on such an approach might serve the needs of students and scholars seeking to examine the dynamics of informal influence and power in China was the stimulus for publishing the studies presented here in book form. [ix]

[more]

Groups, Interests, and U.S. Public Policy

William P. Browne

Georgetown University Press, 1998

Synthesizing theory, personal research, and prior studies on interest groups and other lobbies, William P. Browne offers a new, insightful overview of organized political interests and explains how and why they affect public policy.

Drawing on his extensive experience researching interest groups, Browne assesses the impact that special interests have long had in shaping policy. He explains how they fit into the policymaking process and into society, how they exercise their influence, and how they adapt to changing circumstances.

Browne describes the diversity of existing interests-associations, businesses, foundations, churches, and others-and explores the multidimensional tasks of lobbying, from disseminating information through making financial contributions to cultivating the media. He shows how organized interests target not just the public and policymakers but even other interest groups, and how they create policy niches as a survival strategy. He also looks at winnable issues, contrasts them with more difficult ones, and explains what makes the difference.

Groups, Interests, and U.S. Public Policy is a serious study written in a lighthearted tone. It offers political scientists a new theory of how and why interest groups influence public policy while it enlightens students and general readers about how policy is actually shaped in America.

[more]

Groups of Circle Diffeomorphisms

Andrés Navas

University of Chicago Press, 2011

In recent years scholars from a variety of branches of mathematics have made several significant developments in the theory of group actions. Groups of Circle Diffeomorphisms systematically explores group actions on the simplest closed manifold, the circle. As the group of circle diffeomorphisms is an important subject in modern mathematics, this book will be of interest to those doing research in group theory, dynamical systems, low dimensional geometry and topology, and foliation theory. The book is mostly self-contained and also includes numerous complementary exercises, making it an excellent textbook for undergraduate and graduate students.

[more]

On the Move

How and Why Animals Travel in Groups

Edited by Sue Boinski and Paul A. Garber

University of Chicago Press, 2000

Getting from here to there may be simple for one individual. But as any parent, scout leader, or CEO knows, herding a whole troop in one direction is a lot more complicated. Who leads the group? Who decides where the group will travel, and using what information? How do they accomplish these tasks?

On the Move addresses these questions, examining the social, cognitive, and ecological processes that underlie patterns and strategies of group travel. Chapters discuss how factors such as group size, resource distribution and availability, the costs of travel, predation, social cohesion, and cognitive skills affect how individuals as well as social groups exploit their environment. Most chapters focus on field studies of a wide range of human and nonhuman primate groups, from squirrel monkeys to Turkana pastoralists, but chapters covering group travel in hyenas, birds, dolphins, and bees provide a broad taxonomic perspective and offer new insights into comparative questions, such as whether primates are unique in their ability to coordinate group-level activities.

[more]

Quantum Anthropology

Man, Cultures, and Groups in a Quantum Perspective

Radek Trnka and Radmila Lorencová

Karolinum Press, 2017

Quantum Anthropology offers a fresh look at humans, cultures, and societies that builds on advances in the fields of quantum mechanics, quantum philosophy, and quantum consciousness. Radek Trnka and Radmila Lorencová have developed an inspiring theoretical framework that transcends the boundaries of individual disciplines, and in this book they draw on philosophy, psychology, sociology, and consciousness studies to redefine contemporary sociocultural anthropological theory. Quantum anthropology, they argue, is a promising new perspective for the study of humanity that takes into account the quantum nature of our reality. This meta-ontology offers novel pathways for exploring the basic categories of our species’ being.

[more]

Transgender Rights and Politics

Groups, Issue Framing, and Policy Adoption

Jami K. Taylor and Donald P. Haider-Markel, Editors

University of Michigan Press, 2015

To date, media and scholarly attention to gay politics and policy has focused on the morality debates over sexual orientation and the legal aspects of rights for non-heterosexuals. However, transgender concerns as such have received little attention. As transgender activism has become more visible, policymakers, both in the United States and around the world, have begun to respond to demands for more equitable treatment.

Jami K. Taylor and Donald P. Haider-Markel bring together new research employing the concepts and tools of political science to explore the politics of transgender rights. Volume contributors address the framing of transgender rights in the U.S. and in Latin America. They discuss transgender interest groups, the inclusion of transgender activists in advocacy coalitions, policy diffusion at the state and local levels, and, importantly, the implementation of transgender public policy. This volume sets the standard for empirical research on transgender politics and demonstrates that the study of this topic can contribute to the understanding of larger questions in the field of political science.

[more]