Mapping Diversity of Publication Patterns in the Social Sciences and Humanities: An Approach Making Use of Fuzzy Cluster Analysis

Purpose: To present a method for systematically mapping diversity of publication patterns at the author level in the social sciences and humanities in terms of publication type, publication language and co-authorship.Design/methodology/approach: In a follow-up to the hard partitioning clustering by Verleysen and Weeren in 2016, we now propose the complementary use of fuzzy cluster analysis, making use of a membership coefficient to study gradual differences between publication styles among authors within a scholarly discipline. The analysis of the probability density function of the membership coefficient allows to assess the distribution of publication styles within and between disciplines.Findings: As an illustration we analyze 1,828 productive authors affiliated in Flanders, Belgium. Whereas a hard partitioning previously identified two broad publication styles, an international one vs. a domestic one, fuzzy analysis now shows gradual differences among authors. Internal diversity also varies across disciplines and can be explained by researchers’ specialization and dissemination strategies.Research limitations: The dataset used is limited to one country for the years 2000–2011; a cognitive classification of authors may yield a different result from the affiliation-based classification used here.Practical implications: Our method is applicable to other bibliometric and research evaluation contexts, especially for the social sciences and humanities in non-Anglophone countries.Originality/value: The method proposed is a novel application of cluster analysis to the field of bibliometrics. Applied to publication patterns at the author level in the social sciences and humanities, for the first time it systematically documents intra-disciplinary diversity.

A quantitative evaluation system of Chinese journals in the humanities and social sciences

Based on analyses on existing indicators for evaluating journals in the humanities and social sciences and our experience in constructing the Chinese Social Science Citation Index(CSSCI), we proposed a comprehensive system for evaluating Chinese academic journals in the humanities and social sciences. This system constitutes 8 primary indicators and 17 sub-indicators for multidisciplinary journals and 19 sub-indicators for discipline-specific journals. Each indicator or sub-indicator is assigned a suitable weight according to its importance in terms of measuring a journal's academic quality and/or impact.

Cultivation of Humanistic Quality--A Case Study From“Advanced English Listening&Speaking”in University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Improving humanistic quality is the basis and starting point of implementing quality education and one of the effective ways to cultivate qualified personnel in high education in China.Therefore,college English is not only a language course,but also a quality education course which can broaden the horizon of knowledge among college students.College English should give full consideration to the cultivation of students’cultural quality,impart international cultural knowledge,and make full preparations for students’future study so as to prepare students for social development.Based on the case study of“Advanced English Listening&Speaking”in University of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences(UCASS),the present paper claims that with proper selection of teaching material and carefully designed teaching methods,language learning and the improvement of humanistic quality can be effectively combined together.

The Strength of Training and Applied Research on Specialized Sociology to Contribute to the Social Science Development(Case Study in the Southern Region of Vietnam)

With the common trend of integration and accelerated industrialization-modernization,especially in the context of the current Industrial Revolution 4.0,the South is one of the areas where there are situations and requirements especially for training and research in social sciences in general,sociology in particular.Because,the issue is not only to contribute to the early recovery of the―human resource valley‖(specializing in the South West),facilitating the rapid development of human resources for―investment policy‖and early implementation of the―zoning,planning‖but also by many other economic,social,and cultural issues of the whole region…All have been asked to promote the training and applied research in sociology,especially in specialized sociology to contribute to the linking and promoting the active role of the social sciences with strategic issues and strategies related to the practical development of this land both in the immediate future and in the long run.

Regional tendencies of research collaboration of social sciences in China:Analysis based on papers of economic journals

Purpose:This study intends to evaluate the regional tendencies of research collaboration of social sciences in China,and shows the pattern of China’s inter-regional research collaboration(IRRC).Design/methodology/approach:By using 10 years’ data of 150 economic journals in CNKI database,this paper used the Salton index as the indicator to measure the collaborative intensity of 31 regions in China.Findings:First,regional tendencies of research collaboration in social sciences do exist in China.Second,there is a positive correlation between collaborative tendency and regional scientific productivity.Every region would like to cooperate with high productive regions,and high productive regions tend to have collaborations within the region itself.Third,geographical proximity is an important factor affecting China’s IRRC.Research limitations:There are many other important external conditions which may affect research collaboration,but not all of them have been taken into account in this research.Practical implications:The proposed method can be also applied to detect cooperation preference of different authors,scientific research institutions and countries.And the study will help us understand the importance of distance in scholarly cooperation.Originality/value:Previous researches proved that regional research collaborations exist in natural sciences in China,while this research showed that the same phenomenon also appears in social sciences in China.

Psychosocial interventions for infertile couples:A scoping review

Objective:To bring out current evidence regarding psycho-social interventions for infertility care,and identify the best practices in clinical care.Methods:An in-depth literature review on infertility care intervention was conducted using data from multiple databases:PubMed,EMBASE,Google Scholar,and PsycINFO.The relevant articles selected were between 2008 and 2022.Results:A literature search turned up 1798 citations,of which 25 studies were included after rigorous analysis.Various intervention categories have been constantly utilised to provide support and promote mental health,of which acceptance and commitment therapy(ACT)and cognitive behaviour therapy(CBT)were used most frequently.The interventions exhibited diversity in both content and composition,and addressed a wide range of issues.Conclusions:The review emphasizes that psycho-social interventions have a positive effect on psychological issues,relationships,and pregnancies among couples and can be incorporated into fertility-care practices.

A Brief Overview of the Development and Significance of Modern Scientific Medicine in China:Take Chinese Academy of Medical Science and Peking Union Medical College as an Example

Since the early 20th century,China has gradually established a clinical,educational,and research system centered around modern scientific medicine,which has now become the dominant force in China's medical and health system and services,with the construction and development of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College as the most prominent symbol.The scientific medicine in the new era requires close cooperation across multiple disciplines and fields to build a high-quality and efficient medical and health service system.It also involves combining the excellent traditional Chinese culture with Western medicine to explore a unique path of modern scientific medicine with Chinese characteristics.

How Emotion Nurtures Mentality:The Influencing Mechanism of Social-Emotional Competency on the Mental Health of University Students

Social-Emotional Competency(SEC),regarded as a critical psychological resource for individuals to adapt to social environments,is an effective protective factor for students’mental health,impacting their future success and well-being.Analyzing the impact of SEC on university students’mental health can offer valuable insights for nurturing talents with healthy psychological and physical development.Based on data from two large-scale surveys of Chinese university students,this study designed two comprehensive Multiple Mediation Models involving SEC,stress,coping strategies,and stress reaction to explore the pathway of emotion nurturing mentality.Study 1 utilized a parallel mediation model to examine the relationships between SEC,academic stress,interpersonal stress,and stress reactions.The results indicated that SEC negatively predicted academic stress,interpersonal stress,and stress reactions.Additionally,academic and interpersonal stress mediated the relationships between SEC and stress reactions in parallel.Extending these findings,Study 2 further investigated the role of coping strategies.By constructing a multiple-chain mediation model,it examined the predictive relationships among SEC,academic stress,interpersonal stress,three types of coping strategies,and stress reactions.The findings indicated that SEC negatively predicted stress,problemavoiding strategy,and stress reactions,while positively predicting problem-solving and assistant-seeking strategies.Furthermore,the two stress types and three coping strategies significantly mediated the relationship between SEC and stress reactions.This indicated that higher SEC was associated with reduced stress and more adaptive coping strategies and subsequently contributed to more favorable stress reactions.This research explored the impact of university students’SEC on mental health and its relational mechanisms,aiming to provide theoretical reference and practical insights for future efforts in cultivating SEC among university students to adjust academic and interpersonal stress,to enhance problem-solving and stress resistance capabilities,and to maintain their mental health.

Global aspirations, local realities: the role of social science research in controlling neglected tropical diseases

Neglected Tropical Diseases(NTDs)are both drivers and manifestations of poverty and social inequality.Increased advocacy efforts since the mid-2000s have led to ambitious new control and elimination targets set for 2020 by the World Health Organisation.While these global aspirations represent significant policy momentum,there are multifaceted challenges in controlling infectious diseases in resource-poor local contexts that need to be acknowledged,understood and engaged.However a number of recent publications have emphasised the“neglected”status of applied social science research on NTDs.In light of the 2020 targets,this paper explores the social science/NTD literature and unpacks some of the ways in which social inquiry can help support effective and sustainable interventions.Five priority areas are discussed,including on policy processes,health systems capacity,compliance and resistance to interventions,education and behaviour change,and community participation.The paper shows that despite the multifaceted value of having anthropological and sociological perspectives integrated into NTD programmes,contemporary efforts underutilise this potential.This is reflective of the dominance of top-down information flows and technocratic approaches in global health.To counter this tendency,social research needs to be more than an afterthought;integrating social inquiry into the planning,monitoring and evaluating process will help ensure that flexibility and adaptability to local realities are built into interventions.More emphasis on social science perspectives can also help link NTD control to broader social determinants of health,especially important given the major social and economic inequalities that continue to underpin transmission in endemic countries.

Why Hong Kong Ranks Highest in Life Expectancy: Looking for Answers from Data Science and Social Sciences

In trying to explain why Hong Kong of China ranks highest in life expectancy in the world,we review what various experts are hypothesizing,and how data science methods may be used to provide more evidence-based conclusions.While more data become available,we find some data analysis studies were too simplistic,while others too overwhelming in answering this challenging question.We find the approach that analyzes life expectancy related data(mortality causes and rate for different cohorts)inspiring,and use this approach to study a carefully selected set of targets for comparison.In discussing the factors that matter,we argue that it is more reasonable to try to identify a set of factors that together explain the phenomenon.

Spatial-temporal Coupling Analysis of Economic Development-Social Development-Government Governance in Xinjiang, China

High-quality development of ethnic minority areas is a key issue in China’s economic and social transformation.In order to explore the development trend and optimization path of high-quality development in ethnic minority areas,this study constructed a systematic evaluation index system of economic development,social development and government governance.The coupled coordination model was adopted to quantitatively analyze the spatio-temporal evolution characteristics of economic development,social development and government governance in Xinjiang from 2013 to 2020.The influencing factors of coupling coordination development of the three systems were identified by grey correlation analysis.The spatial-temporal pattern analysis results show that the coupling coordination degree of Xinjiang increased steadily,but the regional differences gradually expanded.The coupling coordination degree shows a stable structure with high center and low periphery,and a spatial pattern of low in southern Xinjiang and high in northern Xinjiang.The results of grey correlation analysis show that the grey correlation degree among economic development,social development and government governance in Xinjiang is above 0.78.The three systems of economic development,social development and government governance interact with each other,forming a complex system of high-quality development in ethnic minority areas.To promote highquality development in Xinjiang,it should take social stability and long-term stability as the overall goal,improve the quality of the production and living environment on the basis of economic development,enhance regional economic competitiveness,and take government governance as a means to optimize the environment for regional development.

Social Enterprises’Institutional Rationale and Its Inspirations for the Modern Market Economy

This study analyzes the ways in which social enterprises contribute to society’s goals.In the new era of human development,many social problems cannot be resolved without the participation of social enterprises(SEs).The study on these enterprises is of great significance for theoretical research and practical observation.In a modern market economy,SEs have pro-social market vitality and compatibility with the market economy;their action gives a glimpse into the truth of human development.As can be seen from the socio-economic reality,numerous entrepreneurs nurture a desire to run SEs at a certain stage of their career development.The tendency of some entrepreneurs to run SEs is of great significance for this study.Social enterprises are hybrid enterprises as opposed to for-profit enterprises and SEs must address complex problems through organizational and institutional innovations.State owned enterprises(SOEs)and SEs share many topics of research and have much to learn from each other,and a key question for SOE reform is what makes SOEs efficient quasi-social enterprises.Both SOEs and SEs assume a social mandate,and their fulfillment of social responsibilities is underpinned by their economic efficiency(market competitiveness).The theoretical rationale and institutional mechanism of SEs-not least their innovation practice and formation of rules-stem from the relationship and coordination between economic and social exchanges under market-based conditions.Social enterprises focus on altruistic social exchange but need to be supported by a certain economic exchange to finance their operations.The biggest social problem for China is its failure to balance economic and social exchanges,as well as the method of reward.Research on SEs should promote the understanding of these questions and the quest for their solutions.Social enterprises may inspire more enterprises to pursue pro-social innovation and development.

Social interactions in periodic urban markets and their contributions to sustainable livelihoods:Evidence from Ghana

Periodic markets are an important aspect of local economies,providing a platform for farmers(producers),wholesalers,retailers,and consumers to interact face-to-face and exchange goods and services.These markets have been increasing in urban areas in Africa,Asia,and South America because of urbanization.The increase of periodic urban markets(PUMs)in urban areas is observed as an index of modernization,reflecting a response to transition process.However,there are limited studies on how social interactions in PUMs contribute to sustainable livelihoods.This study investigated the types of social interactions occurring in PUMs in Ghana,the benefits of social interactions for participants of PUMs,and how social interactions contribute to sustainable livelihoods.This research interviewed 162 participants,comprising 27 farmers(farmers were regarded as producers in this study),61 retailers,47 wholesalers from 9 selected PUMs across Ghana,and 27 officers from government institutions and non-governmental market associations to obtain their opinions.We analyzed the interview data using the NVivo software.The results showed that there are seven kinds of social interactions in PUMs,including(i)producer-wholesaler relationship,(ii)producer-consumer relationship,(iii)wholesaler-retailer relationship,(iv)retailer-consumer relationship,(v)trader-driver relationship,(vi)trader-institution relationship,and(vii)trader-international buyer relationship.We found that these social interactions in PUMs enhance sustainable livelihoods by supporting human,social,financial,natural,and physical assets of traders(traders refer to producers,wholesalers,and retailers in this study).Therefore,we concluded that the development of policies to improve PUMs could strengthen social interactions,enabling the achievement of sustainable livelihoods in developing countries.

Cultural Duplicity:The Social Poetic Nature of Folk Songs and Their Discourse

There is a close relationship between the folk songs and the earth bound society in China,bearing functions of load transfer,expression,dissemination of information,and beauty aspiration,etc.Folk songs are mainly presented through voice and thus possess powerful cultural duplicity,which rightly represents the social poetic quality that both the local residents and the nation-state need to take advantage of.A flexible space of co-existence is thus provided with for both of them.

Strengthening the Disciplinary Construction of History of Medicine: A Call for Action by Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College

Recent years have witnessed a dynamic develop of Peking Union Medical College(PUMC),which was founded in 1921,and Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences(CAMS),which was founded in 1956.In the new era of building a"Healthy China",General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized the importance of a profound understanding of the Chinese civilization to let the world better know and understand China,and urged efforts to combine theories and practices to expound how to better uphold the Chinese path,promote the Chinese spirit,and pool together the Chinese strength[1].As an active response,PUMC organized the first Conference of History of Medicine on May 20-21,2023[2],Based on the rich history of PUMC and with an attempt to explore history,inherit the traditional Chinese culture,and promote the spirit of modern medicine,we issued the following call at the conference。

GatherTweet: A Python Package for Collecting Social Media Data on Online Events

Social media plays a crucial role in the organization of massive social movements. However, the sheer quantity of data generated by the events as well as the data collection restrictions that researchers encounter, leads to a series of challenges for researchers who want to analyze dynamic public discourse and opinion in response to and in the creation of world events. In this paper we present gatherTweet, a Python package that helps researchers efficiently collect social media data for events that are composed of many decentralized actions (across both space and time). The package is useful for studies that require analysis of the organizational or baseline messaging before an action, the action itself, and the effects of the action on subsequent public discourse. By capturing these aspects of world events gatherTweet enables the study of events and actions like protests, natural disasters, and elections.

Biopsychosocial impact of discrimination on cancer risk and outcome: A conceptual review

Discrimination,a major social factor influencing health,can influence both the risk and course of cancer.The medical and psychological mechanisms through which discrimination can impact the onset and spread of cancer are explored in depth in this conceptual evaluation.In addition to investigating the ethical aspects of discrimination in cancer research,it also studies the effects of bias on cancer detection and therapy.In addition,this review provides suggestions for reducing the effect of discrimination on cancer risk and outcomes.Discrimination,in particular,can trigger the growth and spread of cancer via various pathways,including stress,inflammation,and changes in epigenetic patterns.It can also affect the immune system,making the body more vulnerable to the proliferation of cancerous cells.Discrimination can result in hindrances or delays in the process of cancer screening and treatment,and it can influence the quality of care for individuals suffering from cancer.This can contribute to the presence of disparities in terms of cancer vulnerability,occurrence,mortality,and survival rates among different demographic groups.Various measures can be implemented to mitigate the impact of discrimination on cancer vulnerability and outcomes.These measures address the underlying causes of discrimination,ensure that all individuals have access to exceptional cancer care,promote the acquisition of cultural proficiency and anti-bias training by healthcare providers,and develop and implement interventions to reduce discrimination’s impact on cancer vulnerability,screening,and treatment.