Cultural Studies > Sociology / Anthropology

'We must reject the idea - well-intentioned, but dead wrong - that the primary path to greatness in the social sectors is to become "more like a business".' So begins this astonishingly blunt and timely manifesto by leading business thinker Jim Collins. Rejecting the belief, common among politicians, that all would be well in society if only the public sector operated more like the private sector, he sets out a radically new approach to creating successful hospitals, police forces, universities, charities, and other non-profit-maki... read more

How do we develop inclusive, engaged communities? In this book experts in community planning review some of the challenges, strategies and solutions, using New Zealand case studies. The needs of specific groups ? whether migrant, the young, elderly or indigenous - and community ties with local and central government are explored. The Treaty of Waitangi, the influence of feminism and the development of online communities are other aspects that are considered. Importantly, the book provides tools for achieving healthy commuities, wit... read more

Print on demand title, approx 6 weeks to obtain. Social Science Research in New Zealand, 2nd edition, is intended for anyone coming to the many paths of social science research for the first time, and will be of particular interest to: students in introductory research methods courses (whether in psychology,sociology, anthropology, nursing studies, social work, etc.) postgraduate students embarking on their first major research project, whose methodological, theoretical and practical research background is only beginning to deve... read more

Public Intellectuals Re-Think New Zealand Eggheads...the chattering classes...the ivory tower... This is a book about a contentious subject, intellectual life in today's New Zealand. Speaking Truth to Power is organised around interviews with leading intellectuals, such as Jane Kelsey, Brian Easton, Marilyn Waring and the late Michael King, and is introduced by reflective essays by Roger Horrocks, Andrew Sharp, Stephen Turner and editor Laurence Simmons. What is very clear is that however much ideas and thinking are the sub... read more

Society is based not on mass consumption now but on mass, innovative participation - as is clear in phenomena from Wikipedia, Youtube and Craigslist to new forms of scientific research and political campaigning. This new mode of 'We-think' is reshaping the way we work, play and communicate."We-think" is about what the rise of these phenomena (not all to do with the internet) means for the way we organise ourselves - not just in digital businesses but in schools and hospitals, cities and mainstream corporations. For the point of the... read more

Cannibals, burials, vampires, human sacrifice, bog people

In "How Pleasure Works", the internationally acclaimed psychologist Paul Bloom explores one of the most fascinating and fundamental engines of human behaviour. We are natural-born essentialists and when it comes to pleasure, nothing is ever merely skin-deep. We are attracted, whether we know it or not, to the hidden aspects of things and people. Some teenagers enjoy cutting themselves with razors; some men pay good money to be spanked by prostitutes. The average Briton spends over a day a week watching television. The thought of se... read more

The notorious corner of West Fayette and Monroe Streets in Baltimore is a 24-hour open-air drug market that provides the economic fuel for a dying neighbourhood. Through the eyes of one broken family - two drug-addicted adults and their smart, vulnerable 15-year-old son, DeAndre McCollough - Simon and Burns examine the sinister realities of inner cities across the USA and unflinchingly assess why law enforcement policies, moral crusades and the welfare system have accomplished so little. Review: 'If The Wire has given you Baltimor... read more

What's the connection between the nun who invented disco, and the effect of file sharing? How does hip-hop manage to be an underground movement and a hugely commercial business - at the same time? And how are pirates, of the kind who started commercial radio in the twentieth century, changing society in the 21st? The Pirate's Dilemma tells the stories of youth culture uncovering, for the first time, what it is that transforms underground scenes into global industries. Matt Mason, successful entrepreneur, argues that from youth c... read more

Jane Austen found her sister Cassandra a locket. Joan Didion bought nail enamel and a toaster on impulse. Karyn Bosnak charged $20,000 on credit cards, and Elizabeth Wurtzel got caught shoplifting. George Eliot, for some reason, hated shopping. As people began to shop more, novelists imagined them doing it. Jane Eyre cringes at Mr Rochester's pre-wedding excess, while Undine Spragg's spending drives her husband to despair. The Girl with a Pearl Earring turns up her nose at some stale meat, Tom Ripley lusts after Venetian leather, a... read more

When Peter York and Anne Barr wrote "The Official Sloane Ranger Handbook", they were responsible for the birth of a phenomenon: the Sloane. A generation on Peter York - 'The Nancy Mitford of our time,'("Financial Times") - has spotted a new trend in British society. From Camilla and Charles to Zac Goldsmith and David Cameron posh is back in vogue and bigger than ever. But who are the new generation Sloanes and what exactly do they do? From what they wear, where they live, who they love and how they lunch, "SR II" is the only handbo... read more

Want to attract the best people? Understand young staff? Retain talent? Then read this book. Generation Y are the 4.5 million Australians born between 1978 and 1994, and are the second largest Australian generation. Given Australia's ageing population and the large decline in birth rates that defines Generation X, Generation Y are already forming the frontline of Australian workforces. Generation Y are impatient stimulus junkies with self-esteem on steroids and are proving very difficult to manage. But on the other hand they ar... read more

From original beachcomber personalities like the Waikiki Beachboys to the rise of Venice Beach as a creative centre for music, art, and film, this insightful chronicle traces the roots of the surf boom and explores its connection to the Beat Generation and 1960s pop culture. Through accounts of key figures both obscure and popular, such as Mike Dormer, Rick Griffin, the Trashwomen, and the Beach Boys, the book illustrates why surf culture is a vital art movement of the 20th century. The entire spectrum of pop culture is covered, in... read more

This is a searing account of life in the underclass and why it persists as it does, written by a British psychiatrist who treats the poor in a slum hospital and a prison in England. Dr. Dalrymple's key insight is that long-term poverty is caused not by economics but by a dysfunctional set of values,one that is continually reinforced by an elite culture searching for victims. It draws upon eye-opening, true-life vignettes that are by turns hilariously funny, chillingly horrifying, and all too revealing - sometimes all at once.

"Social Movements" is a comprehensive introduction and critical analysis of collective action in society today. In the latter part of the last century, social movements became a permanent feature of modern democracies. The students' and workers' protests of the 1960s have been followed by movements focusing on women's rights, ethnic identities, peace and environmental issues. This book draws on research and empirical work across the social sciences to address the key questions in this international field. In this new edition, the a... read more

If you're an actress or a coed just trying to do a man-size job, a yes-man who turns a deaf ear to some sob sister, an heiress aboard her yacht, or a bookworm enjoying a boy's night out, Diane Ravitch's internationally acclaimed The Language Police has bad news for you: Erase those words from your vocabulary! Textbook publishers and state education agencies have sought to root out racist, sexist, and elitist language in classroom and library materials. But according to Diane Ravitch, a leading historian of education, what began w... read more

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"Perfectly placed to tell us what's really new about the] second-generation Web."--"Los Angeles Times" Business visionary and bestselling author David Weinberger charts how as business, politics, science, and media move online, the rules of the physical world--in which everything has a place--are upended. In the digital world, everything has its places, with transformative effects: - Information is now a social asset and should be made public, for anyone to link, organize, and make more valuable. - There's no such thing as "t... read more

The latest edition of this bestselling textbook by Miles and Huberman not only is considerably expanded in content, but is now available in paperback. Bringing the art of qualitative analysis up-to-date, this edition adds hundreds of new techniques, ideas and references developed in the past decade to the corpus contained in the first. The increase in the use of computers in qualitative analysis is also reflected in this volume. There is an extensive appendix on criteria to choose from among the currently available analysis package... read more

`This book provides an excellent balance between theory and practical application in social research. The book works well to develop students' understanding of particular methods of inquiry, embedding them within "real world" settings. I envisage that it will help students to understand the nuances of particular approaches, the complimentarity of certain methods, and the areas of conflict/contention within social research in a way that overcomes the sometimes abstract nature of these discussions' - Dr Jon Tan, School of Education &... read more