Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Publication
    Sociological Forensics : Illuminating the Whole from the Particular
    (Sage, 2010-06)
    A central task in sociology is to make links between the micro world of events in everyday life and wider social structures and long-term processes of change. This is particularly evident in studying the impact of globalization on local cultural life. I argue that case studies are a good method for making connections between the micro and the macro. I use an example of a study of globalization I conducted in a village in Ireland. However, I also argue that within each case study there will be clues, episodes or events which, when analysed with the appropriate theories and concepts, will illuminate the micro and macro connections. This is what I mean by sociological forensics. I justify this approach by grounding it in sociological theory and pointing out how versions of it have been used in some classical case studies.
    Scopus© Citations 9  1603
  • Publication
    The double bind : Women, honour and sexuality in contemporary Ireland
    Irish women are caught in contradictory sexual discourses which create a cultural double bind. The legacy of Catholic Church teaching, in which the sexual honour of women revolves around their innocence and subservience, still lingers. This is gradually being replaced by media messages and images which portray women as sexually equal and independent. However, the media also portray sexually independent women as a threat to sexual moral order. The double bind reproduces double standards. The cultural contradictions in the way women are portrayed are revealed in an analysis of the reporting of events surrounding a court case involving the sexual assault of a woman. This analysis is put within the context of media reporting of other cases of sexually transgressive women.
    Scopus© Citations 19  1534