From pushchairs to wheelchairs: understanding tensions in family decision making through the experiences of adult children caring for ageing parents

Abstract

Within a modern family life, roles have changed significantly; however, relatively little attention has been given to the increased health and longevity of parents. This article focuses on the tensions relating to the transitional role of parent as ‘carer of the child’ to child as ‘carer of the parent’ as parents age. This article focuses on the experiences of adult children as they care for their parents and the related tensions that emerge and coping strategies that are adopted. Adopting an interpretive approach we shed light on the decision-making practices around shopping, residential arrangements and other consumer choices and how they take place in complex arenas of intricate family interactions, influence and power. Key themes that emerged were strategies adopted by both the adult child and ageing parent to attain or retain control in an increasingly sensitive environment where there is no roadmap to guide either party.     

A Limitless Urban Theory? A Response to Scott and Storper's ‘The Nature of Cities: The Scope and Limits of Urban Theory'

The recent article in this journal by Scott and Storper (2015) suggested that the field of urban studies currently contains a multitude of varied theoretical viewpoints and argued for a unified general urban theory encompassing all urban scholarly work. Their proposal is that such a theory is based upon a foundational understanding of agglomeration and clustering. This response counter‐argues this, suggesting that such a proposal leaves urban theory too instrumental, deterministic and economistic. Moreover, Scott and Storper argue that there is a need to isolate the urbanization process from a wider suite of social, cultural and economic processes in which the urban is said to be ‘embedded'. If we are to embrace a unified urban theory, however, it should be one which views cities as differing intensities of an urbanization process, and does not try to draw arbitrary boundaries about what is and what is not a city. If we are to strive for a general urban theory, then it would be far more beneficial to champion an ontology of an urbanization process with varying degrees of (de)intensification.     

Beyond Urban Subcultures: Urban Subversions as Rhizomatic Social Formations

The article discusses what we term urban social formations and expands on prior work that predominantly examines urban ‘subcultures’ as opposed to the world city paradigm and homogeneous cityscapes. We describe the process of ‘subculturalization’ through which urban social formations, after they have been marginalized and illegalized, become formalized as subcultures and incorporated into the fabric of consumption and profit making. The article proposes that these ossified moments of crystallized practice are only part of wider rhizomatic territories that remain open fields for urban engagement, inviting fluid urban identities and creative states of becoming. The article concludes by exploring the challenges and opportunities of conceptualizing urban social formations as rhizomes.     

Shifting the Risk: " buyback"="" protection="" in="" network="" marketing="" schemes"="

One of the key features of the legal regulation of Network Marketing schemes around the world is "buyback" – the statutory duty of firms to repurchase the unsold stocks of distributors leaving the scheme. Although this seems an eminently reasonable approach to the problem of would-be entrepreneurs being persuaded to part with their life savings, in practice "buyback" provisions are widely avoided. More seriously, though, "buyback" ultimately exposes consumers to still greater levels of risk. Also exposed are banks, suppliers, and employees. The paper evaluates a number of alternative approaches to deal with the anomaly, recommending a pragmatic combination of regulatory control and "best practice."     

紫光激发提高ZnO基半导体气敏传感器的敏感性能

以激光-感应复合加热法制备的纳米ZnO粉末为气敏基料,制作厚膜型的管状气敏元件,采用紫光(波长为370~395nm)激发,对无水乙醇进行了静态配气法的气敏性能测试。结果表明在紫光激发下,ZnO基半导体气敏传感器在较低的工作温度条件下对无水乙醇具有较好的气敏性能,而且随着紫光光强的增大,气敏性能提高。