Browsing by Author "Kuk, Bryan"
Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- ItemOpen AccessAn exploration of COVID-19 vaccination models for newcomer refugees and immigrants in Calgary, Canada(2024-03-12) Aghajafari, Fariba; Wall, Laurent; Weightman, Amanda M.; Ness, Alyssa; Lake, Deidre; Anupindi, Krishna; Moorthi, Gayatri; Kuk, Bryan; Santana, Maria; Coakley, AnnaleeAbstract Background The World Health Organization stresses the need for tailored COVID-19 models of vaccination to meet the needs of diverse populations and ultimately reach high rates of vaccination. However, little evidence exists on how COVID-19 models of vaccination operated in the novel context of the pandemic, how vulnerable populations, such as refugees, experience COVID-19 vaccination systems in high-income countries, and what lessons may be learned from vaccination efforts with vulnerable populations. To address this gap, this study explored COVID-19 vaccine delivery models available to newcomer refugees and immigrants, and refugee experiences across different COVID-19 vaccine delivery models in Calgary, Canada, and surrounding area in 2021 and 2022, to understand the barriers, strengths, and strategies of models to support access to COVID-19 vaccination for newcomer refugees and immigrants. Methods Researchers conducted structured interviews with Government Assisted Refugees (n = 39), and semi-structured interviews with Privately Sponsored Refugees (n = 6), private refugee sponsors (n = 3), and stakeholders involved in vaccination systems (n = 13) in 2022. Thematic analysis was conducted to draw out themes related to barriers, strengths, and strategies of vaccine delivery models and the intersections with patient experiences. Results Newcomer refugee and immigrant focused vaccination models and strategies were explored. They demonstrated how partnerships between organizations, multi-pronged approaches, and culturally responsive services were crucial to navigate ongoing and emergent factors, such as vaccine hesitancy, mandates, and other determinants of under-vaccination. Many vaccination models presented through interviews were not specific to refugees and included immigrants, temporary residents, ethnocultural community members, and other vulnerable populations in their design. Conclusions Increasing COVID-19 vaccine uptake for newcomer refugees and immigrants, is complex and requires trust, ongoing information provision, and local partnerships to address ongoing and emerging factors. Three key policy implications were drawn. First, findings demonstrated the need for flexible funding to offer outreach, translation, cultural interpretation, and to meet the basic needs of patients prior to engaging in vaccinations. Second, the research showed that embedding culturally responsive strategies within services ensures community needs are met. Finally, collaborating with partners that reflect the diverse needs of communities is crucial for the success of any health efforts serving newcomers.
- ItemOpen AccessThe Consumption of Music as a Construction of Self(University of Calgary, 2020-04) Kuk, BryanThe construction of self has been a divisive topic within the realm of sociology in the past century. Theorists such as Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann, as well as Pierre Bourdieu have either explicitly constructed a theory relating to the construction of self through the discussion of primary or secondary socialization, or implicitly through the theory of the habitus respectively. These theories come together similarly, that the self should be regarded as a singular entity that is determined in early socialization, and ideas that compete against the established notion of the self are readily discarded and neglected. However, with the introduction of Bayesian theory that proposes the self is produced in a multi-faceted manner, argues against the construction of the self as a rigid entity incapable of changing. In this paper, beginning with a description of Tia DeNora's research on the usage of music in everyday life, the author compares the empirical evidence that DeNora discovered in her usage of qualitative interviews with the existing theories on the self, and proposes that the self can be better described through a multi-faceted framework by reconciling with concepts such as dramaturgy posed by Erving Goffman and the cultural toolkit posed by Ann Swidler. Although the goal of the paper is to create a coherent theory on how the construction of the self is better understood, it may fall short in that regard. Hopefully, it paves the way for further research and theorization towards how the self should be interpreted as using music as corroborating evidence.
- ItemOpen AccessPlaying Gender: An Analysis of Femininity in the Popular Culture Phenomenon League of Legends(2019-05-11) Kuk, Bryan; Tézli, AnnetteVideo games are immensely popular in contemporary society, and it conveys explicit and implicit messages to the consumer. The author investigates the presence of gender portrayal and how the popular culture phenomenon League of Legends depict and represent women. The author analyzes its content, such as roles and appearances, to develop an understanding of its accuracies regarding femininity in the game, and to expand upon the general body of knowledge on video games. A literature review was conducted by the author analyzing the presence of gender in various forms of media (books, television etc.), and gender in video games, and how women are portrayed in them. As prior literature shows, women are underrepresented, stereotyped, and presented in a sexualized manner. The author contends that media including video games, have an impact on an individual’s identity, socializing them to imitate the content that they see in video games under the pretense that it is ‘normal’ and ‘the way it is’ in reality. As a result, the author draws on the theories posited by George Gerbner and Ann Swidler in order to explain the implications of their theories on socialization. The author then engages in a qualitative content analysis of the roles in the game, and twelve female characters or ‘champions’ in League of Legends to uncover any themes or patterns, in relation to their roles, personality traits, occupation, and appearances etc. In addition, the author briefly discusses the male characters in the game to understand if the results on the female characters were unique only to them and not the male characters. Results suggest that women were more likely to be placed in typically male-coded roles, such as leaders and protectors, but at the expense of being depicted in scantily-clad clothing and sexualized manners. Presented research reflect some of the conclusions drawn in previous studies, but opens the field of video games to more research topics regarding League of Legends as a case study. It is an evolving video game with new content added frequently, as a result, the game can be re-investigated to explore developments on gender representations of men and women.