Search

Universities are simultaneously tasked with producing knowledge and upholding excellence, while also enacting equality and meritocratic participation amidst global moves toward the democratization of education. Universities in different national contexts have been implicated in this tension, and diversity has emerged as an increasingly expected institutional value in higher education systems worldwide.

In this new line of research, we bring global cultural dynamics to the study of global health trends and outcomes. In a Berlin University Alliance (BUA) funded collaborative project, focusing on migration, gender, and health nexus, we examine global health concerns regarding preventive medicine (e.g. vaccination, cancer screening). While previous studies emphasize systemic factors (such as access and discrimination) that affect migrant participation in healthcare, the possible individual-level mechanisms at play are less well-known.

Manifesting across three projects, the group analyzes how global liberal frameworks shape individuals’ climate beliefs, emotions, and behavioral intentions. The first project draws upon existing data collected by the International Social Survey Program (Environmental Module) to assess how nations' embeddedness within global liberal frameworks (e.g., linkages to liberal international organizations, treaties, standards, and top universities) impacts climate skepticism.  MLM analyses of longitudinal data from 37 nations show that overall embeddedness within global liberal frameworks is linked to lower skepticism. However, amidst anti-liberal pushback, the effect of global liberal forces varies.