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Social structural and cultural theories suggest that social stress induced from socio‐cultural status patterns varies across the world's cultures. The purpose of the study is to compare subjective social stress in connection with objective socio‐cultural status patterns among Muslim, Hindu, Santal and Oraon communities in Rasulpur of Bangladesh.

This study was conducted in Rasulpur, Bangladesh. Preliminarily, 760 male arrack drinkers who were stressful in their socio‐cultural status patterns were selected by snowball process from the study area. Of the respondents, 391 arrack drinkers (109 Muslim, 103 Hindu, 89 Santal and 90 Oraon) were intensively interviewed by semi‐structural questionnaire to examine and compare the research purpose.

The results of Pearson's χ² test suggested that there were significant differences (p<0.01) in subjective social stress in connection with socio‐cultural status patterns, except income among the communities, among the ethnic communities. The results of Spearman bivariate correlation coefficients revealed that there were significant relationships (p<0.01 and p<0.05) between socio‐cultural status patterns and its social stress, except occupation and income among the communities studied.

Although the findings of the study have been successful in understanding differences in social stress in the context of socio‐cultural status patterns among the Muslim, Hindu, Santal and Oraon communities in Rasulpur, Bangladesh, further empirical research is needed on how personality factor, familial and community coping and social support from social service system influence the differences in subjective social stress associated with socio‐cultural status patterns among the communities. In spite of the limitations, the findings may provide valuable information for cross‐cultural social health policy and programs to manage the problem.

This paper is original in linking its theory, policy and practice to reduce subjective social stress in the context of socio‐cultural variations among the Muslim, Hindu, Santal and Oraon communities in Bangladesh.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the Buddhist and Hindu people in non‐Western societies perceive rational accountability practices in religious organizations, through their respective religious “spirit” and “beliefs” and in combination with broader structural elements of the society.

The interpretive tradition of research, i.e. ethnography based on two in‐depth cases from Sri Lanka (a Buddhist temple) and Mauritius (a Hindu temple) is adopted for the data collection. The data are analysed using grounded theory methods and procedures.

In non‐Western Buddhist and Hindu societies where people's lives are bound by a high religious “spirit” the accountability system in the religious organisations is largely visible as an informal and social practice rather than a stakeholder‐oriented rational mechanism. It is found that the rational accountability mechanisms are “sacredised” by the Buddhist and Hindu religious “spirit” and subsequently, the accountability systems and religious activities are both influenced by the “structural elements” of trust, aspirations, patronage and loyalty relations, social status, power and rivalries. The accountability practices implemented in these organisations are perceived by the people as being no more than “ceremonial rituals” aimed at strengthening the temple's righteous and prudent image to the religious society.

The paper raises the issue that accountability practices in community, grassroots‐based non‐profit organisations are not mere reporting of “facts” relating to economic activities and a “neutral system” giving reasons for the conduct of its leaders. Instead, they initiate new forms of accountability systems and reproduce structural conditions.

This is one of the first field studies which examine perceptions of accountability within a Hindu and a Buddhist context, as influenced by the religious “spirit” and internal belief systems of the devotees. Previous studies have mostly focused on Judeo‐Christian or Islamic denominations.

Social stress and alcohol/arrack drinking are interrelated and vary across the sub cultures or cultures around the world. This study aims to examine relationships between social stress and arrack drinking patterns among Muslim, Hindu, Santaland Oraon communities in Rasulpur of Bangladesh.

This study was conducted in Rasulpur of Bangladesh. In this region arrack produced from palm and date juice and arrack drinker of four ethnic communities is available round the year. Out of 760 male arrack drinkers, 391 samples (109 Muslim, 103 Hindu, 89 Santal and 90 Oraon) were randomly selected and were interviewed with semi‐structural questionnaire.

The results of multinomial logistic regression analysis revealed that there were significant differences in and relationships between social stress and arrack drinking pattern among the communities studied. Results suggested that the 2‐35 times higher risks of Hindu and Muslim's social stressors than the Santal and Oraon were significantly related to their arrack drinking pattern.

Although the findings of this study have been successful in understanding cross‐cultural variations in and relationships between social stress and arrack drinking patterns among the ethnic communities, further empirical study is needed into how coping or social support influence the relationships between the variables studied. In spite of this the findings may apply in formulating social policy and programs to reduce arrack drinking in the context of social stress in rural Bangladesh.

This paper is original in linking of theory, policy and practice in the context of social stress at reducing arrack drinking pattern in rural Bangladesh.

The paper aims to understand and expand the idea of capitalist accumulation process from social structures of accumulation theory to religious structures of accumulation within the Indian context. It analyses the philosophical tenets of Hindu religious philosophy as outlined in the Bhagavad Gita. It argues that the ideological narratives within the Bhagavad Gita are concomitant with the logic of capitalism.

The paper draws its methodological lineage to nonlinear historical narrative around the concept and construction of Asiatic modes of production debate. The paper follows discourse analysis to locate how the Hindu religion as outlined in Bhagavad Gita provides philosophical foundation to capitalism in India.

The Bhagavad Gita (Songs of God) gives social and spiritual legitimacy to a specific form of production and accumulation processes by rationalizing and justifying socio-economic stratification based on eternal inequality. The paper focuses on the interface between cardinal principles of Hindu religion as outlined in the Bhagavad Gita and capitalist modes of social and economic processes in India.

The paper aims to advance a new concept called “Hindu modes of accumulation” by advancing the theoretical understanding of the theological processes in the Hindu religion, which reinforces capitalism and capitalist social relations in India.

The purpose of this paper is to understand the interplay between cultural values and work-family conflict (WFC) among Hindu mothers in South Africa (SA).

In total, 20 Hindu mothers in full-time paid employment participated in individual in-depth interviews. The authors used thematic analysis to analyze the interview transcripts.

Three themes emerged from the participants’ work-family narratives: a strong collective identity in relation to family, traditional gender beliefs, and family deference. These themes reflect core Hindu cultural values and demonstrate that culture helps shape perceptions of WFC.

The results highlight the importance of considering cultural values in work-family research and contribute to the limited knowledge on work-family experiences among ethnic minority groups, particularly in diaspora communities.

The findings should assist managers in designing work-family initiatives that will help alleviate the WFC experienced by mothers from ethnic minority groups.

Understanding the work-family dynamics of mothers from ethnic minority groups facilitates the development of effective family-friendly policies, which may encourage them to enter and remain in the world of work. Such developments will help improve the skewed representation of previously disadvantaged groups in the workplace and promote the social transformation of South African society.

This study is one of very few that has explored cultural values and WFC among mothers from an ethnic minority group in a diaspora community. It contributes to the limited body of culture-sensitive work-family literature and establishes a base for further research on the topic.

The purpose of this paper is to apply five models of conflict negotiation (power‐based, interests‐based, needs‐based, dignity model and comprehensive systemic) to Hindu‐Muslim religious conflict in Ahmedabad city, India and assess their relative applicability.

The general principles of each of the five models of conflict negotiation are first laid out from literature review. The principles are then hypothetically applied to resolve the contextual particularities of the Hindu‐Muslim conflict that occurred in 2002 in Ahmedabad city, India.

The comprehensive systemic approach is a good model to be used as a diagnostic tool for assessing the Ahmedabad conflict. Following that diagnosis, however, a combination of the need‐based and dignity model is useful in effectively negotiating the conflict.

This article creates awareness about the advantages and drawbacks of popular models of negotiation; this will enable negotiators to adopt a more realistic approach while negotiating conflicts in the field. The paper recommends that, while trauma, emotions and fears are real, so are destruction of property, livelihood and resources – peace cannot be long‐term unless negotiation addresses questions of subjective as well as material violations by raising questions of distributive justice.

This article indicates that conflicts are complex processes rooted in particular places and hence negotiation should be contextual and experiential. Through a comparative evaluation of different approaches the paper provides a tool kit. However, it also elucidates how reality may require negotiators to be more spontaneous and hence adopt mix‐models.

A plethora of studies have documented evidence on morbidity patterns and treatment-seeking behaviour among older persons in India. However, so far no attempt has been made to understand differences in the morbidity prevalence rates and utilization of health care services among older adults between religion groups in India. The purpose of this paper is to make an effort in this direction.

Multivariate logistic regression models were fitted to examine the association between socio-demographic conditions and morbidity prevalence and health care-seeking behaviours among the two religion groups: Hindu and Muslim. Data from the 60th round of the National Sample Survey in 2004 were used.

This study provided interesting evidence that, overall, the morbidity prevalence rate was higher among Muslim older persons than their Hindu counterparts by seven percentage points and Hindu scheduled caste (SC) and scheduled tribe (ST) counterpart population (compared to SCs eight percentage points, and STs 20 percentage points); income had no association with the burden of disease among Muslim older population – an older person belonging to the first income quintile was equally likely to report ill-health as an older person of the fifth income quintile. However, despite the low socio-economic status, Muslim older persons were more likely to seek treatment for ill-health compared to Hindu older persons but spent less money for treatment. Also, loss of household income due to sickness was greater among Muslim compared to Hindu older adults.

The findings of this study are important to support the policy makers and health care providers in identifying individuals “at risk” and could be integrated into the current programs of social, economic and health security for the older persons.

This paper aims to explore the ways in which religious tourism in India fosters religious tolerance.

The paper uses a conceptual apparatus derived from the basic structure of religious tourism comprising motivation, journey and destination, to understand various aspects of tolerance. Tolerance, with the implicit meaning of diversity and pluralism, is examined at two levels – intra-religion and inter-religion – using field investigations from three Hindu pilgrimage sites, namely, Vrindavan, Tuljapur, Shegaon and review of one Muslim site called Ajmer Sharif. These sites exhibit a range of combinations, sectarian traditions within Hindu and their interactions with others, including Muslims and foreigners.

Each of the sites provides different sets of opportunities for the “others” to get exposed to religious and cultural aspects. It is found that tolerance within the Hindu sects and with non-Hindus from other religious faiths is a function of their engagement with cultural performances and participation in the religious tourism economy in a pilgrimage site.

On a broader level, this paper argues that conceptualising tolerance within a social and cultural sphere helps in a better understanding of tolerance and identifying areas within religious tourism where it can be promoted. A conscious effort to promote tolerance through religious tourism will add value to religious tourism and help it thrive.

Caste is the basic structural feature of Hindu society; all social scientists are agreed on this. Since Hinduism is generally recognised to be as much a social system as a religion, its social framework embodying caste rituals has governed the lives of the majority of Indians for hundreds of years. Having deep roots in tradition and enjoying sanction in all religious literature belonging to the pre‐British era, caste has been the dominant principle of social organisation since ancient times. In fact, barring the recent past, Hinduism has always been identified in the minds of most Indians with caste observances. Writes R.C. Zaehner: “…until a century or so ago the acceptance of the caste system was considered by the orthodox to be the sole effective criterion of whether one was or was not a Hindu. In matters of belief it mattered not at all whether one believed in one god or many, or not at all, nor did it much matter on how one interpreted ‘liberation’ or whether one rejected it outright so long as one fulfilled the duties prescribed for one's caste.”