After going "viral" in 2017, #MeToo brought renewed attention to the issue of sexual violence. While research suggests #MeToo has benefited survivors, journalists have frequently referenced a perceived "backlash." Drawing on interdisciplinary conceptualizations of social backlash, this study aimed to systematically catalogue types of perceived #MeToo backlash among survivors. Using an inductive thematic analytic approach, the study team coded 324 survivors' responses to an open-ended survey question about examples of #MeToo backlash they have heard about. Nine codes characterized participants' descriptions and were organized into four themes - Denial of the Severity and Reality of Rape, Threats to Traditional Power Structures, Repercussions of Disclosure/Activism, and Dissatisfaction with the #MeToo Movement. Survivors described multiple forms of backlash occurring at various levels of the social ecology. By categorizing perceptions of backlash, this study lays the groundwork for future work querying survivors' direct experiences of backlash and its influence on their lives.
Public backlash against scientists is drawing growing concern. It can come from citizens, politicians, or journalists and ranges from legitimate criticism to harassment and physical attacks. Backlash also affects science communication professionals, yet this has received comparatively little public and scholarly attention. Our study addresses this gap. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 15 university communicators from multiple countries, we develop a conceptual model of their perceptions of public backlash, its effects on them and their institutions, their response strategies, and contextual factors. We introduce criteria for distinguishing legitimate criticism from illegitimate harassment and describe both negative and positive effects on science communication. The results show proactive and reactive response strategies and highlight the influence of topic characteristics, routes of backlash, and sociopolitical contexts. Overall, they offer a new perspective on the normative imperative for public engagement. We discuss implications for science communication research and practice.
Backlash in compact servo actuators is a common source of positioning error in low-cost robotic and mechatronic systems. Measuring this backlash reliably is difficult because most servos include only a single output-shaft encoder, and conventional tools such as dial indicators can introduce enough probing force to distort the measurement. We present an open-source test stand that applies small, repeatable loads to a servo lever and measures the resulting displacement under both loaded and unloaded conditions. The stand uses low-cost components, 3D-printed fixtures, interchangeable levers, and a soft elastic coupling to apply controlled forces in opposite directions. Accompanying software coordinates the test sequence, records telemetry, and analyzes backlash using a consistent, repeatable methodology. We demonstrate how the platform can characterize single-servo and coupled-servo configurations, enabling direct comparison of mechanical performance and aiding actuator selection in design work. All CAD files, control software, and analysis tools are openly provided to support replication and further development.
An accurate estimation of system parameters is crucial for ensuring high-performance modelling and adaptive control of nonlinear systems, particularly in quantized environments. However, existing multi-innovation estimation algorithms often struggle from limited accuracy and slow convergence rate due to the use of batch noise and initial value problem. To address these challenges, this study proposes a multi-innovation repetitive learning-based fractional-order optimization algorithm for extended Wiener systems with backlash nonlinearity under binary-valued data. First, a quantized regression model is established using the parameterization technique of the nonlinear backlash submodel to reduce computational complexity. Drawing on the principle of repetitive learning, a scalar innovation framework with iterative updates is then proposed to mitigate the effect of batch-induced noise. Subsequently, a continuous optimization mechanism is introduced to improve the selection of initial values for parameter estimation. Furthermore, guided by fractional-order theory, a composite correction term is incorporated into the parameter adaptation law to enhance the utilization of quantized system data. Comparative statistical results demonstrate that the proposed estimator achieves superior optimization performance compared with other multi-innovation estimation algorithms in both simulation and real-world applications, thereby highlighting its effectiveness and practical utility.
When does the accommodation of subordinate ethnic groups generate a backlash from the politically dominant group? I argue that power-sharing, regional autonomy, and multiculturalism lend themselves to the articulation of grievances and fears among members of dominant groups, especially if they explicitly recognize subordinate groups' collective identities. In turn, nationalist parties can exploit such sentiment to organize protests, incite violence, and increase their electoral prospects. To test these arguments, I combine new monthly data on ethnic accommodation in 125 multi-ethnic electoral regimes between 1990 and 2018 with information on dominant group mobilization in anti-government protests and communal violence. I find systematic increases in dominant group mobilization around times when group-based accommodation is first introduced or expanded. These results enhance our understanding of mass mobilization by dominant ethnic groups. Moreover, they point to concrete proposals to reap the benefits of ethnic accommodation while avoiding a potentially destabilizing backlash against it.
This article presents a study focused on devising a control methodology for managing multiple motors operating along a shared axis. The research proposes a novel velocity control of a model-free cascade-based control system. The control system is characterized by velocity synchronization loops that utilize the output velocity from other loops, referred to as root loops, to replicate the velocity of a reference signal. This process takes into account backlash compensation and aims to prevent the occurrence of the fighting phenomenon. A novel aspect of this system is the proposed ladder structure, where the loops are arranged sequentially, allowing the error from one driver to be mitigated by the contributions of other loops, termed agent loops. Additionally, a straight structure is proposed in which a single motor acts as the primary root for tracking, while the remaining loops function to distribute load and minimize chattering. In both configurations, the tracking process remains uninterrupted even after the removal of any driver, thanks to an online adaption feature in the control algorithm that updates equations. The algorithm is designed to support any even number of motors and drives across the two proposed configurations. Finally, simulation tests were carried out on 2, 4, and 6 drive structures, the proposed method was also implemented on a dual-drive experimental setup. The results show that the root mean square of velocity error in different tracking scenarios is below 0.2°/s, which is an appropriate result for the performance of the velocity controller.
This essay argues that Muslim sexuality provides a crucial foundation for a long-overdue postcolonial reckoning in sociology-one made urgent by the intensifying global backlash against feminist values. The global backlash mobilizes reactionary ideologies to distort gender into a terrifying phantasm that mobilizes contradictory yet effective meanings and feelings. To unpack the forces driving this phantasm, we turn to a parallel historical construct-the Muslim phantasm-which is similarly entangled with gender anxieties and offers a critical analytical resource. To this end, we propose two complementary frameworks: sexual projects and sexual formations. These frameworks are ideally suited for deconstructing these phantasms, mapping the affective and discursive landscapes that sustain them, identifying the actors who deploy them, and examining how others navigate their consequences. Applying these frameworks enables scholars to trace connections between local and global sexual formations, analyze Muslim resistance to reductionist representations, and understand how their sexual projects reshape broader sexual landscapes.
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In August 2023, Spain's Women's National Football Team won the FIFA Women's World Cup for the first time. Beyond sporting success, this victory became a catalyst for intense public debate on gender equality and athlete activism. Shortly after the tournament, two events brought these issues to the forefront: the non-consensual kiss by the president of the Real Federación Española de Fútbol (RFEF), which triggered nationwide protests under the hashtag #SeAcabó ("It's over"), and a strike by players demanding better working conditions and higher wages. While these events deepened discussions about sexism in sport, they also revealed strong ideological divisions in Spanish society. This article examines how Spaniards perceived these events and the players' labour activism. Drawing on nationally representative data from the October 2023 Barometer of the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS), we analyse support for the players' demands and satisfaction with the team's victory. Using binary logistic regression models, we assess how sociodemographic and political factors shape these attitudes. Results show broad public support for footballers' demands but with marked ideological and gender divides. Women and left-wing citizens express stronger solidarity with the players, while right-wing and VOX voters are less supportive and less satisfied with the team's success. These findings highlight how sport, gender, and politics intersect in Spain's contemporary public sphere and demonstrate that women's sport can serve both as a site of empowerment and a field of cultural and political contestation.
In 2012, Livingston et al. found that Black women were buffered against gender backlash; whether Black women were dominant or supportive toward an employee did not affect people's perceptions of them as leaders in an organization. Conversely, White women incurred a status penalty for being dominant. Twelve years later, no direct replication has been published, and related research reached different conclusions: that Black women experience the most gender backlash for being dominant (as politicians) or that race does not affect gender backlash (for expressing anger). Given the seemingly contradictory results and limitations of previous research, the relationship between race and gender backlash warrants reexamination. In this registered report, we conducted a high-powered direct replication and extension of Livingston et al. with adult participants online (N = 1,996). We found that both Black and White women (as well as men) suffered a status penalty for displaying dominance, suggesting a failure to replicate Livingston et al.'s findings. We discuss implications for theories of intersectional gender backlash.
This paper discusses ways to improve the kinematic accuracy of worm gears in batch production. Worm gears are used in applications where high positioning accuracy, uniform motion and vibration damping is required. The paper focuses on three main methods: design changes, manufacturing process improvements and assembly optimization. Design changes aim to reduce dimensional and shape deviations of worm and worm wheel surfaces, with focus on the axially flexible worm design, which allows for minimizing backlash without disassembly. Manufacturing refinements, especially helical surface grinding, improve gear accuracy and durability. The developed algorithm for small batch production allows for selecting components based on specific criteria and thus improves overall production quality. With respect to optimization, the backlash ranges between 2 and 22 micrometers, meaning that its entire range is 20 micrometers. However, after optimizing, the backlash range falls between 7 and 10 micrometers, depending on the criterion for optimization, which amounts to about 50 to 65 percent of the initial range. The methods and algorithms are universal and can be used in small batch and large scale production. They bring economic benefits by reducing production costs and downtime through easy backlash adjustment.
Amanatullah and Morris (2010) advanced and tested central propositions from the field of gender differences in negotiation. They observed that women more readily anticipated backlash and requested lower salaries than men, yet only when they negotiated for themselves and not when they advocated for others (i.e., interaction effects). These insights are key building blocks of current theory explaining why and when women and men differ in salary negotiations. However, the research by Amanatullah and Morris had low statistical power and never received a close replication. Moreover, other conceptually related research has revealed divergent results. Thus, we conducted a close replication (total N = 517) of the seminal research by Amanatullah and Morris. We did not observe a Gender × Advocacy interaction on anticipated backlash and salary requests. We only observed a main effect of gender on salary requests, which was mediated by anticipated backlash. Moreover, consistent with the original study, women (as compared to men) rated their negotiation style as less competitive, but only if they negotiated for themselves (and not when they advocated for others), and there were no effects regarding negotiators' chosen verbal statements. We discuss the relevance of these novel insights for theory and research on gender differences in negotiation, as well as its implications for women's pay and workplace success. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
A younger subjective age is often associated with positive health and well-being outcomes among adults over the age of 65. However, it is possible that those who attempt to look or act younger than their chronological age may face backlash, given that this behavior is in violation of prescriptive stereotypes that serve to maintain hierarchical age group boundaries and mitigate threats to younger people's social and economic resources. The degree to which younger and middle-aged adults perceive violations of prescriptive age stereotypes (i.e., that older adults should act their age) may predict negative evaluations of older adult targets who feel "younger than their years." Across two studies, we examined younger and middle-aged adults' attitudes and evaluations regarding older adult targets who varied by gender and felt age. Perceptions of older targets' counterstereotypical behavior and demeanor mediated the relationship between older targets' younger felt age and participants' ratings of targets' warmth, competence, overall liking, and interaction intentions. Specifically, older targets who felt younger than their chronological age were perceived as violating prescriptive stereotypes, which in turn decreased ratings of targets' warmth, competence, and likeability, and lessened participants' willingness to interact with targets. Consistent with affordance management theoretical approaches, older adults who defy stereotypicality may be appraised as a threat to younger perceivers' goals and, in turn, face backlash. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
This study analyses the relationship between women's socio-economic status and intimate partner violence in Turkey using data from the Turkish National Research on Domestic Violence on 6,488 women. It explores if and how women's educational level and employment status influence the risk of physical, sexual, emotional, and economic violence, testing both the amelioration, which argues that women's empowerment reduces violence, and the backlash hypothesis, which suggests that men may respond to women's rising status with violence. Findings indicate that education is protective against intimate partner violence, supporting the amelioration hypothesis, while employed women and those more educated than their partners face higher risks, consistent with the backlash hypothesis. The study highlights the importance of adopting a multifaceted approach to women's empowerment.
Advocacy is a professional competency for Canadian physicians, yet adoption into medical education, academic medicine, and physician practice varies. We sought to explore perspectives on why and how physicians integrate health advocacy into their professional identity and to develop a model framework. We used a phenomenological approach to develop a socioecological framework. Using purposeful and chain sampling, we conducted semi-structured interviews with physician advocates of diverse backgrounds, clinical specialties, and advocacy interests from across Canada. We used thematic analysis to identify themes, which we then mapped onto the socioecological model. We interviewed 27 participants. We derived 7 themes: intrinsic motivation, role synergy, peers and institutions, external incentives, positionality, advocacy training, and strategic mindset. Themes layered onto or between 4 levels of the socioecological model. Within the intrapersonal level, identity, lived experiences, and exposures to injustice shaped advocacy commitment. Within the interpersonal level, patient relationships and moral injury motivated action; professional responsibility informed advocacy tactics. Within the organizational level, institutional constraints, political considerations, limited academic recognition, and fear of polarization and backlash were barriers; peer and institutional support were enablers. Within the community and society level, physicians described a tension between insider versus outsider roles and efficacy and needing to balance rapid public engagement with long-term institutional influence. Participants emphasized hands-on learning, mentorship, and a hidden curriculum. Physician advocates are influenced by lived experiences and perceived injustice, empowered by training and mentorship, constrained by perceived political and institutional barriers, and fear backlash. Formal curricula and aligned institutional culture support physicians in their role as advocates.
The #MeToo movement, initiated in 2006 and amplified on social media in 2017, mobilized women worldwide to share experiences of sexual harassment and assault online. While the movement increased awareness, it also revealed deep social divisions in digital spaces. Supportive discussions promoted solidarity and healing, whereas antagonistic responses reinforced backlash and secondary victimization. In India, the Indian Entertainment Industry (IEI) became a focal point where survivors' disclosures highlighted structural gender inequalities. These polarized reactions function as digital-health signals, reflecting stigma, psychosocial distress, and conditions that shape women's safety and mental well-being. Examining these narratives as indicators of public health risk helps identify patterns of structural inequity and secondary mental health burdens among survivors. This study examined online discourse surrounding #MeToo to identify forms of system-justifying narratives on social media and to assess how #MeTooIndia exposed institutional inequities within the IEI. This mixed-methods study comprised 2 components. In study 1, natural language processing was applied to analyze global #MeToo Twitter (subsequently rebranded X) discourse. From an initial corpus of 350,000 tweets, 205,082 were preprocessed, and sentiment and stance detection analysis identified 18,416 tweets expressing negative attitudes toward the movement. Latent Dirichlet allocation topic modeling extracted 22 topics, 12 of which aligned with system-justification categories, revealing distinct lexical and semantic patterns related to gender, institutional, and power dynamics. Two trained coders manually annotated a subsample to ensure conceptual clarity and interrater reliability. Study 2 involved qualitative, semistructured interviews with 20 academic experts in film, gender, and media studies to gather opinions on how #MeTooIndia influenced institutional discourse in the IEI and how these dynamics translate into digital and mental health risks. Analysis of #MeToo Twitter discourse in study 1 identified 4 primary forms of system justification: by gender, by the institutional system, by backlash, and by victim-blaming. Gender and institutional system justifications were the most prevalent. Study 2 reinforced these findings, revealing how experts perceived #MeTooIndia as both empowering and constrained by entrenched institutional and cultural barriers. Together, our findings highlight the dual function of social media in promoting collective advocacy while reproducing conditions linked to gender-based violence, psychological stress, and reduced help-seeking-key digital and mental health concerns. This mixed-methods study reveals that digital discourse surrounding #MeToo often sustains existing gender and institutional hierarchies rather than dismantling them. Across Twitter data and expert interviews, gender and institutional system justifications emerged as dominant narratives, highlighting how online spaces can reinforce structural inequities while appearing progressive. Although #MeToo amplified visibility and awareness, its potential for lasting institutional change remains limited. These findings underscore the need for trauma-informed digital governance, public health recognition of online hostility as a psychosocial risk, and frameworks that situate digital activism to institutional reforms that support safety and mental well-being.