Exploring Inesia-Forde’s Frameworks’ Research Gaps With AI

Abstract

The following paper was constructed with two goals in mind: to use AI as a co-construction tool in academic research and to provide examples of how Inesia-Forde’s frameworks of social change can be applied across various fields and substantive areas, for students looking to complete their thesis or dissertations in record time. The examples cited in the paper for which AI constructed tables were previously discussed in my dissertation and other published works, but have not been formalized (ethical use of AI). However, AI identified some areas where the frameworks can be applied (e.g., unethical use by students who do not credit AI as a research tool or who use AI-generated examples rather than their own). In this paper, the focus was on how AI would apply the frameworks to areas I know it applies to, rather than to new ones. To support the new applications, I would have had to conduct independent research, which is not an aim of this paper. Analysts interested in these areas can conduct independent research to determine whether AI cited appropriate examples. Be aware that AI lacks the high-level abstractions humans possess. Inesia-Forde’s frameworks are dynamic theories of social change, motivation, and power across interpersonal (family, friends, romantic partners, acquaintances, community ties, and professional) relationships, political, institutional, cultural, and historical contexts. This means the theories transcend the macro level (national borders) and can be applied at the global level. The empowerment and disempowerment frameworks work in tandem to achieve sustainable social change at the institutional and macro levels, while individually they can be applied at lower levels of analysis. The disempowerment framework may lead to demoralization, which can lead to depression, anxiety, and other mental and physical manifestations. Traditionally, demoralization has been associated with negative effects on those demoralized. However, that perspective is challenged by this framework. It is argued that agentic individuals are likely to feel empowered or may act boldly in the face of disempowerment (e.g., American Founders, civil rights activists, bullied students, intimate partner survivors, and the people of Vietnam, South Korea, China, and Russia). The empowerment framework may lead to positive and sustainable social change, but the quality of that change depends on the effectiveness of the tactics employed…

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