From nuclear to stepfamily ideology

The stepfamily, an alternative family form, has its genesis in today's divorce and remarriage rates. The absence of an institutionalized stepfamily ideology, which would prescribe rules for behavior and the interpretation of behavior, results in stress. Stress diminishes as stepfamily members adapt their behavior to fit their new extended structure. Some families attempt to maintain old behavior, which results in an anomalous nuclear family form, with its more private and autonomous expectations. This article is based on a qualitative study of sixteen white, middle-class stepfamilies. Each remarried partner maintains some ongoing care of children from a prior union within the new stepfamily household. All families in this study accommodated to stepfamily structure, at least to some degree, by shifting conjugal, parental, and kin relationships.     

Does a Brochure About Pathological Gambling Provide New Information?

The purpose of the present study is to evaluate whether a brochure on pathological gambling provides new information and knowledge to the general population. A total of 115 randomly chosen people from shopping malls and municipal parks were randomly distributed to control and experimental groups. Results indicated that the brochure provided new information concerning problem gambling, at risk behaviors, and the availability of specialised help.     

Brief Communications Analysis of a Casino's Self-Exclusion Program

As gambling facilities become more available, the number of pathological gamblers increases. Effective therapeutic and preventive interventions should be developed and systematically evaluated. Self-exclusion programs may be a useful means to facilitate self-control among problem gamblers. This paper describes the characteristics of individuals who decided to bar themselves from a Canadian casino. Two hundred twenty individuals participated in the present study and completed a questionnaire including four sections: (1) socio-demographic data, (2) the South Oaks Gambling Screen, (3) gambling habits, and (4) prior experiences with the self-exclusion program. According to the SOGS, 95% of the participants were classified as severe pathological gamblers on the SOGS (Mean score = 9.87). Furthermore, based on self-reported observation, 30% of the participants completely stopped gambling once enrolled in this program. No one scored within the interval of non-problem gamblers. Suggestions to improve self-exclusion programs are discussed.     

Variations of Sexual Scripts Relating to Concurrency by Race,Class, and Gender in South Africa

It is unclear whether higher rates of sexual partner concurrency in Black South Africans are due to socioeconomic or cultural factors. We used a nationally representative sample of 9,728 individuals aged 16 to 55 from a study conducted in 2009 to examine how the norms pertaining to concurrency and the practice of concurrency vary by race, class, and gender. The percentage of men reporting point concurrency was 14%, 6.5%, and 2.5% in Blacks, coloreds, and Whites, respectively (p < 0.001). These percentages increased to 45.7%, 24.7%, and 11.7%, respectively, for those reporting lifetime concurrency (p < 0.001). In all the racial groups, men exhibited more favorable attitudes toward concurrency than women did. For a range of indicators, White men and women had less favorable attitudes toward concurrency than Black men and women. These differences remained after controlling for a range of confounding variables. In the adjusted logistic regression model, reported concurrency in men was associated with a younger age, Black race, being in the lowest income tertile, not being in a stable relationship, and expressing various positive attitudes toward concurrency.     

Gender and Promotion in the Academic Labour Market

Several hypotheses are put forward with respect to promotion differentials between males and females on the academic labour market. These hypotheses are tested on the basis of a longitudinal data set of academic staff members at Utrecht University. The methods applied include Poisson regression, Negative Binomial analysis and Probit analysis. Full-time instead of part-time work and a Ph.D. degree prove to be efficient but not sufficient instruments for women on the academic labour market to catch up with men with respect to promotions.