How discrimination in adoptive,foster, and medical systems harms LGBTQ+ families: Research on the experiences of prospective parents

Abstract

LGBTQ+?people face multiple challenges to parenthood because of barriers such as discriminatory legislation and policies influencing foster parenting, adoption, and reproductive health services. This study documents these obstacles and examines their impact through a grounded theory analysis of interviews of LGBTQ+?prospective parents. Stressors included social isolation, unnecessary medicalization, prohibitive financial costs related to accessing social and medical services (sometimes across state lines), and being denied services, parental leave, and insurance coverage. Findings indicate that heteronormative attitudes and discrimination can lead to debilitating and enduring harm upon the economic, emotional, and relational well-being of growing LGBTQ+?families.     

The social movement for reproductive justice: Emergence,intersectional strategies,and theory building

This article reviews the literature on the reproductive justice social movement and provides an overview of its main theorical and empirical foundations and contributions. It begins by tracing the emergence of reproductive justice, grounding it in longstanding histories of resistance and Black feminist theorizing. It highlights intersectionality as a social movement strategy and tactic embraced by reproductive justice activists, and highlights reproductive justice organizing and scholarship that contributes to our theoretical understandings of the racial politics of reproduction and abolition. In so doing, this piece makes two interrelated contributions. First, it argues reproductive justice generates material and theoretical contributions beyond the scope of what is possible for reproductive health and rights frameworks. Second, it demonstrates that bringing reproductive justice into the focus of sociological inquiry is important for advancing social science scholarship.     

Quality of Life Enhancement Research Program: Lessons Learned

The attempted Quality of Life Enhancement program appeared to be a novel method for creating a symbiotic and sustainable relationship between a large Southeastern university and local nursing home and assisted living facilities (ALF), through which ALF residents would attend university arts and sporting events. During implementation, it was discovered that this project was unsustainable, undesired, unneeded by many care centers, difficult to implement, and required a dedicated and specialized staff. After attempting to enroll 14 local care facilities, only 2 were interested in becoming involved and produced 5 eligible participants. During the program itself, coordination with facilities and residents was difficult to maintain and unique transportation and accommodation needs were challenging to overcome. Finally, data collection was time consuming and generally unfruitful. Ultimately the project was discontinued after a year of attempted recruitment and implementation of inclusive changes to protocol. While creating an ongoing relationship with local care facilities and local universities may enhance opportunities for residents and research into important areas, such relationships take time, effort, and specialized staff to maintain.     

产业共性技术扩散中政府作用最优力度分析——基于变换的Bass模型

基于一定理论假设将Bass模型中技术扩散的内部影响因素和外部影响因素分别与市场作用和政府作用对应起来，并着眼于政府作用对市场作用的“挤出”效应建立起政府作用与市场作用之间的函数关系，以此来对Bass模型进行变换，使其能刻画政府作用对产业共性技术扩散速度和时间路径的影响。基于变换的Bass模型，以最大化技术扩散速度为目标构建最优化问题以求得政府作用最优力度，由最优化问题可知政府作用对市场作用的“挤出”效应越大，最优政府作用力度就应该越小。还基于相关数据进行了数值模拟分析，并且验证了模型的有效性。研究认为:由于存在政府干预对市场作用的“挤出”效应，在促进产业共性技术扩散中需要把握最优的干预力度即政府作用最优力度，在量化政府作用和市场作用的基础上，求解出来的政府作用最优力度系数可为政府有效和适当干预技术扩散提供理论上的一个尺量。     

计算机网络技术应用下的外语词汇教学模式研究

鉴于词汇教学在整个外语教学中的重要性及目前外语词汇教学所面临的问题,创建系统性外语词汇教学模式,并与计算机网络技术的应用相结合,来促进教师的外语词汇教学,进而提高学生的词汇学习效率。系统性外语词汇教学模式涉及三个主要教学阶段：课前预习、课堂教学和课后复习,而这三个教学阶段将与一系列新设计的词汇认知过程进行有机的结合。同时,还将尝试通过计算机网络技术的应用来优化新创建的系统性外语词汇教学模式。教师可以利用计算机网络技术为学生提供丰富的学习资源,并帮助他们充分运用各种词汇学习策略,从而调动学生对重点词汇学习的兴趣,进而提升教学效果。     

三重螺旋视角下我国制造业关键共性技术协同创新的演化博弈仿真分析

文章基于三重螺旋理论视角,引入政府对制造业关键共性技术协同创新的激励及惩罚机制,构建制造业企业、学研机构和政府的演化博弈模型,探讨演化路径、稳定策略及影响因素,并用Matlab仿真模拟。研究发现:制造业企业和学研机构从协同创新中获得收益越大,协同所需投入成本越小,双方越趋于协同,额外收益和初始成本足以使双方协同,因此无需政府过多干预;反之,政府需积极反应,政府资金支持与惩罚力度越大,制造业企业、学研机构越趋于协同创新。     

Conditions for Exercising Residents’ Voting Rights in Long-Term Care Residences: A Prospective Multicenter Study

To assess voting conditions in long-term care settings, we conducted a multicenter survey after the 2009 European elections in France. A questionnaire about voting procedures and European elections was proposed in 146 out of 884 randomized facilities. Sixty-four percent of facilities answered the questionnaire. Four percent of residents voted (national turnout: 40%), by proxy (58%) or at polling places (42%). Abstention related to procedural issues was reported in 32% of facilities. Sixty-seven percent of establishments had voting procedures, and 53% declared that they assessed residents’ capacity to vote. Assistance was proposed to residents for voter registration, for proxy voting, and for voting at polling places, respectively, in 33%, 87%, and 80% of facilities. This survey suggests that residents may be disenfranchised and that more progress should be made to protect the voting rights of residents in long-term care facilities.     

Empowering Homeless Youth: Building Capacity through the Development of Mobile Technology

Information-communication technologies, like computers and cell phones, are popular among young people. This article details a youth-centered participatory action study in which 12 homeless youth designed and developed a mobile application for other homeless youth. We frame our analysis through a theory of critical youth empowerment and discuss the steps taken to develop the application, as informed by the method of spiral technology action research. Developing the application allowed these young people to express their opinions and frustrations, while also providing an opportunity for them to make the lives of their peers better through improved access to supports and services.     

塞尔科技哲学思想的教育启示

新传播科技促进人类文明发生了巨大变化，教育也概莫能外。在塞尔分析看来，新传播科技的虚拟性、流动性、可塑性、柔软的连结性以及轻柔的无限可能性，蕴藏着旧式教育机构无法达到的潜能。塞尔认为，只有通过永不间断、远无止尽、摆脱时空与疆界藩篱的教育过程，通过教育与新传播科技之间的相互联结进而创造社会联结，才能真正达致所谓的正义与公平，从而促进教育学本质的发展与确立；教育教学致力的是社会整体，而非在智识上或是专业上的培育，因此更应注重如何培养“共在”公民这个层面。     

Can Carbon Nanomaterials Improve CZTS Photovoltaic Devices? Evaluation of Performance and Impacts Using Integrated Life‐Cycle Assessment and Decision Analysis

In emergent photovoltaics, nanoscale materials hold promise for optimizing device characteristics; however, the related impacts remain uncertain, resulting in challenges to decisions on strategic investment in technology innovation. We integrate multi‐criteria decision analysis (MCDA) and life‐cycle assessment (LCA) results (LCA‐MCDA) as a method of incorporating values of a hypothetical federal acquisition manager into the assessment of risks and benefits of emerging photovoltaic materials. Specifically, we compare adoption of copper zinc tin sulfide (CZTS) devices with molybdenum back contacts to alternative devices employing graphite or graphene instead of molybdenum. LCA impact results are interpreted alongside benefits of substitution including cost reductions and performance improvements through application of multi‐attribute utility theory. To assess the role of uncertainty we apply Monte Carlo simulation and sensitivity analysis. We find that graphene or graphite back contacts outperform molybdenum under most scenarios and assumptions. The use of decision analysis clarifies potential advantages of adopting graphite as a back contact while emphasizing the importance of mitigating conventional impacts of graphene production processes if graphene is used in emerging CZTS devices. Our research further demonstrates that a combination of LCA and MCDA increases the usability of LCA in assessing product sustainability. In particular, this approach identifies the most influential assumptions and data gaps in the analysis and the areas in which either engineering controls or further data collection may be necessary.