Out-of-Pocket Health Care Expenditures by Russian Consumers with Different Health Status

The paper uses the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey 2003 database to study the types of official and shadow out-of-pocket health care expenditures by consumers with high and low health status. The analysis shows that the inability of less healthy people to pay unofficially for more effective outpatient care results in their higher demand for official inpatient and outpatient treatment. This pattern creates the need to sustain excessive inpatient facilities and slows down health care restructuring. Yet, since the state is incapable of fulfilling its obligations for providing free health care and meet the current demand, in inpatient institutions all consumers, and less healthy ones in particular, spend considerable sums on drugs, even though the latter are guaranteed to be free. Consequently, the current Russian health system itself leads to replacing outpatient with inpatient care, which is more costly both for the patients and for the state.      

THE EURO AND THE GEOGRAPHY OF INTERNATIONAL DEBT FLOWS

Greater financial integration between core and peripheral European Monetary Union (EMU) members not only had an effect on both sets of countries but also spilled over beyond the euro area. Lower interest rates allowed peripheral countries to run bigger deficits, which inflated their economies by allowing credit booms. Core EMU countries took on extra foreign leverage to expose themselves to the peripherals. We present a stylized model that illustrates possible mechanisms for these developments. We then analyze the geography of international debt flows using multiple data sources and provide evidence that after the euro's introduction, core EMU countries increased their borrowing from outside of the EMU and their lending to the EMU periphery. Moreover, we present evidence that large core EMU banks' lending to periphery borrowers was linked to their borrowing from outside of the euro area.     

Sociopolitical control among parents of school-age children in a post-socialist city

This study explored sociopolitical control among parents of school-age children in a suburban municipality of a large post-socialist city. The participants completed a questionnaire that asked them about their sense of sociopolitical control in terms of leadership competence and policy control, as well as about other aspects of their lives, including mental health. The findings show that the participants have a greater sense of sociopolitical control in terms of leadership competence than in terms of policy control. Moreover, the findings show that voting in the last presidential election and degree of depression influenced negatively the sense of leadership competence among parti-cipants. Within the context of empowerment, the findings have implications for practice which focuses on consumer-based activities that allow citizens more leadership opportunities and control at the local level. Future research is needed that replicates this study, taking into account its limitations. In order for citizens in post-socialist countries to create civil societies at the same time that they implement market economies, they must be empowered. Some evidence suggests that several factors, including mental health problems, may influence the sense of empowerment among citizens in post-socialist coun-tries. Within the context of empowerment, this study examines sociopolitical control among citizens in a suburb of a large post-socialist city. The findings in the study have implications for social welfare practice in this city and for future research.     

Lyceum 1511 and Mountain Crest High School: An International Exchange Program Reveals Educational Contrasts

Abstract

Mexico. The Story of Two Americas. By Stuart Chase, in collaboration with Marian Tyler. Illustrated by Diego Rivera. The Macmillan Company, New York, 1931. 338 pp. $3.00. Reviewed by Milton W. Hamilton.

Mexican Maze. By Carleton Beals. With Illustrations by Diego Rivera. J. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, 1931. 370 pp. $3.00. Reviewed by Milton W. Hamilton.

The United States and Disarmament. By Benjamin H. Williams. Whittlesey House, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 1931. 361 pp. Reviewed by Milton W. Hamilton.

Bolívar. A Contribution to the study of his political Ideas. By C. Parra-Perez. Translated by N. Andrew N. Cleven. Pittsburgh Printing Company, Pittsburgh, 1930. 198 pp. $3. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

The Black Napoleon. The Story of Toussaint Louverture. By Percy Waxman. Harcourt, Brace and Company, New York, 1931. 298 pp. $3.50. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

Coronado's Children. Tales of Lost Mines and Buried Treasures of the Southwest. By J. Frank Dobie. The Southwest Press, Dallas, 1930. xv, 367 pp. $3. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

Dominicans in Early Florida. By The Very Rev. V. F. O'Daniel. The United States Catholic Historical Society, New York, 1930. xiii, 230 pp. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

Historia de la Guerra del Guano y el Salitre o Guerra del Pacifico entre Chile, Bolivia y el Peru. Vol. I. Causas y origenes de la Guerra Naval. By Jacinto Lopez. De Laisne and Rossboro, Inc., New York, 1931. 413 pp. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

A History of the United States Since the Civil War, Volume IV. By Ellis Paxson Oberholtzer. The Macmillan Company, New York, 1931. 718 pp. $5.25. Reviewed by Elmer Ellis.

Old France. By John G. Coulter; New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1931, 600 pp. Français et Allemands. By Louis Reynaud; Paris: A. Fayard et Cie, 1931, 387 pp. Reviewed by Jacques Barzun.

Twelve Portraits of the French Revolution. By Henri Béraud. Translated by Madeleine Boyd. Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1928. 831. pp. Reviewed by C. R. Hall

The Second Republic and Napoleon III. By René Arnaud. New York: Putnam's Sons, 1931. Pp. vii, 436. $4.50. Reviewed by Shepard B. Clough.

Prologue to Mexico. The story of a Search for a Place. By Marian Storm. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1931. xii, 328 pp. $3.50. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

Mexico. A Study of Two Americas. By Stuart Chase. The Macraillan Company, New York, 1931. vii, 338 pp. $3.00. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

The Genius of Mexico. Lectures Delivered before the Fifth Seminar in Mexico, 1930. Edited by Hubert C. Herring and Katharine Terrill. The Committee on Cultural Relations with Latin America, New York, 1931, ix, 334 pp. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

Liberalism in Mexico, 1857–1929. By Wilfred Hardy Callcott. Stanford University Press, 1931. xiii, 410 pp. $5.00. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

Mexico and its Heritage. By Ernest Gruening. The Century Company, New York, 1930. xix, 728 pp. $3.00. Reviewed by A. Curtis Wilgus.

Hero Stories for Children. By Earl A. Collins and Lyda Hale. The Macmillan Company, New York, 1931. 264 pp. Reviewed by

The First Three Hundred Years in America. By Marion G. Clark and Wilbur Fisk Gordy. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1931. 436 pp. Reviewed by Roberta O'Hara.

Young America. By Charles F. Horne and Olive Bucks. Charles E. Merrill Co., New York, 1930. 328 pp. Reviewed by Roberta O'Hara.     

Professional Associations and Members' Benefits: What's in It for Me?

In this study we examine reasons that professionals become and remain members of professional associations. We looked at tangible and symbolic benefits that an association can provide to attract members. Satisfaction with these benefits was linked to overall membership satisfaction and intent to renew the membership. We also considered the role of customer service in shaping members' attitudes. Based on the responses of 1,980 members of a large international accounting association, we found that members who were satisfied with their benefits and with the quality of customer service reported higher membership satisfaction and intent to renew. We also found that professionals who were more involved in the association were more satisfied with it. Contrary to predictions, younger professionals were less concerned with the value of the benefits of membership. As expected, longer‐tenured members were more likely to consider maintaining their memberships. We conclude with a discussion of practical and research implications for the management of professional associations.     

The living arrangements of older immigrants from the former Soviet Union: A comparison of Israel and the United States

With the unprecedented emigration from the former Soviet Union (FSU) during the 1990s as context, this study described the living arrangements of older FSU immigrants living in Israel and the US. Living arrangement choices represented an important strategy for coping with the migration process. Census data from Israel and the US were employed to examine the relationships among living arrangements (independent households, multigenerational households, and extended households) and personal characteristics, including duration of residence, Jewish identity, education, and home ownership. Results showed that the less time older immigrants lived in the host country, the more likely they lived in a multigenerational or extended household. The residency length and household relationship was stronger in Israel than in the US. Also, older FSU immigrants who owned their own home and who lived in a metropolitan area were more likely to live in a complex household than in an independent household. We discussed how the economic and social environments in each country contributed to the variability in living arrangement options among these older immigrants.     

Quality of Life for People with Learning Difficulties Moving to Community Homes

Research concerning people with learning difficulties who have left institutions has typically investigated how well people 'adapt' to life in the community, and has often ignored users' own perceptions of the changes in their quality of life resulting from the move. In this study, eight people with learning difficulties who moved from a hospital and seven people who moved from parental homes to live in staffed homes in the community were interviewed. Choice, privacy, social life and relationships with their parents and staff emerged as important factors in participants' perception of their quality of life. Their relationships with their parents were found to be close, and in some cases their parents were overprotective. Staff were perceived in some cases as too controlling and in others as providing too little support. The findings indicate that people with learning difficulties moving to community residences have aspirations which encompass far more than a wish to adapt to life in the community, and their relationships with family and staff are a central factor in achieving such aspirations.     

Modeling above-ground carbon storage: a remote sensing approach to derive individual tree species information in urban settings

Vegetation has gained importance in respective debates about climate change mitigation and adaptation in cities. Although recently developed remote sensing techniques provide necessary city-wide information, a sufficient and consistent city-wide information of relevant urban ecosystem services, such as carbon emissions offset, does not exist. This study uses city-wide, high-resolution, and remotely sensed data to derive individual tree species information and to estimate the above-ground carbon storage of urban forests in Berlin, Germany. The variance of tree biomass was estimated using allometric equations that contained different levels of detail regarding the tree species found in this study of 700 km², which had a tree canopy of 213 km². The average tree density was 65 trees/ha per unit of tree cover and a range from 10 to 40 trees/ha for densely urban land cover. City-wide estimates of the above-ground carbon storage ranged between 6.34 and 7.69 tC/ha per unit of land cover, depending on the level of tree species information used. Equations that did not use individually localized tree species information undervalued the total amount of urban forest carbon storage by up to 15 %. Equations using a generalized estimate of dominant tree species information provided rather precise city-wide carbon estimates. Concerning differences within a densely built area per unit of land cover approaches using individually localized tree species information prevented underestimation of mid-range carbon density areas (10–20 tC/ha), which were actually up to 8.4 % higher, and prevented overestimation of very low carbon density areas (0–5 tC/ha), which were actually up to 11.4 % lower. Park-like areas showed 10 to 30 tC/ha, whereas land cover of very high carbon density (40–80 tC/ha) mostly consisted of mixed peri-urban forest stands. Thus, this approach, which uses widely accessible and remotely sensed data, can help to improve the consistency of forest carbon estimates in cities.     

Russian Mortality Crisis and the Quality of Vital Statistics

Mortality from ill-defined conditions in Russia has the fastest rate of increase compared to all other major causes of death. High proportion of deaths in this category is indicative for low quality of mortality statistics. This article examines the trends and possible causes of mortality from ill-defined conditions in Russia. During 1991–2005, mortality from ill-defined conditions in Russia increased in all age groups. The pace of increase was particularly high at working ages and the mean expected age at death from ill-defined conditions has shifted to younger ages, particularly for men. The analysis of individual medical death certificates issued in Kirov and Smolensk regions of Russia demonstrate that 89–100% of working-age deaths from ill-defined conditions correspond to human bodies found in a state of decomposition. Data from Smolensk region shows that over 60% of these decedents were unemployed. Temporal trends of mortality from ill-defined conditions and injuries of undetermined intent in Moscow city suggest that deaths from the latter cause were probably misclassified as ill-defined conditions. This practice can lead to underestimation of mortality from external causes. Growing number of socially isolated marginalized people in Russia and insufficient investigation of the circumstances of their death contribute to the observed trends in mortality from ill-defined conditions.