Job Mobility of Chippewa and Poor White

Abstract

Using a 1978 national Gallup poll, we test the hypothesis that social marginality is a predictor of belief in paranormal phenomena. Being female and not being married generally correlate as hypothesized with paranormal belief, but age, low education, being Black, and being unemployed generally do not. The marginality hypothesis has a questionable theoretical foundation and fails to predict a variety of beliefs consistently.     

Involving People with Disabilities in Volunteer Roles

Abstract

According to the 2002 National Health Interview Survey, 33.7 million non-institutionalized Americans have limitations in usual activities. A recent poll on community participation found that, overall, people with disabilities have lower rates of community participation compared to those without disabilities. An analysis of that same poll concluded that people with disabilities continue to be treated as second class citizens by being excluded from the mainstream of everyday life. Social role valorization theory proposes creating and supporting socially valued roles for people who are kept at a social distance. It is through these valued social roles that they gain equal access to other opportunities that society has to offer. One such socially valued role is that of a community volunteer. Volunteer activities can foster a social environment where people with disabilities are seen as credible coping individuals. This paper reports the results of a survey of twenty-six community agencies which regularly use volunteers. The purpose of the survey was to identify barriers to volunteer opportunities for people with disabilities and to explore openness to methods to remove the barriers through community collaborations.     

WHY THE 1936 LITERARY DIGEST POLL FAILED

The Literary Digest poll of 1936 holds an infamous place inthe history of survey research. Despite its importance, no empiricalresearch has been conducted to determine why the poll failed.Using data from a 1937 Gallup survey which asked about participationin the Literary Digest poll I conclude that the magazine's sampleand the response were both biased and jointly produced the wildlyincorrect estimate of the vote. But, if all of those who werepolled had responded, the magazine would have, at least, correctlypredicted Roosevelt the winner. The current relevance of thesefindings is discussed.     

Question Order Effect and the Measurement of Candidate Preference in the 1982 Connecticut Elections

Conflicting poll results from the New York Times and the HartfordCourant concerning the 1982 Connecticut senatorial contest ledto the hypothesis that when voting preferences in two contestsare measured in the same poll, question order will affect candidatestandings. A subsequent poll, based on a split-sample design,verified this hypothesis. The relation of the question ordereffect to party identification, candidate preference, politicalideology, and education is also examined.     

Interviewer Effects in Telephone Surveys

The interviewer effects for selected items from a number ofnational polls conducted by CBS News and The New York Timesin 1980 were examined. These effects were found to be generallyquite small and somewhat inconsistent from poll to poll. Theinconsistencies were explained by variable associations withthe nonrandom regional distribution of respondents and the politicalcontext in which the mea surements were obtained. There wassome evidence of respondent-interviewer interactions for certainitems.     

United States Supreme Court Decisions Summary

Abstract

This summary of United States Supreme Court decisions offers social workers and other human services professionals information on the impact that these decisions have on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Each court decision is noted followed by the question presented, the holding, and the implication of the decision. The reader will observe that a number of these decisions have restricted the impact of the ADA.     

Chapter 12. Families Caring for Persons with HIV/AIDS

SUMMARY

The extent to which family members are willing and able to assist with daily activities and provide emotional support can greatly affect the quality of life for persons with chronic illness. In the case of HIV/AIDS, the burdens of symptom management and medication are amplified by social stigma. This chapter provides a summary of the physical, psychological, social, and spiritual issues associated with HIV/AIDS along with approaches to assessment and treatment.     

Predicting No Opinion in the Polls

On poll questions, levels of expressed public ignorance or indifference—NoOpinion or Don't Know—can be explained in some part bycertain properties of the questions pollsters ask, althoughthe educational level of respondents is the single best predictor.No Opinion levels are analyzed in two large sets of recent pollquestions published by Gallup and Harris. A measure of the languagecomplexity of the questions shows no relationship to DK. Ofthe three other question predictors assessed, it is questioncontent which best illuminates levels of No Opinion in bothpolls and points to some unique characteristics of each. Theimportance of question content is demonstrated in two additionalsets of Gallup and Harris data. The more difficult kind of questioncontent dominates in all four sets of poll questions examined.     

A User's View of the Polls

The treatment of polls and surveys by the New York Times haschanged from casual to extensive use, both in its internal decision-makingand its political and social reporting, with many obvious benefits.But some implications of poll proliferation, especially theirdistorting effects on the political process, raise troublingthoughts.     

Can a Poll Affect Perception of Candidate Traits?

During presidential elections, poll results frequently are presentedin the news. Reporters use these polls to tell the public whatit thinks about the presidential candidates. We argue that pollingresults tell the public what it should think about the presidentialcandidates as well. This study outlines how a character traitthat is not usually used to assess presidential candidates wasput into play during the 2004 presidential campaign. By repeatedlyascribing "stubbornness" to incumbent president George W. Bush,Democratic challenger John Kerry may have prompted this trait’sinclusion in a Los Angeles Times summer 2004 survey. The poll’sevidence that the public saw Bush as more stubborn than Kerrythen produced an attribute agenda-setting effect that strengthenedthe link between that term and Bush. Using data from the NationalAnnenberg Election Survey, we argue that the news coverage ofthis Los Angeles Times poll increased the salience of the trait"stubborn" in assessing President George W. Bush during Juneof the 2004 presidential campaign.     

The Relationship Between Marital Disruption and Adolescent Values

Abstract

A sample of 16,411 year nine and year ten pupils throughout England and Wales completed a detailed inventory of values. The responses of those whose parents have experienced separation or divorce are compared with those whose parents have not experienced this form of family disruption. Significant differences are found in all fourteen value areas included in the survey. In summary marital disruption is associated with lower personal wellbeing, and more radical or less socially conformist attitudes.     

Use of the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) in Chinese male patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia

Purpose: To test the psychometric properties of the International Prostate Symptom Score (Hong Kong Chinese version 2) (IPSS) in Chinese male patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) under secondary care.

Methods: A prospective longitudinal study was done by interviewing subjects at baseline, at 2 week after baseline for assessing test–retest reliability and at 26 week after baseline for assessing responsiveness. All subjects were interviewed to complete a structured questionnaire including IPSS, Short Form-12 Health Survey version 2 (SF-12v2) and Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS).

Results: The IPSS HRQOL score had weak correlations with SF-12v2 summary and DASS domain scores. For reliability analysis, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.90 for the seven symptom-related items. The intraclass correlation coefficients of the IPSS total symptom score and HRQOL score were 0.90 and 0.86, respectively. For sensitivity, statistically significant differences were detected between the subjects with BPH and those without for IPSS total symptom score (effect size?=?0.68) but not the IPSS HRQOL score. The areas under ROC curves for the IPSS total symptom and HRQOL scores were 0.67 and 0.60, respectively.

Conclusions: The IPSS was valid, reliable instrument in Chinese patients with BPH. The IPSS total symptom score, but not the HRQOL score, is sensitive in differentiating subgroups.     

Abuse of trust

Abstract

Following a summary of proposed changes to Community Care in the United Kingdom, this paper focuses on case management as a key component of social work skill. Associations between marketplace interaction and the relationship between caseness and care are followed by an analysis of issues and psychological defenses to which case management is liable. These are addressed at the interpersonal level and in terms of boundaries between organizational systems. A hypothesis is proposed that case management is particularly susceptible to conflicts around issues of dependence, independence and interdependence. Finally, initial suggestions are made regarding the role that a psychodynamic understanding can play in addressing these problems.     

TMR: An Automated System for Managing Revenue

Abstract

The Total Medical Record (TMR) system used by the Division of University Health Services at Duke University is an integrated medical and management information system. One module supports the financial needs of the division. To facilitate managerial performance, TMR automatically prints insurance claims, refund statements, revenue summary data, service utilization, itemized visit statements, monthly patient bills, dunning letters, and has a host of unique features that aid management with controlling the private fees generated by the University Health Services. In addition, the servicing of prepaid programs is accommodated, and the splitting of charges between prepaid and fee-for-service programs occurs automatically.     

Jumping on the Bandwagon with the Underdog: The Impact of Attitude Polls on Polling Behavior

An experimental design was used to examine the effect whichprevious polling information about candidate preference hadupon subsequent polling responses. Subjects were given one ofthree types of information (Carter commanding a lead, Reagancommanding a lead, no information about current poll results)at two different points in time. This yielded nine informationconditions. The data clearly demonstrate that both strengthof attitude and candidate preference are influenced by knowledgeof previous polling results. The patterns of both shift in attitudeand switching candidate preference are explained in terms ofan oppositional reactivity hypothesis.     

Polyvictimization in later life: Trauma-informed best practices

ABSTRACT

This article provides a summary of salient trauma findings and conveys the dearth of research pertaining specifically to the trauma of elder abuse. This material, in conjunction with information contained in other articles composing this special issue, lays the foundation for advancing a trauma-informed approach to assisting older adults who have experienced polyvictimization. Informed by the findings presented and their extensive clinical experience with victims of violence, the authors suggest steps for providing a trauma-informed and victim-centered response to older adults who have suffered polyvictimization. These steps are then illustrated with an in-depth late-life polyvictimization case analysis.     

Life satisfaction,self‐esteem,and personal happiness among Mexican and African Americans

Since the publication of The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, the writings of Thomas S. Kuhn have had a great impact on the way sociologists perceive developments within their discipline. This essay offers a critical review of the Kuhnian framework and questions the unreflective endorsement of this perspective. After a brief summary of the main points in Kuhn's approach, this paper argues that Kuhnian approaches preclude the possibility of an investigation of the historical relations and developments that mediate the production of scientific knowledge. Kuhn retains a reified view of science free from both sociohistorical influence and critical scholarship. Ideas still beget ideas, and knowledge gained through scientific investigation is still cumulative.     

Evaluation of quality of life in patients undergoing surgery for benign prostatic hyperplasia

Abstract

Introduction: Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is one of the most common diseases in the world and also one of the most common causes of urinary complaints that occur with increasing age. Thus, BPH should be addressed with surgical procedures. To contribute to the relevant literature, the present study aims to investigate the effects of surgical therapies for BPH on the patients quality of life.

Materials and methods: This study included 120 patients who underwent surgery for BPH at a Training and Research Hospital. The short-form health survey (SF-36) was administered to the patients before the surgery and at three months after the surgery. Eight parameters of the SF-36 and mental (MCS) and physical (PCS) component summary scores were calculated. The Student’s t-test, Wilcoxon, and chi-square test were used in the statistical analysis.

Results: When the eight parameters within the SF-36 health questionnaire were examined separately, the findings showed that patients quality of life increased significantly with respect to physical functioning, social functioning, and role limitations because of emotional problems , vitality, bodily pain, general health perceptions, and mental health domains three months after surgery (p?<?.001). The PCS and MCS significantly increased after surgery (p?<?.001).

Conclusion: The SF-36 questionnaire results showed that a significant improvement in the patients quality of life was observed in patients who underwent surgery for BPH. Our findings suggest that SF-36 could be considered a reliable evaluation test to be used in the patients with BPH after surgery.     

AAPOR Award

TThe American Association for Public Opinion Research Presentsthe AAPOR AWARD For Exceptionally Distinguished Achievementto Andrew Kohut As a brilliant media commentator on the nature and interpretationof poll findings, Andy Kohut has become the public face of opinionresearch to millions of Americans. Andy is     

The Theory of Planned Behavior as it predicts potential intention to seek mental health services for depression among college students

ABSTRACT

Background: Between 9.5% and 31.3% of college students suffer from depression (American college health association national college health assessment II: reference group executive summary spring 2013. Amer. Coll. Health Assoc. 2013; Eagan K, Stolzenberg EB, Ramirez JJ, Aragon, MC, Suchard, RS, Hurtado S. The American freshman: national norms fall 2014. Higher Educ. Res. Inst.; 2015). Universities need to understand the factors that relate to care-seeking behavior. Objective: Across 3 studies, to relate attitudes, social norms, and perceived behavioral control to intention to seek mental health services, and to investigate barriers to care-seeking. Participants: University college students (N = 845, 64% female, 26% male, and 10% unspecified). Methods: New measures were created in Studies 1 and 2, and were examined using structural equation modeling in Study 3. Results: Partially consistent with the Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen, I, Fishbein, M. Understanding Attitudes and Predicting Social Behavior. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall; 1980), a model with an excellent fit revealed that more positive attitudes about care and higher perceived behavioral control directly predicted higher intention to seek mental health services. Conclusions: Educating college students about mental health disorders and treatments, enhancing knowledge about available services, and addressing limited access to long-term care might improve treatment rates for students suffering from depression.