“Backstage Autonomy”: Religious-Zionist State Widows in Second Marriages Manage Competing Expectations

ABSTRACT

The article examines the coping mechanisms of state widows belonging to Israel’s Religious-Zionist sector, whose husbands died at an early age either during military service or in terrorist attacks. While the national bereaved community’s collective unconscious expects the widows to dedicate their lives to institutionalized commemoration of their dead husband, Jewish tradition expects them to remarry to rehabilitate their family and children. The widows who were studied seemed to manage the competing expectations successfully: they remarried and maintained a happy family life while entrusting commemoration to the bereaved parents, who are still part of their extended family. The findings point to successful manipulation of the patriarchy of both communities to which they belong, achieving individualization that offers freedom in the private sphere—what we call “Backstage Autonomy”—while perpetuating hegemony on the public level on the Front Stage.     

Private lives and public programs: an Australian longitudinal study of the elderly

Major late life events, reported in the Dubbo longitudinal study of older Australians, are used to examine the interaction of private lives with public programs. First, the data indicate strong supportive effects of publicly funded income, health, and aged care programs in reducing family burdens from major life changes. In particular, financial crises were rarely mentioned, directly or indirectly, as major threats. Next, the central role of informal social support in these events is demonstrated, first, as in previous studies, family support was responsive to risky events and to aging itself. Also, in new findings, one-third of surviving elderly respondents coped with the burdens of family crises as a substantial proportion of the "major" life changes that occurred over 13 years of the study. Within the security and support provided by the Australian welfare system, and with strong social networks, families with older persons in the Dubbo study manage multiple, major life changes. With rapid population aging, the development of more, and more easily accessible, services for a growing population of older people is a priority. The critical challenge will be to harmoniously grow public financing, private funding, and informal caregiving to deal with the growing burden arising from an aging society.     

Private Lives and Public Programs

Abstract

Major late life events, reported in the Dubbo longitudinal study of older Australians, are used to examine the interaction of private lives with public programs. First, the data indicate strong supportive effects of publicly funded income, health, and aged care programs in reducing family burdens from major life changes. In particular, financial crises were rarely mentioned, directly or indirectly, as major threats. Next, the central role of informal social support in these events is demonstrated, first, as in previous studies, family support was responsive to risky events and to aging itself. Also, in new findings, one-third of surviving elderly respondents coped with the burdens of family crises as a substantial proportion of the “major” life changes that occurred over 13 years of the study. Within the security and support provided by the Australian welfare system, and with strong social networks, families with older persons in the Dubbo study manage multiple, major life changes. With rapid population aging, the development of more, and more easily accessible, services for a growing population of older people is a priority. The critical challenge will be to harmoniously grow public financing, private funding, and informal caregiving to deal with the growing burden arising from an aging society.     

Misdirection on the road to Shangri-La

Will life expectancy in the United States rise or fall in this century? The implications of either scenario are far reaching. We contend that the rise of childhood obesity in the United States in the past three decades has been so dramatic that it will soon lead to higher than expected death rates at middle ages and a possible decline in life expectancy by midcentury. The most detrimental health and longevity effects will not be seen for decades--a phenomenon that cannot be detected by current methods used to forecast life expectancy or estimate the number of deaths currently attributable to obesity. This scenario contrasts sharply with the views of mathematical demographers who generate forecasts by relying on the assumption that the U.S. pattern of longevity will follow that of other longer lived nations and on the extrapolation of historical trends in life expectancy into the future.     

Misdirection on the road to Shangri-La

Will life expectancy in the United States rise or fall in this century? The implications of either scenario are far reaching. We contend that the rise of childhood obesity in the United States in the past three decades has been so dramatic that it will soon lead to higher than expected death rates at middle ages and a possible decline in life expectancy by midcentury. The most detrimental health and longevity effects will not be seen for decades--a phenomenon that cannot be detected by current methods used to forecast life expectancy or estimate the number of deaths currently attributable to obesity. This scenario contrasts sharply with the views of mathematical demographers who generate forecasts by relying on the assumption that the U.S. pattern of longevity will follow that of other longer lived nations and on the extrapolation of historical trends in life expectancy into the future.     

百花入药，治病良方(英文)

春天是百花盛开的季节,可是你知道吗,百花不仅可以用来欣赏,而且还可以用来保健呢!民间有"常在花间走,活到九十九"的养生谚语。研究发现,从事园林工作的人往往很少得癌症,而且平均寿命比一般人长。     

Perspectives of Young People in Care About their School-to-Work Transition

Abstract

Achieving in education and employment has long-term effects on quality of life. With below-average levels of educational attainment, many young people in care are ill-equipped for the transition from school to further education and work. This paper presents findings from a qualitative study that explored the school to work transition experiences of young people currently or previously in care, and their ideas about future employment. A range of personal and contextual factors that influence study and work goals were identified. Young people spoke about the importance of personal confidence and determination, supportive relationships, someone to believe in them and encourage them, opportunities to pursue their goals, avenues to gain information about how to get desired jobs, positive school experiences, and the need for stability in their lives. The study suggests widening the agenda for case planning, transition from care and after-care support, to include career planning and vocational assistance.     

Professionals' Accounts for Work‐related Deceptions

Using interview and observational data, this article analyzes how private detectives account for using work‐related deceptions, I place special emphasis on how practitioners' accounts draw on professional affiliations and organizational resources that are less available to individuals in their private lives. These affiliations and resources include economic and demographic characteristics of employers, practitioners, clients and investigative targets, state licensing, the profession's social repute, and asymmetries in specialized knowledge between practitioners and laypersons. The conclusion addresses how accounts for work‐related deceptions benefit professionals through advantaging them over targets, obscuring harmful consequences of work, and helping them and their clients to avoid negative labeling. If you call someone up and say, “Hi, would you mind telling me where your brother is, so that I can put his ass in jail for the next five years,” you won't last too long in the private detective business. —Anonymous private detective     

Quality of life of older people in Israel: a comparison between older people living at home who are members of a ‘supportive community’ and nursing home residents

The supportive community is a program that was developed in Israel for older people who live at home. The program provides its members with a service package that includes medical and social services, emergency call-button, cultural activities, and a ‘community parent’ who is responsible for the members. Using quantitative method, this study compared the level of quality of life between 55 older people living in their homes who are members of a supportive community (average age = 74.7) and 60 elderly people living in nursing homes (average age = 75.8). As expected, results indicate that quality of life among the older people living at their homes who are members of a supportive community was higher than among the older people living in a nursing home. In addition, the quality of life of married, educated, functionally independent older people in good health and with a good economic situation was higher. Predictor variables of quality of life were: the place of residence, health status, and age. In light of increased life expectancy and the growing need to care for the older population, the practical application of the study focused on a recommendation for the social services to continue the support community development program.     

'She Has Different Fits to Me': how people with learning difficulties see themselves

People with learning difficulties often appear to experience significant incongruence between their categorical identity as someone with learning difficulties and their self-identity. This paper draws on research undertaken with 60 young adults, and their parents or carers to examine the nature of that incongruence. We conclude that it is based almost entirely in discursive relationships, whereas experiential and power relationships promote incorporation of categorical identity into self-identity. We call for more careful consideration and open discussion of the ways in which the categorical identity of people with learning difficulties is handled in discursive relations with them.     

Do you reward and punish in the way you think others expect you to?

This paper addresses three questions: (1) When deciding on whether to reward or punish someone, how does how you think others expect you to behave affect your decision? (2) Does it depend upon whether others expect you to reward them vs. punish them? (3) What is the interpretation of such a causal effect? We investigate these questions using a modification of the lost wallet trust game (a simplified version of the trust game) that permits punishment. Like previous studies, we collect data on what second-movers think that first-movers expect them to do by directly eliciting the second-movers’ expectations. Unlike previous studies, we ensure exogeneity of these expectations by instrumenting for them. The instrument is the expectations of neutral observers which are disclosed to second-movers prior to the elicitation of second-movers’ expectations. We find that what you think others expect you to do has a zero causal effect on both reward and punishment decisions. We also find that it is important to instrument for second-order expectations because they are endogenous. We interpret these findings in terms of models of guilt-aversion and intentional reciprocity.     

Stability in the Social Support Networks of Homeless Families in Shelter: Findings From a Study of Families in a Faith-Based Shelter Program

The following article outlines a longitudinal study tracking changes of the social support networks of 28 homeless families in shelter. Weekly changes in support networks of homeless mothers were tracked including 482 dyadic ties between mothers and supportive persons. Findings suggested that informal social support and persons who provided emotional support were significantly more stable forms of support in the mothers' lives throughout their shelter stay. Time was found to be a significant predictor of financial well-being and housing stability at shelter exit, but characteristics of the supportive ties were not. Implications for family social work and research practice are presented.     

Needs and Perceptions of LGBTQ Caregivers: The Challenges of Services and Support

Increasing attention has been paid to the lack of services and support afforded older lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) women in same-sex relationships, including caregivers. This study was designed to investigate the needs and perceptions of LGBTQ women from ages 35 to 91, including informal caregivers and older adults regarding services and support from health care providers. Questionnaires were completed by older LGBTQ women (N = 76), and follow-up interviews were conducted with 25% of caregiver respondents. The majority of subjects indicated a fear of future challenges and discrimination. Four main themes emerged when analyzing the open-ended responses: the need for health care workers who were both supportive and knowledgeable about LGBTQ issues; better and consistent recognition of same-sex partners and their rights to make decisions as primary caregivers; increased sensitivity training regarding the needs of LGBTQ patients and caregivers; and more open and accepting environments where LGBTQ patients and caregivers could feel comfortable discussing issues with the staff.     

Mental Health Law: Innovations in Education and Representation

What do we know about the lives of people with learning difficulties? What do we know about the lives of people who have used mental health services? People require legal representation to obtain access to the basics of life. Legal representation for people with mental disabilities or learning difficulties also provides a forum for client empowerment. Legal representation has historically been dominated by professionals trained in traditional methods. A mental health law clinic, based upon consumer objectives, provides an opportunity to apply critical legal theory to the practice of law. Legal and citizen advocacy are combined to provide maximum participation in obtaining results. In this article, the author traces the development of a mental health law clinic by documenting the value of clinical legal education and the necessity of commitment to consumer-centred representation.     

The role of savings and wealth in reducing ‘wilt’ between expectations and college attendance

‘Wilt’ occurs when a young person in high school expects to attend college but does not do so shortly after graduating. In this study we find that youth with no savings account in their own name are more likely to experience wilt than any other group examined. In multivariate analysis, young people who expect to graduate from a four-year college and have an account are approximately six times more likely to attend college than those with no account. Teens who expect to graduate from a four-year college and have designated a portion of their savings for college are approximately three times more likely to attend college than those with no account. Additionally, when savings are taken into account, academic achievement is no longer a significant predictor of college attendance. Policy implications are discussed.     

Uncertainty,Doubts, and Delays: Economic Circumstances and Childbearing Expectations Among Emerging Adults

Fertility, or childbearing, expectations have been increasingly identified as an important area of research, at least in part because expectations may help us to understand family issues of concern across the globe such as unintended pregnancies, low fertility, and delayed childbearing. While much research has focused on the link between expectations and behavior, this study extends the literature by asking how those expectations were shaped initially. Specifically, we explore how one’s economic context is related to expectations. This paper further extends the literature by focusing on two dimensions of the parenthood expectations of young people (men and women aged 18–27). Using the 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2011 waves of the Panel Studies of Income Dynamics (PSID) Transition to Adulthood (TA) sample, we considered whether young people expected to have children in the future and, for those who did, when they expected to do so. The results support financial-strain theories of the relationship between (subjective and objective) economic circumstances and childbearing expectations. Women and men with lower earnings, less education, and more worries about their future job prospects are more uncertain whether they will have children. Of those who expect to have children, those with more education and more worries expect to do so later in life. Further analyses reveal that race and gender condition these relationships.     

The Effects of Work and Community Resources and Demands on Family Integration

This paper uses interviews with 1,156 married dual-earner parents of children aged 10–17 from the 1992–1994 National Survey of Families and Households to examine relationships between work and community resources and demands and two aspects of family integration: activities with adolescents and family cohesion. The results indicate that mothers' shorter paid work hours and fathers' lower participation in community-professional organizations and moderate and high levels of informal helping are positively related to activities with adolescents, whereas moderate and high levels of participation in organized youth activities are positively related to family integration. Community-based subjective resources are positively related to family integration, whereas work-based subjective demands are negatively related to family cohesion. The findings generally are similar for mothers and fathers.     

The rhetoric and reality of youth mentoring

Enduring and supportive mentoring relationships can powerfully influence the course and quality of adolescent lives. As mentoring continues to expand, community agencies are implementing alternatives to the traditional one-on-one mentoring mode. Such efforts may help to reach youth who might otherwise fall through the cracks.     

天下福禄--北鸢夫妻的葫芦情缘

一位是画家,一位是中医,看似从事着毫不相干的两个领域工作的夫妻,他们的家令人感受到的尽是恬淡、和谐与惬意。彼此都抱着对美好生活的追求,一只小小的葫芦,经由丈夫的悉心养护和妻子的妙笔生花,也能让两人的心中充满喜悦。     

Significant resources needed for return to work after sick leave

There are increasing numbers of people on long-term sick leave, especially with stress-related ill health and musculoskeletal disorders. The main purpose of this study is to, early on in the sick leave, find predictors of individual resources for a return to work. The study group consists of women and men on sick leave compared with reference groups of healthy persons. A questionnaire was used regarding diagnosis given on the doctor's certificate, self-reported symptoms, residential area, education, and kind of work. It also contained open questions about consequences in daily life and beliefs about future. Checklists concerning life satisfaction, sense of coherence, locus of control, coping resources and sick leave information over a four-year period have been used. Significant differences between the study group and the reference groups were found, relating to sense of coherence, locus of control, life satisfaction and coping resources. More than half of the study group were still on sick leave at a two-year follow-up. Important predictive factors turned out to be: previous sick leave, own belief about future and self-reported symptoms.