It Won't Change a Thing: The Meanings of Marriage in the Netherlands

The vast body of literature that highlights the increasing fragility of marriage fails to explore the effect of this fragility on the meanings people attach to marriage. During the last twenty-five to thirty years the instrumental and normative reasons for marriage—legal protection, societal support and enforcement, the social rejection of alternatives to marriage—have largely disappeared in the Netherlands. This study focuses on how young adults, raised after the most dramatic changes in marital practices took place, talk about the meanings of marriage in the context of building intimate relationships. In-depth interviews with fifteen heterosexual young adults (aged twenty-one to thirty) who were in a committed relationship showed that they talked about marriage in four different ways. They (1) minimized the meaning of marriage, (2) talked about the idea of marriage to ascertain commitment, (3) defined marriage as the ideal relationship, and/or (4) saw marriage as a jinx. Contradictions between these modes of talk revealed feelings of ambivalence and anxiety associated with a desire for commitment. The emotionally charged meanings associated with marriage anchored marriage in interviewees' imaginations, enabling the institution to retain its hold even though social pressures to marry are limited and legal substitutes to marriage exist.     

Disability at work: Understanding the impact of the ADA on the workplace

It has been more than 25 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed by Congress. Many supporters of the law hoped that it would improve the employment outcomes for people with a disability, yet many scholars argue that it has fallen short in achieving this goal. Such judgments of success or failure are typically offered with little regard for the complex relationship between law and social change. In this paper, I apply a socio‐legal perspective to scholarly research regarding the impact of the ADA on employment. Socio‐legal studies offer a variety of concepts and perspectives, which better capture the complexity of law's impact on social life, and the various paths through which it might have an impact on social change. From this perspective, studies tend to assume that ADA law will either impact social change directly or indirectly. I discuss the findings of both of these approaches and conclude with some directions for future research.     

‘Go on,Go on,Go on’: Sexual Consent,Child Sexual Exploitation and Cups of Tea

This novel paper critically addresses a currently popular sex education resource which compares sexual consent to tea drinking. Drawing from a study which considered the meaning of consent through focus groups and interviews with young people and professionals, we argue that the central ‘risk avoidance’ message of such resources individualises the potential risks of non‐consensual sex and ignores the gendered social structures which shape interpersonal relationships. We suggest that simplifying and extrapolating sexual consent from broader cultural understandings is problematic. Conversations with young people are important, but they need to address the complexity of sexual consent, coercion and gendered sexual norms.     

'We all speak the same round here': Dialect levelling in a Scottish-English community

In this paper the formation of a new dialect in Corby, Northamptonshire, a former steel town in the English Midlands, is traced across three generations. The study focuses on whether dialect levelling processes can account for the features of the new dialect formed by contact between the displaced Scottish and indigenous English inhabitants in the town. The results of a variationist analysis of the reflexes of two phonological variables are interpreted within a language ideology framework, with reference to commentary from the speakers themselves. Such a combination of perspectives offers a means of socially embedding the interpretation of the data with reference to the identity issues arising from this contact situation.     

Encopresis: the Mess that doesn't Go Away

A seminar entitled ‘Aged in Society: a Look to the Future’ (organised by Phillip Institute of Technology School of Nursing Centre for Continuing Education, March 1988) is interpreted in a personal way, by an ageing member of society and a worker in aged care.

The need to examine our attitudes to old age, retirement, disability and dependence, as well as our relationship patterns, and change them where necessary is outlined. Our health depends partly on ourselves. It is up to us to keep informed on all aged services and to influence their development, as voters, members of organisations, or as professionals working in that field.     

The Theory That Won't Die: From Mass Society to the Decline of Social Capital

Though it lacks adequate empirical support, the hypothesis of declining social attachments as a source of American social problems persists. Both mass society theory in the mid-twentieth century and the theory of declining social capital in the late-twentieth century have had broad appeal. This paper demonstrates the continuities in argument and assumptions between these two theories as well as the modifications of the theory in the face of cultural change. It suggests that some of the weaknesses in the theory of decreasing social capital can be traced to the assumptions it shares with mass society theory—assumptions rooted in concerns about individualism.     

Workplace discrimination and disfigurement: the national EEOC ADA research project

Using the Integrated Mission System of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the employment discrimination experience of Americans with disfigurement is documented. Key dimensions of workplace discrimination involving Americans with disfigurement and persons with missing limbs are compared and contrasted. Specifically, the researchers examine demographic characteristics of Charging Parties; the industry designation, location and size of Respondents/employers; the discrimination Issue (i.e., type of adverse action) alleged to occur; and the legal outcome or Resolution of these allegations. Charging Parties with disfigurement who are female or between 30 and 39 years of age are more likely to encounter employment discrimination than their counterparts with missing limbs. Harassment and Non-wage Benefits are the Issues that emerge in higher proportion. Allegations derived from persons with disfigurement are more common in among mid-size employers, those located in the South, or those in Retail or Service industries. Following investigation, allegations derived from persons with disfigurement are less likely to have Merit Resolutions than those brought by Charging Parties with missing limbs.     

Workplace discrimination and missing limbs: the national EEOC ADA research project

Using the Integrated Mission System of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the employment discrimination experience of Americans with missing limbs is documented. Researchers compare and contrast the key dimensions of workplace discrimination involving Americans with missing limbs and persons with back and other non-paralytic orthopedic impairments. Specifically, the researchers examine demographic characteristics of the charging parties; the industry designation, location, and size of employers against whom complaints are filed; the nature of discrimination (i.e., type of adverse action) alleged to occur; and the legal outcome or resolution of these complaints. Findings indicate that persons with missing limbs were more likely to encounter discrimination if they were male, under 20 or over 65 years of age, and White or Native American. They were also more likely to encounter more frequent discrimination when they worked for employers in the Southern United States, those with 200 or fewer employers, or whose industry designation involved manufacturing, construction, or transportation. Finally, the nature of job discrimination experienced by Americans with missing limbs is more likely to involve hiring, promotion, or job training than other issues. Implications for policy and advocacy are addressed.     

Workplace discrimination and traumatic brain injury: the national EEOC ADA research project

Using the Integrated Mission System of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the employment discrimination experience of Americans with traumatic brain injury is documented. Researchers compare and contrast the key dimensions of workplace discrimination involving Americans with traumatic brain injury and persons with other physical, sensory, and neurological impairments. Specifically, the researchers examine demographic characteristics of the charging parties; the industry designation, location, and size of employers against whom complaints are filed; the nature of discrimination (i.e., type of adverse action) alleged to occur; and the outcome or resolution of the investigations. Findings indicate that persons with traumatic brain injury were more likely to encounter discrimination after obtaining employment as opposed to during the hiring process. They were also more likely to encounter discrimination when they were younger or Caucasian or when employed in the Midwestern or Western United States. Implications are addressed.     

Workplace discrimination and cumulative trauma disorders: the national EEOC ADA research project

Employment discrimination of persons with cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs) was explored using the Integrated Mission System dataset of the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Demographic characteristics and merit resolutions of the Charging Parties (persons with CTD) were compared to individuals experiencing other physical, sensory and neurological impairments. Factors compared also included industry designation, geographic region, and size of Respondents against which allegations were filed. Persons with CTD had proportionately greater allegations among large Respondents (greater than 500 workers) engaged in manufacturing, utilities, transportation, finance insurance and real estate. The types of discrimination Issues that were proportionately greater in the CTD group included layoff, failure to reinstate, and failure to provide reasonable accommodation. The CTD group was significantly less likely than the comparison group to be involved in discrimination Issues such as assignment to less desirable duty, shift or work location; demotion; termination, or failure to hire or provide training. Persons with CTD had higher proportions of merit Resolutions where allegations were voluntarily withdrawn by the Charging Party with benefits.     

Multiple chemical sensitivity and workplace discrimination: the national EEOC ADA research project

Information from the Integrated Mission System of the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was used to investigate the employment discrimination experiences of Americans with multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) in comparison to Americans in a general disability group with allergies, asthma, HIV, gastrointestinal impairment, cumulative trauma disorder and tuberculosis. Specifically, the researchers examined demographic characteristics of the charging parties; the industry designation, location, and size of employers against whom allegations were filed; the nature of discrimination (i.e., type of adverse action) alleged to occur; and the legal outcomes or resolutions of these allegations. Findings indicate that persons with MCS were, on average, older than the comparison group and comparatively overrepresented by Caucasians and women. People with MCS were proportionally more likely than the comparison group to allege discrimination related to reasonable accommodations. People with MCS were proportionally more likely than the comparison group to file allegations against employers in the manufacturing and public administration industries, employers with 201-500 workers, and employers in the Western Census region. People with MCS were proportionally more likely than the comparison group to receive non-merit resolutions as a result of the EEOC's Americans with Disabilities Act Title I investigatory process. Implications for policy and advocacy are addressed.     

Workplace discrimination and HIV/AIDS: the national EEOC ADA research project

This article utilizes data from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Integrated Mission System database to document the levels of employment discrimination involving individuals with HIV/AIDS. The researchers explore the theory that the nature of HIV/AIDS related employment discrimination is rooted in deeper stigmatization than discrimination against other disability groups. Researchers compare and contrast key demographic characteristics of Charging Parties and Respondents involved in HIV/AIDS related allegations of discrimination and their proportion of EEOC merit resolutions to those of persons with other physical, sensory, and neurological impairments. Findings indicate that, in contrast to the general disability group, HIV/AIDS was more likely to be male, ethnic minorities, between the ages of 25-44, in white collar jobs, in the South and West and to work for businesses with 15 to 100 employees. Additionally, the allegations in HIV/AIDS were more likely to receive merit resolution from the EEOC by a large difference of ten percent.     

Workplace discrimination, deafness and hearing impairment: the national EEOC ADA research project

Data compiled by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), in its Integrated Mission System, provide documentation regarding the employment discrimination experience of Americans who are deaf or hard of hearing. This paper presents an analysis of 8,936 allegations filed by persons with hearing impairment and closed by EEOC between July 26, 1992 and September 30, 2003, as compared to 165,674 allegations filed by individuals with other physical or sensory disabilities. The investigators compare and contrast demographic characteristics of Charging Parties, characteristics of Respondents, the nature of allegations, and the outcomes of the allegations in order to illustrate how these variables differ between the two groups, herein referred to as HEARING (deaf, hard of hearing, or other hearing impairment) and GENDIS (general disability). Most allegations derived from both groups were filed against larger Respondents (those with 500+ workers). The most common allegation issues in the HEARING group involved matters of discharge, reasonable accommodation, and hiring. Outcomes derived from HEARING allegations were more likely to result in merit resolutions when compared to GENDIS, by a 25% to 21% margin.