Consumer bankruptcy and default: The role of individual social capital

In this paper, we empirically assess the role of individual social capital on personal bankruptcy and default outcomes in the consumer credit market. After controlling for a borrower’s risk score, debt, income, wealth, and legal and economic environments, we find that default/bankruptcy risk rises and then falls over the lifecycle, while a borrower who owns a home or is married has a lower risk of default/bankruptcy. Moreover, a borrower who migrates 190 miles from his “state of birth” is 17% more likely to default and 15% more likely to file for bankruptcy, while a borrower who continues to live in his state of birth is 14% and 10% less likely to default and file for bankruptcy, respectively. A borrower who moves to a rural area is 9% and 7% less likely to default and declare bankruptcy, respectively. We also find that measures of social networks, norms, and cooperation and trust (i.e., aggregate social capital) are inversely related to consumer bankruptcy.     

Gender differences in willingness to compete: The role of public observability

A recent literature emphasizes that gender differences in the labor market may in part be driven by a gender gap in willingness to compete. However, whereas experiments in this literature typically investigate willingness to compete in private environments, real world competitions often have a more public nature, which introduces potential social image concerns. If such image concerns are important, and men and women differ in the degree to which they want to be seen as competitive, making tournament entry decisions publicly observable may further exacerbate the gender gap. We test this prediction using a laboratory experiment (N = 784) that varies the degree to which the decision to compete, and its outcome, is publicly observable. We find that public observability does not alter the magnitude of the gender gap in willingness to compete in an economically or statistically significant way.     

The role of mindfulness in romantic relationship satisfaction and responses to relationship stress

Two studies examined the role of mindfulness in romantic relationship satisfaction and in responses to relationship stress. Using a longitudinal design, Study 1 found that higher trait mindfulness predicted higher relationship satisfaction and greater capacities to respond constructively to relationship stress. Study 2 replicated and extended these findings. Mindfulness was again shown to relate to relationship satisfaction; then, using a conflict discussion paradigm, trait mindfulness was found to predict lower emotional stress responses and positive pre- and postconflict change in perception of the relationship. State mindfulness was related to better communication quality during the discussion. Both studies indicated that mindfulness may play an influential role in romantic relationship well-being. Discussion highlights future research directions for this new area of inquiry.     

The Fragility of a Nudge: the power of self-set norms to contain a social dilemma

Can self-set normative goals restrain free-riding in a social dilemma? In a first experimental study, we test the effect of two different types of self-set normative goals on people’s willingness to cooperate in a public good game. Focusing on the level of contributions that one can at least be expected to make proves effective at restraining the material incentive to free-ride. Yet in two later studies, with only a minimal change in the wording of the goal, the effect does not replicate. The mental process is still present. But if the overall level of cooperation is higher, the effect is not strong enough to significantly increase contributions. The nudge does not work if the context is too cooperative in the first place.     

The power of social capital: Adapting Bourdieu to the study of public relations

All organizations have relationships with their environments that can be described as their social capital. The development of this social capital is a crucial public relations activity. Taking a cue from the late French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, social capital can also be seen as one of the several resources used to obtain or maintain positions of power. Bourdieu, however, was quite vague about how social capital should be analyzed and did not write about organizations per se. Accordingly, I will discuss and elaborate on the social capital concept by drawing from the work of Nan Lin (2002).     

Risk-taking in entrepreneurs, compared to criminals and students: The role of uncertainty and stakes

Entrepreneurs’, college students’ and criminals’ risk-taking were compared in hypothetical bet situations. The level of uncertainty and the amount staked were varied in gain and loss situations. Potential profit motivates entrepreneurs to choose higher stakes, expected loss will prompt the avoidance of risk. In profit-making situations, college students’ strategies are different: Students’ decisions are more influenced by probability factors than by the amount staked. Risk-taking tendency of criminals is higher than that of the other two groups, without applying a consistent strategy in taking risk.     

Oversight and accountability in the social auditing industry: The role of social compliance initiatives

The 2013 Rana Plaza collapse led to increased awareness of abusive working conditions in the garment industry. Much attention has since been paid to the role and responsibility of retailing companies. The responsibility of social auditing companies, however, has often been overlooked. The authors investigate the systems in place to detect and address substandard auditing that fails to detect violations of workers' rights. They find that, in practice, oversight of social auditors and sanctions for substandard audits are both limited. In this light, this article explores how social compliance initiatives can play a role in improving verification of audit quality and ensuring accountability.     

From social protection to vulnerability: Argentina's neo‐liberal reforms of the 1990s

This article examines the neo‐liberal reforms introduced in Argentina in the 1990s, focusing on labour policies and their consequences for labour market dynamics and the welfare of households. To put this period in historical context, the authors first provide a brief summary of the strategies applied both during the preceding import‐substitution phase and in the aftermath of the political, economic and social crisis of 2001–02. The latter, in effect, served as the tipping point for the emergence of a new set of social and economic policies aimed at promoting social cohesion and inclusion through employment.     

Lessons on social and health disparities from older lesbians with alcoholism and the role of interventions to promote culturally competent services

ABSTRACT

Older adults who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) face greater health risks and possibly more costly care because of their reluctance to seek out health and long-term care services because of limited cultural sensitivity of service providers. This is particularly evident in older lesbians who face substantial risk of health problems associated with alcoholism and are less likely to be open with health care providers because of stigma combined with feelings of alienation, stress, and depression. An estimated 4.4 million older adults are predicted to have problems with alcohol by 2020, and the rates of alcohol-related hospitalizations are similar to those for heart attacks, creating exorbitant medical costs. More culturally competent health and long-term care may reduce health care costs by effectively addressing the dynamics of alcoholism, aging, and lesbian culture. Training initiatives such as those developed by the National Resource Center on LGBT Aging have begun to address the need of a more culturally competent aging services network. This article provides exemplars from empirical data on older lesbians with alcoholism to highlight some of the health, economic, and social disparities experienced in the aging LGBT community. Current interventions in the form of cultural competence training for service providers are presented as a potential step toward addressing health disparities among LGBT older adults.     

Pathways from neighborhood to neglect: The mediating effects of social support and parenting stress

Neighborhood social cohesion relates to common bonds and feelings of trust between neighbors. The everyday demands of caregiving can take a toll on parents and increase their levels of stress and in some cases can lead to maltreatment. The current study seeks to understand how the support networks of parents relate to child maltreatment. Specifically, using structural equation modeling path analysis and a sample of 1045 families from Franklin County, Ohio, we examine the direct relationship between neighborhood social cohesion and child neglect as well as the indirect relationship between the two, mediated by social support and parenting stress. We find no significant direct association between neighborhood social cohesion and neglect. However, we find important indirect effects. Specifically, parents who reported higher levels of neighborhood social cohesion had higher levels of social support, lower levels of parenting stress, and consequently, lower levels of neglect.     

The cool welcome and the responses to it: Australian-Hungarians negotiate social reality in Hungary after 1989

This article examines the social aspects of Australian-Hungarians’ return to Hungary after the collapse of communism. I suggest that one of the most disillusioning aspects of homecoming for this group of Australian-Hungarians was the cold welcome they received from those who had stayed behind. The main task of this article is to analyse how returnees grappled with the negative attitudes of the stayees. Three major strategies are identified by means of which returnees facilitated their feeling of belonging: contestation, acceptance or dismissal of stayees’ perspectives. Returnees’ efforts to achieve a sense of belonging suggest that the nature of national membership is fundamentally fragile and porous and underlines that self-definitions are far from being either unconditional or ascribed. By placing contrasting narratives side by side, this article draws attention to the intersubjective elements involved in defining belonging.     

Changing attitudes to risk at older ages: The role of health and other life events

This paper investigates risk attitudes at older ages in 14 European countries. Older individuals report lower willingness to take risks in all countries. Using panel data we are able to show that this relationship between financial risk attitudes and age is not due to cohort effects or selective mortality. We also show that key mechanisms driving this change with age are health changes and other life events – in our preferred specification around half of the overall evolution of risk attitudes with age can be explained by health shocks, retirement, and widowhood or marital change that occur increasingly frequently as individuals age. These life-events are a particularly important explanation of the evolution of risk attitudes for women.     

The contribution of social support to children and adolescents' self-perception: The mediating role of bullying victimization

The purpose of this article is to report on a study that explores the linkages among self-perception, perceptions of social support, and bullying involvement among children and youth, with a focus on how bullying victimization mediates the association of social support and self-perception. We employ Harter's multidimensional model of self-esteem (1999; 2012), which highlights the inextricable link of social support to global self-esteem but does not explore the contribution of bullying involvement to this association. Our findings indicate that social support is associated with self-perception, and that traditional victimization mediates the association between social support and self-perception for three self-perception measures: social acceptance, physical appearance, and global self-worth. Contrary to our expectations, cyberbullying victimization was not found to mediate the relationship between social support and self-perception. These findings underscore the importance of exploring both traditional bullying victimization and cyberbullying victimization in relation to social support in order to understand their effect on development and wellbeing. More broadly, this study's finding that social support was a significant buffer to bullying victimization emphasizes the necessity of developing prevention and intervention strategies which are relationship-based and implemented early in young people's lives.     

The missing link: the role of social work schools and evidence-based practice

The translation and adoption of evidence-based practice principles has proved to be more difficult than researchers anticipated. Schools of social work are in a unique position to support this process within their home communities. Using the evidence-based practice process steps outlined by previous researchers, this article identifies specific strategies that schools of social work can adopt to support their broader communities as they attempt to adopt and sustain empirically supported interventions.     

The social position and internal organization of the medical profession in the Third World: the case of Singapore

This paper probes two aspects of the medical profession in Singapore: its structure and its social position. The first section reviews the relevant concepts concerning the structure and the social position of the professions that may be applied to medicine in Singapore. The second section looks into the structure of the medical profession in Singapore from an historical perspective. The third section deals with the internal organization of the medical profession. The fourth section focuses on its social position. The paper concludes with a summary of the main points and a brief comparison of the situation in Singapore with that in other countries.     

The power elite and elite-driven countermovements: The associated farmers of california during the 1930s

The involvement of the power elite in social movements has been a neglected area of research. The investigation of elites has generally been limited to that of local elites, political parties, and philanthropic foundations, and their involvement in social movements is believed limited to resource support (either to further or deter the progress of an insurgent social movement) or the institutional obstruction or facilitation of the movement. I contend that under specific conditions, the power elite may become active mobilizers, leaders, and supporters of countermovements (movements to deter insurgent movements). These conditions arise during periods of heightened insurgent movement activity and when the efficacy of institutional channels to safeguard or advance the interests of the power elite is reduced. This is illustrated in the case of the Associated Farmers of California, Inc., a countermovement aimed at interfering with and obstructing the attempts of farmworkers to strike and unionize during the 1930s by enlisting citizens and citizen groups as anti-unionization shock troops. It also opposed New Deal policies and legislation. The mobilization of nonelites into the Associated Farmers originated in and was carried out by agricultural and industrial elite of California to advance their own interests. Citizens allied with the Associated Farmers either because of ideological alignment with their goals or dependence on their economic activities. The theoretical ramifications of this example will be explored.     

The informational affective tie mechanism: on the role of uncertainty,context, and attention in caring

Based on the growing evidence on caring and enduring relationships displayed by species across the evolutionary ladder, the ubiquity and importance of environmental uncertainty faced by all organisms, and the adaptational principle that learning may involve preference learning besides instrumental reinforcement learning, this paper proposes a novel information theoretic model of affective bonding, focusing on humans. A special case of the proposed “informational affective tie mechanism” (iATM) turns out to be the model of Bault, Fahrenfort, Pelloux, Ridderinkhof, and van Winden: An affective social tie mechanism, Journal of Economic Psychology, 2017, 61, 152–175. In further contrast to the latter model, the iATM model allows for the role of multiple contexts and distributed attention. Moreover, it provides a dynamic, context related, endogenous representation of the well-known social value orientation construct, facilitating the propagation of caring as observed in the literature. Empirical support is provided along different dimensions. Although the model is not estimated in full detail, a necessary condition regarding its parameters is shown to be fulfilled. Furthermore, experimental findings concerning various well-known games can be tracked under plausible calibration. In addition, the mechanism can be linked to neurobiological evidence concerning maternal (and paternal) care – as the presumed primordial caregiving system – and the signaling role of oxytocin. Finally, the evidence concerning non-human species is addressed, as well as the role of norms and reciprocity.     

Foster parents exposed to political violence: The role of social support in addressing emotional and functional difficulties

BackgroundBeing a foster parent is stressful. It becomes even more stressful when foster parents face major threats to their own families and to the foster children in their care, such as during war situations. This study focuses on foster parents' reactions to the war with Gaza in southern Israel that took place in 2014. The first goal of this study was to describe posttraumatic symptoms (PTS) and problems in functioning among foster parents following their exposure to the war. The second goal was to identify background and social support predictors of PTS and functioning problems among these parents. The third goal was to examine the role of formal and informal support received by the parents as a moderator of the association between exposure to war events and PTS and problems in functioning.MethodsParticipants were 354 Israeli foster parents who were exposed to the war. Participants completed structured instruments of exposure to war events, PTS, functioning, and social support.ResultsExposure to war events was associated with PTS and related functioning problems. Education and religiosity were correlated with PTS and problems in functioning. Contrary to our hypothesis, more formal social support was associated with more PTS. Social support did not moderate the association between exposure to war events and PTS.DiscussionThe unexpected positive correlation between support and PTS was interpreted as either reflecting the fact that foster care agencies targeted foster parents who were most in need, or as a reflection of the inadequacy of the support they received. The findings indicate that foster parents need support during times of major stressful events such as natural disasters and wars, so that they will be able to help the children in their care. Specialized professional training for foster care workers needs to be implemented. Future longitudinal and mix-methods studies are suggested to help address the limitations of the present study.