NARRATIVE'S MOMENT AND SOCIOLOGY'S PHENOMENA: Toward a Narrative Sociology

In its urgency to establish itself as a science, sociology missed the opportunity to nurture its narrative character that the Thomas and Znaniecki research represented. Another moment now exists in an array of contradictions inherent in conventional sociological practices and the increasing acceptance and sophistication of narrative work in the human sciences. These conditions contain the potential for developing a narrative sociology in which sociology's phenomena are seen as significantly constituted by stories and in which sociological work is seen as narrative work. This article examines those conditions for purposes of opening spaces that a narrative sociology might fill.     

Exploring how the social model of disability can be re-invigorated: in response to Mike Oliver

In his 2013 article in Disability & Society, Oliver recommended that the social model should either be replaced or re-invigorated. I argue here that the social model’s current emphasis reflects the social conditions in which it was introduced, and that the model’s impact on disabled people’s lives would increase if its emphasis was to more accurately reflect the current social conditions in the geographical regions in which it is applied. In order to help foster its re-invigoration, I ask five questions for discussion on the way forward for the social model. I identified my questions through examining published writing on the scope of the social model and on the model’s relationship with other models of disability.     

ON THE LONG-RUN EFFECTS OF FASHION

We investigate the long-run dynamic interaction between fashion (brand loyalty) and industry structure. We analyze how this interaction affects the importance of fashion in the market for a product in the different stages of its life and characterize conditions under which fashion loses or preserves its relevance over time. The model can explain why some products survive fashion changes. ( JEL D21, L0)     

Restructuring the Past: Toward an Appreciation of the Social Context of Social Science*

The recent surge of interest in the history of the social sciences reflects the unsettled conditions which obtain within these disciplines. Historical analysis may prove an aid to the resolution of these conditions, but only if it does not fall into the genre generally called "whig history"—mythologized history which functions to legitimate contemporary practices by assimilating all previous developments to a stylized narrative of continuous, inevitable "progress." Because "whig history" is intrinsic to the "scientific ethos," its rejection entails a reconsideration of the nature of the scientific enterprise in general, and of social science in particular.     

Twilight's Children

The following article describes conditions in South Africa just as the "dismantling of apartheid" was beginning in earnest at the start of this decade. Thus it provides something of a baseline by which to compare changes which have taken place in that country since then. However, its greater contribution may be its evocation of the atmosphere of the time. As such it provides a unique perspective and a useful addition to the historical record of South African social welfare as well as a testament to those who struggled and continue to struggle to serve the nation's children.     

A Stimulus Control Model of Change in Behavioral Couples' Therapy: Implications for Contingency Contracting

Although contingency contracting is a popular strategy for use in treating distressed relationships, there is no direct evidence of its efficacy. A stimulus control model of change in behavioral couples' therapy states that the conditions under which an agreement was negotiated, regardless of the consequences specified in the agreement itself, are the primary determinants of whether the agreement is upheld. Once change is prompted, its maintenance is associated with stimuli generated by the negotiating session itself (that is, self-statements) and contingencies provided by concurrent changes occurring in therapy. Therefore, it is argued that explicit contingency contracting is unnecessary, and in fact contraindicated, for reasons which are elaborated. Hypotheses are offered which provide indirect tests of this model of change in behavioral couples' therapy .     

CHANGING CONCEPTIONS OF LEISURE AMONG THE JEWS OF WESTERN BELARUS AT THE END OF THE 19TH CENTURY

The article examines the adverse conditions in which the Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) started its war relief work in German‐occupied Lithuania in 1915. As Lithuania's fate was still uncertain, the JDC had to overcome almost insurmountable diplomatic, political and practical problems in the initial stages of its activity. The article highlights how the JDC was able to adopt a consistent policy, always subscribing to a non‐political approach and adapting its tasks to the immediate and most pressing need of the countries aided, while having to deal with significant political challenges that deeply affected its freedom of movement, such as the impossibility of acting without the State Department's approval and of ignoring the reality of the German military administration.     

Evaluating vehicle inspection/maintenance programs using on-road emissions data. The Atlanta Reference Method

On-road remote sensing data is an increasingly popular source of evaluation information for vehicle inspection/maintenance (I/M) programs. This article conducts one such remote sensing data evaluation for the Atlanta, Georgia, I/M program. The reference method involves comparing emissions differences in I/M and non-I/M fleet vehicles with those predicted by a regulatory computer model. Assuming that on-road emissions differences represent observed effectiveness and model-predicted emissions differences represent effectiveness goals, the Atlanta enhanced I/M program appears to be achieving 83% of its targeted emissions reductions. The method compares favorably with other remote sensing evaluation methods in its ability to be applied over time and its relatively small sample size requirement. The chief limitation to the approach is its reliance on a representative non-I/M fleet, which may differ in characteristics for which controls are difficult to locate. Such potential confounding factors include discrepancies in maintenance trends, socioeconomic conditions, and vehicle quality.     

Organizational construction of intrinsic motivation

Some psychological theorists claim that the worker's level of intrinsic motivation or alienation stems from the meeting between universal drives and personality characteristics and the material attributes of job tasks. Social theorists—focusing on organizational socialization and cultural practices—emphasize the firm's capacity to manipulate the meaning of a task independent of its material qualities. This social construction of a task's meaning may shape the intrinsic rewards a worker associates with it. Little empirical evidence exists that clarifies the conditions under which the psychological or the social model holds, particularly the conditions under which socialization practices within the firm can shape the worker's level of intrinsic motivation associated with specific tasks. We argue that the intrinsic value associated with a task is determined by its centrality to and fit with the organization's normative social and technical structure. Based on a study of eighty-four staff members within a bureaucratic organization we found that workers perceived high levels of intrinsic value for tightly controlled and routine tasks when the firm's rationalized methods of organizing were seen as legitimate. This interaction operated independently of the direct (usually negative) influence of task control on intrinsic value. A contingency model of intrinsic motivation is proposed, taking into account both the material structure of a work task and its fit with the firm's social and technical structure. Here the perceived legitimacy of the organization's structure conditions whether tightly controlled and routine tasks are viewed as alienating or as intrinsically motivating.     

Emotional response in a disjunction condition

This study investigated the emotional response in a disjunction condition. Participants were presented with a hypothetical three-condition scenario in which they imagined that they had submitted their application for admission to two universities. In the two conditions of certainty, the participants imagined that they were either accepted by University A or rejected by University A. In the uncertain condition, the participants imagined that they did not know whether they had been accepted or rejected by University A. These three conditions formed a disjunction condition. The results suggested that the participants felt less happy under the uncertain condition than under the two conditions of certainty, regardless of whether the information presentation was non-transparent (Experiment 1A) or transparent (Experiment 1B) and regardless of whether the options in the two conditions of certainty were similar (Experiment 2A) or substantially discrepant (Experiment 2B and Experiment 3). Experiment 3 further demonstrated that, consistent with the hedonic hypothesis, preferential choices (which constitutes a disjunction effect) are based on emotional responses in the disjunction condition. The underlying processes of the emotional response in the disjunction condition and its relation to the literature on risk and uncertainty aversion are discussed.     

Exploring the consequences of a recalibration of causal conditions when assessing sufficiency with fuzzy set QCA

The use of Charles Ragin’s Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) is increasing in the social sciences. However, some of its characteristics, especially those of its fuzzy set variant, are still not well understood by users. QCA, a set theoretic method, aims to describe, in a Boolean form, the configurations of conditions that are necessary and/or sufficient for some outcome. The calibration of set memberships is a central feature. We discuss how two alternative calibrations of a condition affect the assessment of consistency with sufficiency. Using first an abstract example and then an empirical one from the sociology of education, we explain why “stricter” calibration of conditions results in higher consistency with sufficiency. We demonstrate that conventional truth table analysis is not an ideal way to compare the analytic consequences of alternative calibrations and therefore employ an alternative which allows a more direct comparison of consistency indices while keeping comparative configurational contexts intact.     

Disability and the Dialectics of Difference

This paper re-theorises disability by asking the following question: within what historical, social, economic and political conditions does disability as an analytic of difference get constructed in a dialectical relationship with gender, class, caste and race? To respond to this question, I will first offer a materialist reading of the category of disability. I will then situate this discussion in an ethnographic study of a voluntary organisation in South India which provides residential as well as rehabilitational services for disabled children. Finally, I will discuss the politics of gendered 'caring work' and its implications for the continued production of marginalised difference. In doing this, I will thus demonstrate how disability can be re-understood as an ideological condition which is also structured by the same exploitative material conditions of capitalism as are race, caste, class and gender.     

The ‘Full Potential’ of Uganda's Cotton Industry

During the 1960s, Uganda was the largest cotton producer in sub‐Saharan Africa. Attempts to revive the sector following its demise in the 1970s were unsuccessful in the 1980s and more effective in the 1990s. However, there is a sense that it still lags behind its full potential. Low quality of the cotton, lack of a domestic textile industry, and low use of purchased inputs due to lack of rural credit are identified as key constraints. This article argues that the fundamental problems are low profitability, which reflects the displacement of cotton by food crops, and the forced‐labour conditions under which cotton was grown. It concludes that promotion of biotechnology and training cotton growers are two areas that should receive priority.     

Contributions of ergonomics to the construction of bus drivers health and excellence in public transport and at work

This article is the product of research that analyzed the work of bus drivers of a public transportation company that is considered a benchmark reference in its field of operations, in which it strives to achieve operating excellence. Within this context, the authors sought to understand how such a company has managed to maintain a policy that is capable of reconciling quality public transport while also providing working conditions compatible with the professional development, comfort and health of its workers. Ergonomic work analysis and activity analysis were the guiding elements used in this study. Initial analyses indicate that the activity of drivers includes serving a population and providing mobility for it, which depends on driving the vehicle itself and on relationships with colleagues, users, pedestrians, drivers and others.     

The antidepressant nefazodone. A review of its pharmacology, clinical efficacy, adverse effects, dosage, and administration

Nefazodone is an antidepressant medication which received approval from the Food and Drug Administration for treatment of major depressive disorder in 1994. This article summarizes the pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics, adverse effects, and drug interactions of nefazodone as well as its administration and dosing schedule. The potential efficacy of nefazodone in treating anxiety, premenstrual syndrome, chronic pain conditions, and sleep disturbances also is summarized. Nefazodone has a favorable side effects profile which makes it an attractive alternative option for patients who withdraw from treatment when they develop adverse effects to other available antidepressants.     

Sophisticated voting outcomes and agenda control

Necessary and sufficient conditions for an alternative to be a sophisticated voting outcome under an amendment procedure are derived. The uncovered set, as first defined by Miller (1980), is shown to be potentially reducible, and conditions are determined for which this reduction equals the set of sophisticated voting outcomes. In addition, simple methods are given for calculating both the uncovered set and its reduction.Presented at the 1984 Annual Meeting of the Public Choice Society, Phoenix AZ, March 1984. I would like to thank Gerald Kramer, Nicholas Miller, Norman Schofield, two anonymous referees, and especially Richard McKelvey for helpful suggestions and comments.     

Resiliency in older Hong Kong Chinese: Using the grounded theory approach to reveal social and spiritual conditions

Resiliency refers to the personal disposition favoring resilience, which is a state of adjustment in the face of adversity. As the nature and origin of resiliency are unclear, especially in older Hong Kong Chinese, the present study adopts a qualitative, grounded theory approach to elucidate resiliency. Findings from the study are notable because they contrast with existing knowledge. The study conducted personal interviews with 15 older Hong Kong Chinese identified by elderly service workers as resilient to recent adversities. Consequently, the study identifies a grounded, social–spiritual dialectic theory that relates resiliency to its contributors in early living conditions, family socialization, and religious faith. According to qualitative data, resiliency, which is characterized by self-reliance, openness, and relaxation, turns out to be a result of isolation in living conditions and family socialization. Isolation can also lead to religious faith, which is another contributor to resiliency. These findings are different from existing knowledge that social support is a basis for resiliency. They imply the possibility of converting negative experiences into impetus for generating resiliency.     

我国房地产融资问题研究

房地产业是我国的支柱产业之一,其健康发展对国民经济的发展起着重要作用,加之房地产业是资金密集型行业,因此有效地解决该行业的融资问题是促进其健康发展的重要条件。本文从国内房地产业融资现状入手,分析当前单一融资模式形成的原因及影响,考察了国内外房地产业除银行贷款外的主要融资渠道：房地产信托、房地产产业基金、住房抵押贷款证券化的涵义和特征,并将三种融资方式进行对比,提出适合我国国情的阶段融资方案及政策建议。     

Violence and political culture in Mozambique

This article is an attempt at developing a lens through which political culture in Mozambique can be analysed, described and interpreted. It is based on the notion of a political teleology that emerged out of the conditions within which the country fought for its independence. The paper argues that violence in a symbolic and physical form played a central role in the constitution of this political teleology by, on the one hand, allowing the liberation movement to produce an account of Mozambican history which both gave legitimacy to its own struggle while at the same time undermining alternative accounts and, on the other, set the scene for the implementation of a national project that came to be primarily concerned with the reproduction of the claim to power of the liberation movement. Forty years of independence in Mozambique offer an ideal time frame to attempt the construction of such a lens.