Gender,work, and childcare in Kazakhstan,Mongolia, and Russia

The current study seeks to understand the nature of gender relations within a post‐Soviet welfare model in Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Russia. On the basis of the analysis of key labour market indicators, parental leave, and childcare policies, it finds that the welfare models in the three countries are hybrid, and neither authoritarianism in Kazakhstan and Russia nor democracy in Mongolia lead to substantive gender equality outcomes. Persistent gender inequality in these countries is underpinned by the neo‐liberal approach to welfare provision, conservative social norms, and limited agency of civil society to influence the policy agenda. Nonetheless, these states have distributed to the population with an emphasis on working mothers, and this policy choice has been driven by economic, demographic, and political considerations, which ultimately serve to support, rather than transform, the patriarchal power structure in these societies.     

Opportunity,outlook and coping in poor,urban, African American,late-age,female adolescent contraceptors

This article explored the concepts of resilience, equal opportunity, and coping within a person-process-context model among urban Black adolescents in the US. Data were obtained from narrative accounts and interviews among 20 pregnant and 16 nonpregnant Black female adolescents aged 17 and 19 years. Respondents were recruited from prenatal and family planning clinics of a large metropolitan hospital and were representative of a low-income community with many female household heads and at-risk behaviors. The instruments included a 24-item structured interview of demographic data, and the 56 item semi-structured Pregnancy Adulthood Negotiation of Status Interview (PANSI). The interview elicited responses based on concrete experience, dialogue for assessing knowledge, and an ethic of caring and personal accountability. Contextual analysis revealed seven themes: adulthood preparation, role model formulation, decision-making, protective sensibility, sex and gender role commitment, opportunity mobility, and mate selection. All females shared similar demographics. Most resided in female-headed households and were high school graduates. The subsample differed in behaviors and attitudes on church affiliation, college attendance, registered voter status, sense of care and protection of self and others, self expectancies of social mobility, dating, and mate selection. Nonpregnant females were more likely to have part-time work experience and have mothers with post-high school achievement. Low-income nonpregnant adolescents were effective contraceptors and had social mobility aspirations. Narratives suggest that nonpregnant adolescents had an inner strength and belief, and commitment to advancement of career and vocational goals. The affiliations acted as social supports. These women used skillful coping mechanisms. Clinical social workers should reinforce resilience and work values.     

Beliefs,Death Anxiety,Denial, and Treatment Preferences in End-of-Life Care

Abstract

This study examined cultural and religious beliefs, death anxiety, denial, and medical treatment preferences in end-of-life care in a sample of social work students, community residents, and medical students in a mid-western city of 49,000. Results indicated that most social work students, community residents, and medical students preferred palliative as opposed to life-prolonging care during terminal illness. The three groups differed in cultural and religious beliefs and all three reported a moderate amount of death anxiety. Students reported less denial of terminality than community residents. Implications for personal and professional preparation to provide end-of-life care are discussed.     

Social class,race, and toxic releases in American counties, 1995

This article, using data on 2,083 counties in 1995, tests the environmental racism/classism hypotheses and concludes that both have merit, however, specific findings demonstrate that the relationships are more complex than heretofore reported. Class and race relationships are conditional: while high social class reduces the level of toxic releases, it does so by moderating the relationship between fiscal capacity, pollution potential and this environmental harm. Further, while toxic releases increase as a function of the Black population, this relationship is stronger in the Sunbelt.     

Requests, refusals, and reasons in children's negotiations

Conflict situations were studied as indicators of children's socio-cognitive knowledge and the transmission of values in relation to negotiation. Concepts and paradigms from studies of requests were combined with those from studies of refusals. Puppets were used to create situations that varied (a) as to whether the child makes a request and encounters opposition (requests) or receives a request and offers opposition (refusals), (b) whether the adult offers or does not offer a reason. Children aged 3–5 years (Sample 1, N = 24; Sample 2, N = 24) were encouraged to make a series of attempts at resolving the conflict. Their responses were scored for the level of politeness or strategic skill shown. Request situations elicited higher levels of politeness and strategic skill than did refusal situations. In contrast to disputes in which the other party did not use reasons, the use of a reason by the other party elicited higher level strategies and, when the children were refusing, greater politeness. Some children were able to improve on their first attempt. The improvement was most marked when children were requesting and the adult gave a reason.     

中国古典美学中的物、光、风

美学是一门感性学.从这种学科的独特规定看,所谓的审美即是审形象,美的历史就是世界为人呈现形象的历史.那么,形象是如何产生的?自康德以来的西方美学,以及当代中国的主体论美学,对这一问题的认识基本上是围绕事物的表象与主体建构的关系展开的,即:人是万物的赋形者.形象的主观性就是它的审美性.但是在中国古典美学中,这种看法却值得商榷.比如对于中周道家而言,物不是僵死的客体,而是内蕴生命的有机体.这种包蕴牛命动能的物具有向形象开显的内部潜能.同时,除人之外,自然本身也存在着为物赋形的力量.如风与光.这种"物自显象"的观点,搁置了美学研究中无所不在的主体因素,将美置于自然物"本已的坚固性中".于此,"人化"不再成为自然向美生成的唯一因素,对象自身的审美价值得到了肯定.     

性别、权力与海南古代女性

社会性别的后天建构性使其成为分析社会结构的一个重要视角。本文从该角度重新审视海南历史上的汉黎互动,发现这种互动在本质上是两种迥异的性别文化的碰撞。在碰撞过程中,汉文化中的传统女性性别角色被黎文化不断挑战和改变,出现“女主外”的现象,但男性在政治领域的主导使“女主外”行为与支持男性“向学”的目的挂靠,女性“主外”行为的社会价值被贬低。“女耕男儒”的性别关系不但未能使女性获得自由,反而造成另一种性别压迫,最终成为海南独有的“男为尊”父权文化的表现方式。     

Methods of, and Reasons for, Emotional Expression and Control in Children with Internalizing, Externalizing, and Somatic Problems in Urban India

Although cross-cultural research concerning children's emotions is growing, few studies have examined emotion dysregulation in culturally diverse populations. This study compared 6- to 8-year-old children's reported methods of expressing and controlling anger, sadness, and physical pain, and their justifications for doing so across four groups in urban India: those with internalizing problems (N = 31), externalizing problems (N = 32), somatic complaints (N = 25), and an asymptomatic control group (N = 32). Results revealed that in comparison to physical pain, Indian children were less likely to report expressing anger and sadness through direct facial/verbal means. Control-group children reported expressing anger and sadness through indirect verbal cues more so than pain, whereas the internalizing and externalizing groups considered their expressions of anger and sadness uncontrollable and reported crying and utilizing aggressive behaviors, respectively, more than the control group. The somatic complaints group considered emotions trivial and reported withdrawing more than the control group.     

Culture,Segregation, and Tolerance in Urban America*

Objective. The objective of this article is to examine whether racial tolerance attitudes are influenced by the character of the urban subculture in which individuals live. Specifically, is there a significant association between Florida's (2002) concept of creative class and racial tolerance among white survey respondents? Methods. The Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey that comprises respondents across some 27 cities provides the data for this analysis. Ordered logit regression was utilized. Results. Independent of key explanations of racial tolerance such as racial threat and contact theories, creative class or new political culture cities are associated with more progressive racial attitudes among white respondents. In addition, important evidence is uncovered that shows creative class operates as an interactive variable, conditioning the effects of traditional determinants of tolerance. Conclusions. Evidence suggests that creative class or new political culture cities should be viewed as constituting distinctive cultural milieus that have important direct and interactive effects on tolerance attitudes.