The Construction of a Simple Book

A book is made for a horse race, and punters place their bets. The problem considered here is how the bookmaker should construct his book. Before this can be solved, it has to be determined how the punters will react to any proposed book. Much of the detailed discussion is confined to a race with two horses, though some results apply in the general case. The punters' problem is solved using a utility function, special attention being paid to the case of constant risk-aversion. Two solutions are provided for the bookmaker's problem, dependent on whether it is desired to maximize expected gain, or achieve the same gain whatever horse wins.     

Framing same-sex marriage: Media constructions of California's Proposition 8

Legislation regarding the legalization of same-sex marriages has been advocated for and opposed across distinct states in the United States. Claims makers on either side of the issue have attempted to have their voices heard in local and national newspapers. Newspaper personnel determine how to frame the issue, deciding which meanings associated with same-sex marriage will be highlighted and which will go unrepresented. This paper analyzes the media framing of Proposition 8 in California, a voter initiative prohibiting same-sex marriage, comparing frames across three newspapers: one local to California, the San Francisco Chronicle, and two national, the New York Times and the Washington Post. The paper illustrates shifts in frames from May 2008 to August 2010, a time period extending from the vote on the initiative through two court challenges. Overall, the results indicate that these newspapers more frequently frame same-sex marriage as a civil rights issue and that those attempting to block same-sex marriage do so as a function of discrimination. Less frequently, they frame same-sex marriage as a threat to heterosexual marriage. The findings show that the frequency with which the frames appear shift across newspapers as well as the time period of study.     

Religion and attitudes toward same-sex marriage among U.S. Latinos

Objectives. This study examines links between multiple aspects of religious involvement and attitudes toward same-sex marriage among U.S. Latinos. The primary focus is on variations by affiliation and participation, but the possible mediating roles of biblical beliefs, clergy cues, and the role of religion in shaping political views are also considered.Methods. We use binary logistic regression models to analyze data from a large nationwide sample of U.S. Latinos conducted by the Pew Hispanic Forum in late 2006.Results. Findings highlight the strong opposition to same-sex marriage among Latino evangelical (or conservative) Protestants and members of sectarian groups (e.g., LDS), even compared with devout Catholics. Although each of the hypothesized mediators is significantly linked with attitudes toward same-sex marriage, for the most part controlling for them does not alter the massive affiliation/attendance differences in attitudes toward same-sex marriage.Conclusions. This study illustrates the importance of religious cleavages in public opinion on social issues within the diverse U.S. Latino population. The significance of religious variations in Hispanic civic life is likely to increase with the growth of the Latino population and the rising numbers of Protestants and sectarians among Latinos.     

Are interracial daters more supportive of same-sex unions?

Researchers have theorized a relationship between interracial and same-sex unions, but little empirical work has been done to substantiate this connection. This study examines whether individuals who engage in interracial dating are more likely to express support for both same-sex marriage and civil unions, net of sociodemographic and ideological controls. Data are taken from Wave 2 of the Baylor Religion Survey. Ordered logit regression models are estimated in order to examine the relationship between interracial romance and support for same-sex unions, net of various controls such as attribution of sexual orientation, political ideology, and religious conservatism. Analyses reveal that individuals who have engaged in interracial romance are more supportive of same-sex marriage and civil unions. Further research should be conducted to provide a more robust causal understanding of the link between interracial dating and one's attitudes toward same-sex unions.     

New Voters,New Outlook? Predispositions,Social Networks,and the Changing Politics of Gay Civil Rights*

Objectives. This study examines the factors that shape public acceptance of homosexuality and support for same-sex marriage across age cohorts.Methods. We analyzed data from two national surveys. We constructed hierarchical logistic and hierarchical ordinary least squares regressions for relevant age cohorts in order to test our hypotheses and explore our research questions.Results. Our models suggest that personal contact has a greater impact on the attitudes of younger respondents, positively influencing public acceptance of homosexuality. Alternatively, religious and ideological predispositions have a greater impact on the attitudes of older individuals. When examining public support for gay marriage, we find that younger individuals have higher levels of deliberative engagement with the issue debate, while older individuals rely more heavily on their predispositions when determining issue stance. Interestingly, measures of media exposure are not significantly related to either public acceptance of homosexuality or support for same-sex marriage, suggesting that other factors may have a greater impact on public attitudes at this point in time.Conclusion. The implications of these findings are discussed in light of the emergence of a new political generation and the continuing struggle for gay civil rights.     

Meaningful Voices: How Psychologists, Speaking as Psychologists, Can Inform Social Policy

Kitzinger and Wilkinson (2004) posit that social advocacy can be argued for within both a discourse of equal rights and a discourse of mental health. They suggest that psychological evidence, because it is bound to a discourse of mental health, is currently not useful in advancing the campaigns for equal marriage rights. In our response to their argument, we (1) agree that the currently available psychological evidence is limited; (2) make the case that it is still important for psychologists to produce evidence that speaks to this debate; and (3) suggest how psychologists, still speaking as psychologists, can produce evidence that speaks to this debate through underutilized theoretical and methodological approaches to relevant issues. The authors analyze a key statement by United States President George W. Bush on the meaning of marriage and the available psychological literature on same-sex relationships to support their position.     

Direct democracy and minority rights: same-sex marriage bans in the U.S

Objectives. A common critique of direct democracy posits that minority rights are endangered by citizen legislative institutions. By allowing citizens to directly create public policy, these institutions avoid the filtering mechanisms of representative democracy that provide a check on the power of the majority. Empirical research, however, has produced conflicting results that leave the question of direct democracy's effect on minority rights open to debate. This article seeks to empirically test this critique using a comparative, dynamic approach.Methods. I examine the diffusion of same-sex marriage bans in the United States using event-history analysis, comparing direct-democracy states to non-direct-democracy states.Results. The results show that direct-democracy states are significantly more likely than other states to adopt same-sex marriage bans.Conclusion. The findings support the majoritarian critique of direct democracy, suggesting that the rights of minority groups are at relatively higher risk under systems with direct democracy.     

Moral Values, Moralism, and the 2004 Presidential Election

The "moral values vote" in the 2004 American presidential election should be interpreted more broadly than as a reflection of concerns about same-sex marriage and abortion. Instead of specific hot-button social policy issues, a general personality trait of moralism—the tendency to perceive a moral dimension in everyday decisions—may have contributed to the election outcome. Specifically, we hypothesize that some Bush supporters shared Bush's high level of moralism (as reflected in his rhetoric) and that this moralism motivated their votes. Consistent with our hypothesis, a preliminary empirical investigation suggests that Bush voters were, indeed, higher in moralism than were Kerry voters. Plans for further research and political strategy implications are discussed.     

The Perils of Rights Discourse: A Response to Kitzinger and Wilkinson

This commentary responds to Celia Kitzinger and Sue Wilkinson's argument for the use of human rights discourse rather than a discourse of mental health when arguing for the legalization of same-sex marriage. Without disagreeing with their basic argument, I "problematize" it, showing that legal and human rights discourses also have a history of reinforcing power dynamics and operating to the disadvantage of marginalized groups such as lesbians and gay men. First, equality rights discourse can force lesbians and gay men into a conservative mode of argument, for instance, having to show how similar they are to traditionalist opposite-sex couples, rather than emphasizing potentially significant differences. Second, the increasing use of rights discourse has arguably narrowed the scope of the lesbian/gay social movement and rendered its political strategies more conservative, rather than aiming for the elimination of heterosexism and patriarchy. Third, the focus on marriage as a human right tends to render invisible, and to reinscribe, the extent to which marriage as a socio-legal institution has operated in oppressive ways. Modern marriage is not innocent of oppression, tied as it is to the increasing privatization of social and economic responsibilities. While human rights discourse offers an important avenue for lesbians and gay men, the perils of its use should not be overlooked.     

The effect of paid maternity leave on low-income families' welfare use in the US

Despite the critical role that paid maternity leave can assume in the economic lives of low-income families, research to date has paid insufficient attention to whether paid maternity leave reduces welfare use for low-income families. Using the Current Population Survey (CPS) March Supplement 2007–2014 with the difference-in-difference (DiD) technique, this study finds a significant policy effect of paid maternity leave on reducing the probability of using Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), TANF benefit amounts and TANF participation length. This study confirms that paid maternity leave is likely to prevent low-income families from using welfare during job interruptions stemming from the birth of a child. Given that TANF is often associated with negative political and social connotations, paid maternity leave can be used as an important social policy to improve economic security as well as offer empowerment in overall social standing for low-income mothers. The discussion focuses on the implications of the findings in a broader context of American welfare states.     

中国城市居民的配偶家庭与精英地位获得

本文利用CGSS2006的数据,基于不同类型资本继承与转化的特点,考察了配偶父亲的社会经济地位对城市居民精英地位获得的影响,结果显示：第一,由于文化资本的传递需要长时间累积,配偶父亲的文化资本对个体成为专业精英没有帮助;第二,在中国,政治资本依然是具有支配性作用的,更容易转化为经济资本,但经济资本难以转化为政治资本;因此,配偶父亲的政治资本有助于个体成为市场精英,反之则比较困难。第三,资本的使用可能存在边际收益递减规律,婚后配偶的父亲带入的异质性资本效用可能会强于已被多次使用的父亲资本,因此,婚后配偶的父亲的社会经济地位对个体精英地位的获得具有更强作用。此外,配偶的父亲的影响对于不同性别的个体而言有所差异,虽然精英代际转化同时适用于不同性别,但精英代际继承更适用于男性。     

Theory and method: a social work approach to unmet needs

Social workers who plan or administer programs are fundamentally concerned with meeting the needs of the clients served. The social work profession, while proficient at needs assessments, has paid insufficient attention to research into social bases of unmet service needs. This study is an examination of unmet needs of persons with HIV diagnosis. It utilizes the Health Behavior Model, within the framework of the ecological perspective. The study is presented as a case example to illustrate the value of this research methodology for administration, programming, and policy in the human services.     

Keep the Tool-Box Open for Social Justice: Comment on Kitzinger and Wilkinson

We argue that psychology is not ill-suited to confronting problems of inequality and injustice, and that psychologists are, in fact, quite capable of activist science. The parameters of psychology need to be considered as being broader than mental health pronouncements regarding various targeted minority groups. At a time when empirical claims are being wielded as tools by both sides of the same-sex marriage debate, activist psychologists should not relinquish their own various strategies for challenging the status quo. The authors provide examples of tactics and tools that have been used and continue to be used by feminist and other progressive psychologists both to transform psychology and to work toward equality and social justice.     

上海多性伴性行为现状及其影响因素研究

本文利用上海市的调查数据,首先考察了上海市多性伴性行为的性别差异,接着从阶层归属、家庭亲属生活、性爱生活和性别规范四个层面对多性伴性行为的影响因素进行理论建构。研究结果表明：在多性伴性行为中,“生理需要论”并不起作用;“资本运作”和“环境影响”取代“阶层归属”发挥显性作用;“婚内感情论”具有一定合理性但也存在时效性,“头两年之痒”和“七年之痒”并存;“越轨”性行为具有连贯性;性别规范通过中间变量（两性在社会、家庭和性领域的角色扮演）间接影响两性的性活动方式。因此,我们需要以社会性别视角鉴别女性“性革命”成功与否,思考女性在性地位上是真正解放还是重新被奴役。     

论努尔哈赤、皇太极统一黑龙江地区各民族的策略

在后金———清政权建立和兴起过程中 ,努尔哈赤及皇太极父子对生活在黑龙江地区的蒙古、索伦、东海女真等民族非常重视。他们根据黑龙江地区的不同民族 ,分别采取了联盟、联姻、征服、招抚等不同策略 ,基本上完成了对黑龙江地区各民族的统一。这些策略是成功的 ,它不仅使黑龙江地区各民族成为后金———清政权的臣民 ,也为清政权的强大和入主中原创造了条件。     

Social Advocacy for Equal Marriage: The Politics of "Rights" and the Psychology of "Mental Health"

Using the contemporary issue of equal access to marriage for same-sex couples as a case study, we examine two distinctive frameworks within which social advocacy may be pursued. We argue that when we speak as psychologists, we use a discourse of mental health; when we speak as social activists, we use a discourse of human rights and justice. Although these two frameworks may converge in supporting equal access to marriage, they represent radically different ways of understanding inequality and advocating for social change. A discourse of mental health focuses on psychological damage or deficit (caused, for example, by the social exclusion of particular groups or individuals. A discourse of rights asserts universally-applicable principles of equality, justice, freedom, and dignity. Further, the paradigmatic framework of psychology as an approach to understanding human beings in the world seems fundamentally antithetical to the conceptual framework of human rights, as a basis for social justice.     

Exploring the nature of same-sex relationships

This study explored the relationship structure and experiences of 145 people in the United States, aged 50 and above, in long-term, same-sex relationships. A survey assessed relationship satisfaction and roles, caregiving, shared assets, and relationship protection and support. The ENRICH couple scales revealed high scores in communication, conflict resolution, and couple satisfaction. Most participants had taken steps to protect shared assets and assign legal authority to their partners. Participants expressed differing views regarding marriage. This study reveals distinctions based on gender and age that will inform practice with this population.     

Exploring the Nature of Same-Sex Relationships

This study explored the relationship structure and experiences of 145 people in the United States, aged 50 and above, in long-term, same-sex relationships. A survey assessed relationship satisfaction and roles, caregiving, shared assets, and relationship protection and support. The ENRICH couple scales revealed high scores in communication, conflict resolution, and couple satisfaction. Most participants had taken steps to protect shared assets and assign legal authority to their partners. Participants expressed differing views regarding marriage. This study reveals distinctions based on gender and age that will inform practice with this population.     

Aspects of Arranged Marriages and the Theory of Markov Decision Processes

The theory of Markov decision processes (MDP) can be used to analyze a wide variety of stopping time problems in economics. In this paper, the nature of such problems is discussed and then the underlying theory is applied to the question of arranged marriages. We construct a stylized model of arranged marriages and, inter alia, it is shown that a decision maker's optimal policy depends only on the nature of the current marriage proposal, independent of whether there is recall (storage) of previous marriage proposals.     

Social Policy in Singapore: Insights from a Social Work Perspective

Social work practice, irrespective of the location of practice, is shaped by local conditions, particularly the laws and policies applicable to the practice. Most governments adopt some form of institutional arrangements pertinent to local conditions to meet local needs, such arrangements in Western contexts commonly being described as the welfare state. In other contexts, notably the East Asian context, the Western welfare state has been deemed inappropriate for meeting local needs. In this discussion there will be a focus on arrangements developed in Singapore, a country in the East Asian region. Although Singapore has eschewed any notion of a welfare state, this discussion will demonstrate that it does have in place a range of policy responses to meet Singaporean needs and that these measures are consistent with the frameworks adopted by emerging Confucian welfare states.