Vector autoregression modelling and forecasting growth of South Korea

In this paper, we have estimated vector autoregression (VAR), Bayesian vector autoregression (BVAR) and vector error-correction models (VECMs) using annual time-series data of South Korea for 1950-94. We find evidence supporting the view that growth of real per-capita income has been aided by income, investment and export growth, as well as government spending and exchange rate policies. The VECMs provide better forecasts of growth than do the VAR and BVAR models for both short-term and long-term predictions.     

Voice quality as a marker of ethnicity in New Zealand: From acoustics to perception1

This study is the first acoustic analysis of voice quality in the two main ethnic dialects of New Zealand English. In a production experiment, narratives from 36 speakers were analyzed and H1‐H2 spectral tilt measures were calculated for each vowel. The results provide instrumental evidence for impressionistic claims about the differing voice quality features of the two main ethnic groups, showing that Maori English speakers are creakier than European New Zealanders. A perception experiment was also carried out to determine the perceptual salience of voice quality for the identification of speaker ethnicity. The results of regression analyses confirm that listeners are sensitive to the phonation differences, and are able to rely on phonation cues in an ethnic dialect identification task. The study demonstrates the role of voice quality as a critical sociolinguistic variable, and highlights the importance of listeners’ previous dialect exposure in terms of sensitivity to prosodic cues. Ko tēnei pūrongo te tirohanga tuatahi ki ētahi āhuatanga o te reo e puta ana i te korokoro o ngā kaikōrero o ngā reo ā‐iwi e rua o te Reo Pākehā i Aotearoa. I tētahi whakamātau i āta tirohia ngā oropuare o ētahi kōrero nō ngā kaikōrero 36, ā, kua tatauria ngā ine H1‐H2 e kīia ana ko te spectral tilt. Ko ngā putanga he taunakitanga mō ngā whakaaro o te tāngata e pā ana ki te rerekētanga o ngā reo o te hunga Pākehā me te hunga Māori, e whakaatu hoki ana he kekē atu te reo o ngā mea e kōrero ana i te ‘Māori English’ i te reo e kōrerohia ana e te iwi Pākehā. He whakamātau whakarongo i whakahaerehia kia kite mena he āwhina tēnei āhuatanga o te reo kia mōhio te kaiwhakarongo ko wai te iwi o te kaikōrero. Ko ngā whakaputanga o ngā tatauranga e kī ana kei te tino mārama tēnei āhuatanga o te reo e puta ana i te korokoro o te tāngata, ā, ka taea ēnei rerekētanga te whakamahi kia whakawehea te tangata Māori i te tangata Pākehā. Nā tēnei ka kitea he āhuatanga motuhake te reo o te korokoro, ā, he mea nui hoki mena kua tino wāia te kaiwhakarongo ki ngā reo ā‐iwi. [Māori]     

Notions of self: lived realities of children with disabilities

To research children’s notions of self, semi‐structured interviews, drawings and focused group discussions were used with 14 children with mobility ‘impairments’ aged 11–16 years. The objective was to capture children’s ‘lived realities’. Findings illuminated immense variation and fluidity in children’s understanding of ‘disability’. Children desired to appear similar to ‘non‐disabled’ children. Most attributed ‘disability’ to existential causes. Parents’ ambivalent attitudes and societal reactions to ‘disabled’ children are discussed. The study points out the unremitting hope and potential of these children, which is often silenced by the overarching ‘negativism’ that surrounds ‘disability’.     

Locational Choices of the Legal and Illegal: The Case of Mexican Agricultural Workers in the U.S.1

This paper examines relationships between legal and illegal farmworker migration from Mexico and state‐level labor market, agricultural, demographic, and public policy variables. The study uses a nationally representative farmworker survey providing direct legal status data. Consistent with previous literature, results indicate that personal and community networks are primary determinants of locational choices. Conversely, border enforcement is negatively related to migration to certain areas. Results are strongest for California migrants and for those with previous migration experience. Potential welfare and education program values are uncorrelated with locations of recent Mexican agricultural workers.     

Belonging and the uses of difference: young people in Australian urban multiculture

This paper examines how young people of migrant background in Australia make meaning of cultural, ethnic and racial difference to work out belonging in times of super-diversity. It asks what functions difference still has for a generation growing up within conditions of proliferating diversity that demand and accommodate competing constructions of cultural identities. It suggests that young people's narratives about difference depend on the space of belonging, and explores how young people use difference differently depending on whether they are articulating membership in the local community, the nation or youth culture.     

Neighborhood poverty and children’s exposure to danger: Examining gender differences in impacts of the Moving to Opportunity experiment

The Moving to Opportunity (MTO) program offered public housing residents in distressed communities a chance to move to low-poverty neighborhoods. The present study examined whether the resulting decline in neighborhood poverty led to lower levels of exposure to danger among children and youth ages 8-19 years old (n = 4606), and specifically, if there was a gender difference that matched the pattern of more beneficial program effects for girls and more adverse affects for boys. The study goes beyond previous research by using fixed effects to control for family factors that may influence moving behavior and confound estimates of gender differences in program impacts. Results showed that children experienced a decline in exposure to danger, with one key gender difference. Models based on brother-sister comparisons indicated that MTO had a more beneficial impact on exposure to drug activity for females than males. The findings suggest that neighborhood poverty is tied to children’s exposure to danger. Moreover, exposure to drug activity may help explain the gender differences in impacts on children’s mental health and risky behavior.     

An investigation of predictors of mental health in single men and women experiencing homelessness in three Canadian cities

Homelessness is related to poorer mental health, yet, there is limited understanding of the predictors of mental health of men and women experiencing homelessness. To support service providers in identifying individuals who might be at particular risk of poor mental health, this study investigated the predictors of mental health in 501 single men and women experiencing homelessness in Vancouver, Toronto, and Ottawa, Canada. Data were obtained via in-person, structured interviews. In order to identify whether predictors differ by gender, multiple linear regressions were conducted separately for men and women. Mental health status was measured by the Mental Component Summary score of the 12-item Short-Form Health Survey. Better mental health for men and women was associated with the presence of fewer chronic health conditions and a higher level of social support. An older age, not having experienced a recent physical attack, and absence of a mental health diagnosis were related to better mental health for women. The absence of unmet mental health needs within the past 12 months was associated with better mental health for men. The study highlights differences in factors associated with mental health for men and women. Service providers should be aware of the association of these factors with mental health to guide assessment and service planning.     

Working with Stories: Street-Level Bureaucrats and Their Work with Individuals with Psychiatric Disability Exposed to Interpersonal Violence

ABSTRACT

The focus of our attention is the meeting between street-level bureaucrats and individuals with psychiatric disability exposed to interpersonal violence. Based on 11 interviews, we illustrate how stories are understood, used, and made meaningful to the street-level bureaucrat. The contribution of this article is first of all that of being a framework, from a storytelling point of view, for the work and organizational experiences of street-level bureaucrats. Second, by paying attention to the story part of these relationships, we can better understand the situation of individuals with psychiatric disability exposed to interpersonal violence given their interaction with different street-level bureaucrats.