Lightning strikes twice: Lessons learned from two food poisoning incidents in Japan

This case study examines the unique occurrence of two food contamination crises at Snow Brand Milk Products Co., Ltd., the top company in the Japanese milk product industry. The separate incidents of food poisoning occurred in 1955 and 2000; the latter incident, involving more than 10,000 victims, was the worst case of food poisoning in Japanese history.     

Cognitive therapy and behavioural coping in the management of work-related stress: An intervention study

Transactional models of stress emphasize the importance of cognitive appraisal of potential stressors in the determination of the stress response. This appraisal can be modified by the use of techniques normally associated with cognitive therapy. The contribution of a specifically cognitive component when intervening in work-related stress has not been well evaluated to date. This research seeks to determine the effectiveness of stress management training in the treatment of the work-related effects of stress by comparing the role of modifying dysfunctional cognitions with the teaching of appropriate behavioural coping strategies. Participants were allocated to one of two intervention conditions or to a waiting list control group. Those in the intervention conditions received group stress management either with the focus on delivering cognitive therapy techniques or with the focus on behavioural coping skills. Measures of general health were taken at the beginning and end of intervention and at 3-month follow-up. Participants in the cognitive therapy groups who were reporting symptoms of general ill-health at the start of the intervention showed a significant improvement at follow-up. Cognitive therapy appears to have been an effective intervention in work-related stress. Those in the behavioural group showed a smaller but still clinically effective improvement. Results are discussed in terms of methodological issues and implications for future research. It is suggested that changes in cognitive appraisal may need to be developed.     

The challenges of incorporating Muslim women's views into development policy: analysis of a Dutch action research project in Yemen

This article discusses the Muslim Women and Development Action Research Project (MWDAR), an attempt by the Dutch government to introduce new discourses on Islam and the empowerment of women into their development policy. Based on a discussion of the project in Yemen, an analysis of its evaluation reports, and follow-up research with project participants, we argue that the project did not meet expectations or project goals because it failed to go beyond an essentialist view of Muslim women. The article begins with a discussion of Dutch and Yemeni discourses on gender, Islam and development, and goes on to explore how these discourses ultimately influenced the project outcomes.     

Self‐Awareness in Human and Chimpanzee Infants: What Is Measured and What Is Meant by the Mark and Mirror Test?

The objective study of self‐recognition, with a mirror and a mark applied to the face, was conducted independently by Gallup (1970) for use with chimpanzees and monkeys, and by Amsterdam (1972) for use with infant humans. Comparative psychologists have followed the model (and assumptions) set by Gallup, whereas developmental psychologists have followed a different model (e.g., Lewis & Brooks‐Gunn, 1979). This article explores the assumptions in the definitions and methods of self‐recognition assessments in the 30 years since these initial studies, and charts the divergence between the developmental mark test and the comparative mark test. Two new studies, 1 with infant chimpanzees and 1 with infant humans, illustrate a reconciliation of the 2 approaches. Overt application of the mark, or other procedures related to how the mark is discovered, did not enhance mirror self‐recognition. In contrast, maternal scaffolding appears to enhance performance, perhaps by eliciting well‐rehearsed verbal responses (i.e., naming self). When comparable testing procedures and assessment criteria are used, chimpanzee and human infants perform comparably. A combined developmental comparative approach allows us to suggest that mirror self‐recognition may be based on a specific aspect of mental representation, the cognitive ability to symbolize.     

The DIRECTIONS nonprofit resource assessment model: A tool for small nonprofit organizations

Rapid growth in the number of nonprofits has created a shortage of trained staff and experienced volunteer leadership for nonprofit organizations. The Nonprofit Education Initiative (NEI) in South Carolina developed the DIRECTIONS nonprofit resource assessment model to provide tools to help nonprofits better meet the challenges facing our communities—tools that will help nonprofits develop effective plans, integrate resources, diversify revenue, communicate effective messages, and motivate constituents. These tools are also inexpensive and available close to home. The research and development process was a cooperative effort between the Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management and Clemson University Cooperative Extension Service, with funding from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. Cooperative Extension is a component of the land grant university system, the largest educational delivery system in the world. Cooperative Extension's role is to plan, execute, deliver, and evaluate learning programs consistent with locally identified needs. It helps people acquire the understanding, capabilities, attitudes, and skills essential to solving farm, home, and community problems. This article gives a background of the challenges facing nonprofit organizations in South Carolina, the steps taken to develop this new assessment model, and results of research conducted throughout the development process.     

Maternal Functioning, Time, and Money: The World of Work and Welfare

Numerous studies have assessed families' employment and financial stability following welfare reform. Yet little research has addressed whether welfare and work transitions are linked with other changes in family functioning. Using a representative sample of approximately 2,000 low-income urban families from the Three-City Study, analyses assessed whether mothers' welfare and employment experiences over a two-year period following welfare reform were related to changes in family well-being. Lagged regression models controlling for family characteristics and earlier levels of functioning found that moving into employment and stable employment (of 30 hours or more per week) were linked to substantial increases in income and improvements in mothers' psychological well-being. Movements into employment also were associated with declines in financial strain and food insecurity. Sustained or initiated welfare receipt was related to relative declines in income, physical health, and psychological well-being, but also to improved access to medical care. In contrast, mothers' welfare and work experiences showed very limited relations to changes in the quality of parenting or of children's home environments. These patterns were similar for families with young children and those with adolescent children. Results suggest that parenting behaviors are more resistant to change than are maternal emotional and economic functioning.     

Maternal Welfare and Employment Experiences and Adolescent Well-Being: Do Mothers' Human Capital Characteristics Matter?

Using a representative sample of over 900 low-income urban families from the Three-City Study, analyses assessed whether maternal human capital characteristics moderate relationships between mothers' welfare and employment experiences and young adolescents' well-being. Results indicate synergistic effects whereby greater maternal education and literacy skills enhanced positive links between mothers' new or sustained employment and improvements in adolescent cognitive and psychosocial functioning. Greater human capital also enhanced the negative links between loss of maternal employment and adolescent functioning. Mothers' entrances onto welfare appeared protective for adolescents of mothers with little education but predicted decreased psychosocial functioning among teens of more educated mothers. Results suggest that maternal human capital characteristics may alter the payback of welfare and work experiences for low-income families.     

The Expectation-Threshold model of reproductive decision making

It is proposed that as expectations about parenting become increasingly high, couples have an increasing tendency to decide to have a(or another) child. Similarly, as parenting expectations become increasingly low, couples have an increasing tendency to decide on sterilization. Couples without extremely high or low expectations continue to use contraceptives. Expectations are defined as Subjective Expected Utilities (SEUs) for having or not having a child. Preliminary results support the model and suggest that the threshold for making these decisions is not at neutral, but is conservative so that couples must have fairly high or low expectations before making such binding decisions are parenting or sterilization. The fact that data reveal that this exists supports the Expectancy-Threshold model, but it also requires a change in SEU Theory's maximization rule for some kinds of decisions.The authors wish to thank Carole Baker, former executive Director of the National Alliance for Optional Parenthood, and the board members of that organization for their cooperation, and Dr. Barbara Beach who helped with the data analysis. Funding was provided, in part, by The Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology, University of Washington, through a grant, No. 5 P30 HDO 9397, from the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development