Tibetan Fertility Transitions in China and South Asia

The own‐children method, an indirect technique, is used to estimate fertility rates for two populations of Tibetans during the 1980s and 1990s: a sample of rural villages in the Tibet Autonomous Region of China and exiles living in India and Nepal. The analysis provides evidence that these two populations underwent remarkably similar fertility transitions in both timing and magnitude. In both cases total fertility rates declined from over six births per woman to below the level of replacement in a span of 15 years. The parallel nature of these fertility transitions is intriguing given that, although the populations share a common ethnic identity, they have lived under sharply differing political, economic, and social conditions since the 1960s.     

An Examination of Gender Role Attitude Change Patterns Among Continuously Married,Divorced, and Remarried Individuals

Gender role attitudes influence marital satisfaction and stability and are typically treated as stable traits in adulthood. Theory and retrospective studies suggest changes in the life course based on relationship histories; however, tests of these assumptions are virtually nonexistent. Analyses from a longitudinal, nationally representative U.S. sample of 590 married individuals who vary in their marital experiences revealed both period effects and distinct within-group change patterns. Over a 20-year time period all demonstrate a shift toward more egalitarian attitudes. However, contrary to retrospective accounts asserting a steep increase in egalitarian attitudes in remarriages, prospective data from men and women indicate a curvilinear pattern over time that is distinct from patterns observed for continuously married and divorced/not remarried individuals.     

Hijab Micropractices: The Strategic and Situational Use of Clothing by Qatari Women

The hijab, the headscarf and cloak worn by some Muslim women, is often viewed through a lens of constraint, but in this article I emphasize its flexible use by women in Qatar, a wealthy, conservative Arabian Gulf nation. As part of a neoliberal agenda, the Qatari government frequently depicts female citizens using an “empowered woman” narrative that touts increased college enrollment, workforce participation, and sports involvement as evidence of a progressive gender milieu. Yet Qatar continues to be steeped in patriarchy and institutional gender discrimination. This domination finds its most visible expression in the scrutiny and regulation of women's clothing. In this article, I describe how Qatari women strategically modify, adjust, reimagine, and remove their hijabs to suit changing circumstances. These hijab micropractices—women's strategic and situational use of traditional Muslim clothing—are at times so infinitesimal they are easy to overlook. Yet they are significant because they enable Qatari women to exercise agency within the confines of clothing that is believed to signify Islamic patriarchy and female oppression. I argue that hijab micropractices are a means by which Qatari women resist these conditions, while maintaining a religious identity and commitment to family.     

Agricultural food resources and the foraging ecologies of American black ducks (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Anas rubripes</Emphasis>) and mallards (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Anas platyrhynchos</Emphasis>) at the northern limits of their winter ranges

Atlantic Canada is the northern limit of the American black duck (Anas rubripes) wintering range, and more recently, the mallard (A. platyrhynchos) wintering range. Atlantic Canada has experienced considerable urban and agricultural development over the last century, and wintering black ducks and mallards appear to be using these habitats, in addition to traditional coastal habitat to survive the winters. This paper combines digestive tract content and stable isotope analysis to provide a comprehensive analysis of winter black duck and mallard diet in Atlantic Canada, and compares mallard and black duck winter diet in agricultural and coastal areas. Coastal black ducks wintering in Atlantic Canada had a diet consisting mainly of marine invertebrates and wild plant matter, while coastal mallards appeared to rely less on invertebrates and more on plant matter through winter. As winter progressed, the agricultural black ducks relied more on the feed provided by the farmer at our study site, indicated by a significant decline in their δ¹⁵N ratios. Mallards at the agricultural site maintained a low and steady δ¹⁵N ratio through winter, indicating a less diverse winter diet than sympatrically-wintering black ducks. Urban black ducks had a diet consisting entirely of vegetation and anthropogenic food supplies, which appeared to meet their nutritional requirements for winter survival. Our research highlights the importance of agricultural and urban habitats for wintering black ducks and mallards in Atlantic Canada.     

Volunteering and Income Inequality: Cross-National Relationships

Wilkinson and Pickett, in their 2009 book The Spirit Level, found that, in rich countries, income inequality was negatively associated with a range of indicators of well-being, but they did not consider the relationship with volunteering. This paper seeks to fill that gap. Using existing data sources, it shows that, among European countries, higher levels of volunteering are associated with lower levels of income inequality. The relationship is particularly strong for regular and sport-related volunteering. The basic Spirit Level thesis is therefore confirmed as applicable to volunteering. However, while the thesis involves just one theoretical explanation for the income inequality/well-being relationship, namely status anxiety, in the case of volunteering, other variables are also found to be at play, including government social spending, available leisure time and geo-historical traditions. It is concluded that, while high levels of volunteering, as a form of social capital, can be seen as one of a number of features of more equal societies, disentangling cause and effect may require a more holistic approach to understanding its contribution to the generation and sustaining of social well-being.     

Old-age security, religious celibacy, and aggregate fertility in a Tibetan population

Using the family system as a framework, this study investigates the connection between old-age security concerns and aggregate fertility in Sama and Lho, two ethnically Tibetan villages of highland Nepal. The microdemographic approach reveals a difference in family systems between the two villages that results in Sama having a significantly lower level of fertility than Lho. The key difference lies in the practice of Sama’s (but not Lho’s) householders of designating a daughter to be a nun, a strategy meant to retain female labour within the household and thereby guarantee a caretaker in old age. Although the effect of this practice on individual fertility is unclear, the comparison with Lho reveals how it sharply curtails aggregate fertility by preventing nearly one in five women from marrying. In this case the motivation to ensure old-age security acts as an unintentional preventive check on population growth. Comparisons with other societies illustrate how the population of Sama combines elements of both the historical European and Asian demographic experiences.     

Using innovation to address HIV, AIDS, and environment links: intervention case studies from Zimbabwe, Uganda, and Malawi

This article presents three cross-cutting intervention case studies that address HIV, AIDS, and natural resources management in an integrated manner through innovative programming in Zimbabwe, Uganda, and Malawi. In Zimbabwe, a religious-based non-governmental group and two community organizations work together to build skills of HIV- and AIDS-vulnerable children in rural areas to meet dietary and income needs, while using natural resources sustainably. In Uganda, various government agencies and NGO actors work together to improve the food security of HIV-affected households at the national, district, sub-district, and village levels. Finally, in Malawi, a conservation organization incorporates HIV and AIDS awareness and programming into its operations and projects. Each case study presents pioneering approaches to simultaneously addressing the pressures on conservation initiatives, food security/agricultural production, income generation/livelihoods, and social and health care systems. They also provide lessons for expanding interventions and partnerships.     

Renting in New Zealand: perspectives from tenant advocates

Currently, around a third of New Zealand’s households, and half its population live in rental accommodation. The proportion of tenant households is growing. Tenant advocates, who are a first port of call for tenants experiencing difficulties in their housing situation, can provide unique insight into the experience of renting in New Zealand. This article presents key themes generated from semi-structured interviews with tenant advocates. Tenants are confronted with issues of poor housing quality, insecure housing, high rents relative to income, lack of autonomy, and difficulty asserting their legislative rights. These aspects of renting in New Zealand are likely to have adverse effects on health. Tenant advocates play an important role in supporting tenants to better housing. Their knowledge of the relationship between a landlord and tenant, particularly in times of trouble, means they can provide unique perspectives on policy solutions.     

Examining the efficacy of an mHealth media literacy education program for sexual health promotion in older adolescents attending community college

Objective: To determine the feasibility of a mobile health (mHealth), media literacy education program, Media Aware, for improving sexual health outcomes in older adolescent community college students. Participants: 184 community college students (ages 18–19) participated in the study from April–December 2015. Methods: Eight community college campuses were randomly assigned to either the intervention or a wait-list control group. Student participants from each campus completed web-based pretest and posttest questionnaires. Intervention group students received Media Aware in between questionnaires. Results: Several intervention effects of the Media Aware program were significant, including reducing older adolescents' self-reported risky sexual behaviors; positively affecting knowledge, attitudes, normative beliefs, and intentions related to sexual health; and increasing media skepticism. Some gender differences in the findings were revealed. Conclusions: The results from this study suggest that Media Aware is a promising means of delivering comprehensive sexual health education to older adolescents attending community college.