Electronic cigarette and combustible cigarette use following a campus-wide ban: Prevalence of use and harm perceptions

Abstract

The current study examined changes in prevalence of e-cigarette use and perceptions of the harmfulness of e-cigarette and combustible cigarettes following a campus-wide tobacco ban. Undergraduate students completed surveys of tobacco use and perceived product harmfulness. Four samples were collected: in 2013 prior to the ban (n?=?792) and in fall 2014 (n?=?310), 2015 (n?=?208), and 2016 (n?=?417). E-cigarette use increased in the years following the ban (p?=?.01) while combustible cigarette use decreased from 2013 to 2016 (p?=?.02). Men were more likely than women to use both products (ps?<?.05). Students’ perceptions of the harmfulness of combustible and electronic cigarettes remained stable in the years following the ban (p?>?.05). This study is the first to examine the impact of including e-cigarettes in tobacco free policies. Combustible cigarette use declined, but e-cigarette use increased in the years following the e-cigarette ban. Prospective research is needed to understand the long-term impacts of e-cigarette bans.     

“Work as unto the Lord”: Enhancing Employability in an Evangelical Job-Readiness Program

The 1996 passage of welfare reform radically reshaped the principles and practices of poverty management in the U.S. On the one hand, it brought about an end to welfare as an entitlement and imposed rigid time limits, work requirements, and a programmatic supply-sided focus on “job-readiness.” On the other hand, it permitted and promoted the expansion of faith-based organizations in the provision of social services. This ethnographic case study of a prominent faith-based job-readiness program--Jobs for Life--is situated at the underexplored nexus of these two trends. Drawing upon participant observation in a Jobs for Life class, in-depth interviews with class instructors and participants, and content analysis of organizational materials, this article documents the program’s use of biblical principles and teachings to expound on the moral irreproachability of work and to fabricate “employable” subjects who submit themselves to both God and the employer. At play is a project that we call the “righteous responsibilization” of the poor, a responsibilization achieved through religious salvation. The case of Jobs for Life, we argue, not only extends our understanding of “religious neoliberalism” (Hackworth 2012), revealing how it shapes the process of subjectification and practices of poverty management. It also remediates a tension at the heart of neoliberal ideology between its emphasis on individualistic entrepreneurialism and its demand for submission to the abstract, alien decrees of the market. In the religious neoliberal framework exemplified by Jobs for Life, deference to capital is recast as the first step toward the entrepreneurial achievement of individual salvation.     

Correlates of Interpersonal Ethnoracial Discrimination Among Latino Adults with Diabetes: Findings from the REACH Detroit Study

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to identify the social and economic correlates of reported experiences of interpersonal ethnoracial discrimination among Latino adults in Detroit. We examine whether the correlates of interpersonal ethnoracial discrimination vary according to the domain of discrimination and compare findings for individual domains of discrimination to a composite measure of experiences of discrimination. This study suggests that the frequency of reported discrimination is moderately high, and relatively common among Latinos with diabetes who live in Detroit. The findings demonstrate that immigration and ethnicity-related factors, such as greater comfort speaking Spanish and being born in the United States, were persistent correlates of more frequent encounters of interpersonal ethnoracial discrimination. Implications for social work research and practice are presented.     

Book Reviews

Qualitative Sociology -     

Bayesian decision procedures for binary and continuous bivariate dose-escalation studies

In this paper, Bayesian decision procedures are developed for dose-escalation studies based on binary measures of undesirable events and continuous measures of therapeutic benefit. The methods generalize earlier approaches where undesirable events and therapeutic benefit are both binary. A logistic regression model is used to model the binary responses, while a linear regression model is used to model the continuous responses. Prior distributions for the unknown model parameters are suggested. A gain function is discussed and an optional safety constraint is included.     

A Generalized Loss Function for Process Optimization

The use of loss functions for measuring the undesirability associated with failure to achieve target values for manufacturing product characteristics is widespread in industry. This study presents a generalization of one of the most commonly used loss functions and compares the two functions based on five theoretical criteria. A simulation involving multiple probability distributions for a single product characteristic is used to compare the performance of the loss functions. An example from the manufacture of helicopter transmission gears is used to empirically demonstrate the superiority of the generalized loss function over the conventional loss function.     

Using short-term evidence to predict six-month outcomes in clinical trials of signs and symptoms in rheumatoid arthritis

A model is presented to generate a distribution for the probability of an ACR response at six months for a new treatment for rheumatoid arthritis given evidence from a one- or three-month clinical trial. The model is based on published evidence from 11 randomized controlled trials on existing treatments. A hierarchical logistic regression model is used to find the relationship between the proportion of patients achieving ACR20 and ACR50 at one and three months and the proportion at six months. The model is assessed by Bayesian predictive P-values that demonstrate that the model fits the data well. The model can be used to predict the number of patients with an ACR response for proposed six-month clinical trials given data from clinical trials of one or three months duration.     

Independent Correlates of Reported Gambling Problems Amongst Indigenous Australians

To identify independent correlates of reported gambling problems amongst the Indigenous population of Australia. A cross-sectional design was applied to a nationally representative sample of the Indigenous population. Estimates of reported gambling problems are presented by remoteness and jurisdiction. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify independent correlates of reported gambling problems amongst individuals and their social and family networks. The analysis was stratified by remoteness. Indigenous people living in remote locations reported significantly more gambling problems than those living in non-remote locations. In non-remote areas, being female, having high personal income, being more socially connected (i.e. involved in an Indigenous organisation or living in a household where all members were Indigenous) and reporting community problems were associated with higher levels of reported gambling problems. In remote areas, multifamily households, participation in sports and cultural events, and reporting of community problems were associated with higher reported gambling problems, while having a relative removed from their natural family was associated with lower reported problems. Problematic gambling is clearly related to the social and environmental contexts in which it occurs. Harm minimisation policies that focus on a reduction in crowding (especially in remote locations), increased public awareness of the negative consequences of gambling, improving access to support services, and lifting the socioeconomic status of Indigenous people may reduce gambling related harm in the medium to long term.     

Promoting the mental well-being of older people from black and minority ethnic communities in United Kingdom rural areas: Findings from an interview study

Drawing from 81 interviews with practitioners in social care and housing with care services in the United Kingdom, this paper explores practice issues in rural areas when supporting the mental health and well-being of older people from Black and minority ethnic groups. The paper begins with a review of the literature which provides evidence that BME older people are likely to be increasingly part of the populations of rural areas. Next it presents interview data revealing that while practitioners are aware of such demographic changes in general terms; some feel that they lack training and skills in adapting their professional practice to support all older people. Others express feelings of professional isolation in seeking to support older people from minority groups and are concerned that older people from minority groups may be at risk of isolation and loneliness. The paper concludes with a discussion of the study's implications for rural practice, policy and research.