Strategy-proof resolute social choice correspondences

We qualify a social choice correspondence as resolute when its set valued outcomes are interpreted as mutually compatible alternatives which are altogether chosen. We refer to such sets as “committees” and analyze the manipulability of resolute social choice correspondences which pick fixed size committees. When the domain of preferences over committees is unrestricted, the Gibbard–Satterthwaite theorem—naturally—applies. We show that in case we wish to “reasonably” relate preferences over committees to preferences over committee members, there is no domain restriction which allows escaping Gibbard–Satterthwaite type of impossibilities. We also consider a more general model where the range of the social choice rule is determined by imposing a lower and an upper bound on the cardinalities of the committees. The results are again of the Gibbard–Satterthwaite taste, though under more restrictive extension axioms.     

Are psychosocial factors associated with low-back pain among nursing personnel?

The aim of this study was to investigate whether psychosocial factors at work are related to low-back pain among nursing personnel. It was conducted as a short-term follow-up study of 200 Danish female nursing personnel, providing care for the elderly. Self-reported measures of psychosocial factors such as time pressure, emotional demands of clients, control and social support were obtained by questionnaire at baseline, while stress, physical exertion and low-back pain were reported by diary records made in two, three-day periods in the subsequent 6 months. The study examines the possible influence of psychosocial factors preceding low-back pain as well as stress and physical exertion reported simultaneously with low-back pain. Only stress was associated with low-back pain (Odds Ratio (OR)=2.3; Confidence Interval (CI)=1.3-3.9) while neither physical exertion or any of the psychosocial factors were related to low-back pain. A possible pathway connecting emotional demands of clients to low-back pain through the mediation of stress was suggested.     

Untersuchung der autoritären Einstellung bei ungarischen StudentInnen

We asked daytime university and college students to complete the survey, which aimed at examining the authoritarian attitude of those questioned, and the factors in connection to it. The questionnaire was made up of 23 statements, and those questioned had to express how far they agree on a five grade scale (N = 349). On the basis of the answers it could be stated that the different groups of those planning to work in different fields differ from each other also from the point of view of accepting authority: from those groups which were examined in greater numbers the physical education teachers and the theologians were the most authoritarian, while the social workers and students of human studies were the least. Those answering differed also in terms of religiousness: those considering themselves religious and close to the church seemed to be the most authoritarian and those who are not religious the least. The results were interestingly coloured by the fact that in assessing specific social situations the social workers and the convinced non-religious ones showed signs of more authoritarian attitude. Results also proved that the own opinion about authoritarianism is related to the opinion of the parents. Beside many other questions we also examined whether authoritarianism is related to the situation when someone is stricter to him/herself and to those emotionally closer than to others.     

Self‐Employment as a Strategy for Dealing with the Competing Demands of Work and Family? The Importance of Family/Lifestyle Motives

In this paper, we test the argument that self‐employment may be a strategy for dealing with competing demands of work and family. We do this by comparing work–family conflict experienced by self‐employed and employed men and women. By examining to what extent the self‐employed versus regularly employed value time for themselves and their family — i.e., whether they are driven by family/lifestyle motives in their working life — we examine whether self‐employment can help reduce work–family conflict among those guided by family/lifestyle motives. Using data from a 2011 Swedish survey of 2483 self‐employed and 2642 regularly employed, the analyses indicate that experiences of work–family conflict differ between self‐employed and employees. Self‐employed men and women, especially those with employees, generally experience more work–family conflict than do employees. However, self‐employment can sometimes be a strategy for dealing with competing demands of work and family life. The presence of family/lifestyle motives generally decreases the probability of experiencing work–family conflict, particularly among self‐employed women with employees.     

‘Pure’ Farsi and political sensitivities: Language and ideologies in Farsi complementary language classrooms in Denmark

This paper presents an insight into two Farsi complementary language classrooms in Copenhagen, Denmark, characterised by political sensitivities. We illustrate a number of characteristic features of the classrooms concerning language use, pedagogical methods and cultural phenomena, which were related to key adults’ preferences, and we consider possible interpretations of them as indexical signs. In particular, we emphasise ideological interpretations (e.g. the monolingualism norm and language purism) and we relate the classroom characteristics to the contemporary state of Iran as well as to the time and place in which the classes occurred. We analyse both explicit metapragmatic messages and implicit ways of indicating ideologies, and see both types as characterised by avoidance of particular referents, that is, by unmentionables.     

Domestic violence against women: A field study in Turkey

Factors affecting domestic violence against women in four Turkish cities (Adıyaman, Sivas, Denizli and Kırklareli) having different socioeconomic structures, are analyzed in this study. These factors consist of social, cultural, economic and psychological factors. In contrast to what we expected based on earlier literature, family income level has a positive relationship with violence. Logistic regression analysis also revealed that being a university graduate and having a personal income decreases the prevalence of violence as expected. However, working women and women with children are more prone to domestic violence. Again, there is a strong association between the neighborhood where the family lives and the incidence of violence. The extent of male dominance, as measured by the question “How are decisions taken in the family” is also associated with domestic violence: woman is less likely to be abused in households where decisions are taken collectively. Likewise, families where women have to get permission from the husband to carry out certain activities, have an increased incidence of suffering from husband's violence. Psychological factors, like being abused or having witnessed violence as a child, are also significantly correlated with domestic violence.     

The Hopes and Fears of Older Australians: for Self,Family, and Society

This study refutes negative ageist stereotypes of how older people view themselves and society by reporting on their freely expressed main hope and main fear for the future. Data were collected through a population based cross‐sectional telephone interview survey conducted in NSW in 1999/2000. Participants (n=8,881) were randomly selected community dwelling older Australians (65+). Analyses revealed that participants were more likely to express a hope than a fear, and that a sizeable proportion of their hopes and fears were focused outwardly to family, or more broadly to social and environmental issues both locally and globally. These latter hopes and fears indicate awareness, interest and concern on a wide range of issues outside self and family. Some differences by gender and age were identified but views varied considerably among individuals. These findings provide evidence to dispel the negative image of older people as a self interested undifferentiated group whose members become progressively fearful as they age, by revealing an altruistic and outwardly focused dimension.