Comparison of two life distributions on the basis of their percentile residual life functions

Let F and G be life distributions with respective failure rate functions r_F and r_G and respective 100α-percentile (0 < α < 1) residual life functions q_{α, F}, and q_{α, G}. Distribution-free two-sample tests are proposed for testing H₀: F = G against H_1,α,: q_{α, F} ≥ q_{α, G} and H_{2 α}: q_{β, F} ≥ q_β,G for all β ≥ α. This class of tests includes as a special case the test of Kochar (1981) for the alternative H*₂: r_F ≤ r_G. A theorem of Govindarajulu (1976) is extended in order to obtain asymptotic normality of the test statistics. The condition q_{α, F} ≥ q_{α, G} is implied by r_F ≤ r_G and is unrelated to the stochastic ordering F≤ G; if F and G are Weibull distributions with respective shape parameters c₁ and c₂ such that 1 ≤ C₁ < C₂, then q_α,F ≥ q_{α, G} for all α larger than a function of the parameters.     

Family violence. Development of a master's level specialty track in family abuse

Family violence is a societal reality. It will not disappear if society closes its eyes and fails to recognize its existence. When this is done, the abusive cycle is perpetuated. The specialty track described in this article was the nation's first graduate nursing educational program in the area of Family Violence. This program demonstrates nursing's potential contribution to the development of competent professionals with the expertise necessary to intervene in the abusive cycle.     

Addressing group dynamics in a brief motivational intervention for college student drinkers

Previous research indicates that brief motivational interventions for college student drinkers may be less effective in group settings than individual settings. Social psychological theories about counterproductive group dynamics may partially explain this finding. The present study examined potential problems with group motivational interventions by comparing outcomes from a standard group motivational intervention (SGMI; n = 25), an enhanced group motivational intervention (EGMI; n = 27) designed to suppress counterproductive processes, and a no intervention control (n = 23). SGMI and EGMI participants reported disruptive group dynamics as evidenced by low elaboration likelihood, production blocking, and social loafing, though the level of disturbance was significantly lower for EGMI individuals (p = .001). Despite counteracting group dynamics in the EGMI condition, participants in the two interventions were statistically similar in post-intervention problem recognition and future drinking intentions. The results raise concerns over implementing individually-based interventions in group settings without making necessary adjustments.     

The Personal Is Scientific,the Scientific Is Political: The Public Paradigm of the Environmental Breast Cancer Movement

This paper introduces the concept of boundary movements to characterize the distinctive growth and strategies of movements involving citizen/science alliances to contend with environmentally related illnesses. This concept is applied to a case study of the environmental breast cancer movement, which has induced changes in treatment options and public perception of breast cancer. Since the early 1990s, a segment of this movement has consistently criticized the traditional paradigms governing research, the epistemology of breast cancer, and popular understandings. Against the traditional focus on genetics, lifestyles, and personal responsibility, this segment's broader messages stress environmental causation and women's participation in science and politics.     

Whose ‘Ordinary Life’ Is It Anyway?

This paper offers a feminist critique of current community care policy and of the normalisation ideology which underpins it. Drawing on experience in services for people with learning difficulties and people who use mental health services, the authors draw a series of parallels between 'clients' and women in our society. They discuss the mechanisms whereby groups of people are accorded second class status and the ways in which such oppression is experienced. Strategies for change are discussed with reference to feminist scholarship and the development of the women's movement. The prevailing philosophy of normalisation, which is both apolitical and highly individualistic, is challenged to take more account of collective and communal ways forward and to acknowledge the interdependence of people who need care and their carers. Despite the rhetoric of community care, the work of carers (most of whom are women) is undervalued and unsupported. Mainstream values such as competitiveness and self-reliance are incompatible with the integration of people with disabilities and a theoretical framework which confronts such conflicts of interest is required.