Policy agendas and immigration in Australia 1996 –2012

Immigration in Australia is inherently a controversial topic. Events such as the MV Tampa affair cause increased media and legislative attention but increased legislative attention in the policy area do not always follow such dramatic events. We analyse media and legislative attention in the area of immigration and show increased activity in parliament around both dramatic events discussed in the media and also over more technical issues. Increased attention within parliament sometimes occurs outside of the gaze of the media.     

The future of hunting: an age-period-cohort analysis of deer hunter decline

This paper employs a cohort analysis to examine the recent decline in the number of deer hunters in the State of Wisconsin and considers the implications of hunter decline for wildlife management and conservation. North American natural resource management strategies currently depend on hunters and anglers to fund habitat conservation, wildlife management, and land protection through license fees and special taxes on hunting equipment. However, hunter participation is declining across the United States, challenging the long-term viability of this approach. We undertake an age-period-cohort (APC) approach to analyze hunter participation rates and introduce an APC method to project the future number of hunters in Wisconsin. We find that if the recent patterns continue, the number of Wisconsin male deer hunters will decline by more than 10 % (55,304 hunters) in the next 10 years and an additional 18 % (88,552 hunters) between 2020 and 2030.     

CAN A HIGH SENSE OF CONTROL AND JOHN HENRYISM BE BAD FOR MENTAL HEALTH?

Social stratification profoundly affects mental health. Specifically, substantial empirical evidence finds that higher status promotes mental health via a higher sense of control and a propensity to cope actively with problems. An unresolved issue, though, is whether the effects of sense of control and active coping on mental health are uniformly beneficial across levels of socioeconomic status. Perceived control and John Henryism, an active coping style, may undermine mental health, especially for lower-status persons, who lack resources. Using data from the National Comorbidity Survey for African Americans, Hispanics, and whites, we find that both sense of control and John Henryism tend to be monotonically related to positive mental health regardless of socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity.     

Eating disorders and academic performance among college students

Abstract

Objective: There is a paucity of research exploring eating disorders (EDs) and academic performance (AP). This study aimed to understand the effect of ED treatment on AP, hypothesizing that students receiving treatment for EDs would have a higher GPA. Participants: The Spring 2010 – Spring 2011 National College Health Assessment data (N?=?231,586) was utilized. Methods: Ordinal logistic regressions, controlling for key confounders, analyzed the association between those diagnosed with anorexia or bulimia and GPA. Results: Students diagnosed with anorexia or bulimia and treated with medication and psychotherapy were respectively 1.49 (1.24, 1.80; p?<?.0001) or 1.35 (1.13, 1.61; p?=?.0009) times more likely to have a higher GPA (p?<?.0001) compared to students without EDs. Conclusion: Findings expand the literature on EDs and AP among college students. Additional research is needed to determine whether the combination of medication and psychotherapy is the most effective way to improve AP among students with EDs.     

Social Competence in Children At Risk Due to Prenatal Cocaine Exposure: Continuity Over Time and Associations with Cognitive and Language Abilities

The continuity of social competence between 36 months and first grade was examined in a sample of children at risk due to prenatal exposure to cocaine (N = 92). Parent report data on social competence were collected at 36 months of age and both parent and teacher report data were collected when children were in first grade. Regression analyses indicated that 36-month social competence significantly predicted first-grade parent ratings of social competence, even after controlling for cognitive ability. Thirty-six month social competence also predicted first-grade teacher ratings of competence, but these relations were mediated by child gender and cognitive ability. Early social competence was also a significant predictor of first-grade language ability, after controlling for 36-month language. These findings emphasize the importance of early social competence for later development.     

An Analysis of Specific Life Satisfaction Domains and Disordered Eating among College Students

Research has revealed that overall life satisfaction (LS) is negatively related to disordered eating. This study examined whether specific LS domains (e.g., family, friends, etc.) were more strongly associated with eating behaviors/weight perceptions (e.g., exercising to lose weight, using laxatives to lose weight, etc.) in 723 randomly selected college students analyzed separately by gender. Data were analyzed using logistic and multiple regression procedures. Results supported the hypotheses in the expected directions. College students’ weight perceptions had the strongest relationships with Satisfaction with Self and Satisfaction with Physical Appearance, and these relationships were stronger among females than males. Worrying about weight, self-described weight, and binge eating were significantly correlated with all LS domains (p < .05). Results suggest potential contributions of differentiating among the domains of LS in efforts to understand disordered eating among males and female college students. Implications for practice are discussed briefly.     

Increasing the sample size at interim for a two‐sample experiment without Type I error inflation

For the case of a one‐sample experiment with known variance σ²=1, it has been shown that at interim analysis the sample size (SS) may be increased by any arbitrary amount provided: (1) The conditional power (CP) at interim is ?50% and (2) there can be no decision to decrease the SS (stop the trial early). In this paper we verify this result for the case of a two‐sample experiment with proportional SS in the treatment groups and an arbitrary common variance. Numerous authors have presented the formula for the CP at interim for a two‐sample test with equal SS in the treatment groups and an arbitrary common variance, for both the one‐ and two‐sided hypothesis tests. In this paper we derive the corresponding formula for the case of unequal, but proportional SS in the treatment groups for both one‐sided superiority and two‐sided hypothesis tests. Finally, we present an SAS macro for doing this calculation and provide a worked out hypothetical example. In discussion we note that this type of trial design trades the ability to stop early (for lack of efficacy) for the elimination of the Type I error penalty. The loss of early stopping requires that such a design employs a data monitoring committee, blinding of the sponsor to the interim calculations, and pre‐planning of how much and under what conditions to increase the SS and that this all be formally written into an interim analysis plan before the start of the study. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Professional Temporary Agencies, Women and Professional Discretion: Implications for Organizations and Management

There are a disproportionate number of professional women working through temporary agencies. We develop a theory wherein this gender skewness in temporary-agency employment results from the differences in perceptions of control at work between men and women working through large traditional organizations. Our theory suggests that if control is perceived to be less for women than for men in large organizations, then women will tend to populate other work arrangements, like temporary agencies, in order to enhance their control. Propositions are tested via a unique data set comparing the responses of employees from both a London temporary accountancy agency and a large London accountancy firm. Our results are consistent with a lack of control driving professional women from large firms to temporary agencies, and neither rely on preference differences nor familial obligations.     

Situational Crime Prevention and its Discontents: Rational Choice Theory versus the 'Culture of Now'

The rational choice theory of crime and its cognate field of study, situational crime prevention, have exerted a considerable influence in criminal justice policy and criminology. This article argues that, while undeniably useful as a means of reducing property or acquisitive crime, rational choice‐inspired situational crime prevention initiatives are limited when it comes to offering protection against a growing number of so‐called ‘expressive crimes’. Developing this critique, the article will criticize the sociologically hollow narrative associated with rational choice theories of crime by drawing on recent research in social theory and consumer studies. It argues that the growing tendency among many young individuals to engage in certain forms of criminal decision‐making ‘strategies’ may simply be the by‐product of a series of subjectivities and emotions that reflect the material values and cultural logic associated with late modern consumerism.