PAYOFF DOMINANCE VS. COGNITIVE TRANSPARENCY IN DECISION MAKING

This paper reports on three laboratory experiments designed to investigate the roles of decision costs and rewards on the accuracy of economic decisions. The experimental vehicle is a purchase decision employing the Becker-DeGroot-Marshak (BDM) mechanism. The first experiment verifies the incentive-compatibility of the BDM in a pure induced-value setting; the second tests its performance under different information regimes and payoff schedules; the third addresses the role of feedback information. Steep payoff schedules are found to be necessary to optimizing behavior only in cases where subjects must search out an optimal strategy rather than being able to deduce it from information provided. (JEL C91, D83)     

心脏病常用药扫除心魔

加拿大蒙特利尔市麦吉尔大学的临床心理学家阿伦·布鲁耐特最近在不断给创伤后应激障碍患者(PTSD)施加压力,一次次地重现给他们带来感情创伤的可怕经历——有的是强奸,也有的是战场外伤。当他的病人感到特别沮丧的时候——主要表现为哭泣、颤     

Research Note: The Social Behaviour of Injecting Drug Users

Correspondence to Professor J. G. Barber, School of Social Work, Newnham Drive, Newnham, P.O. Box 1214, Launceston, Tesmania 7250, Australia. Summary As part of a larger interview schedule conducted with 1245 injectingdrug users in Sydney, Australia, respondents were asked aboutthe degree to which their drug use is conducted within a groupcontext. They were also asked about the size of their user groupsand the extent of needle-sharing that occurs in the groups.Results revealed that injecting drug use was a social behaviourapproximately half of the time for the overall sample, but thatthere were statistically significant differences according tothe age, gender, and drug experience of the user. The studyalso found an alarming amount of needle-sharing among the sampleoverall. Females, younger users, and those less experiencedin injecting drug use were more inclined to inject in groups,while needle-sharing was more common among older and more experiencedusers.     

THE ANSWERING MACHINE GENERATION: WHO ARE THEY AND WHAT PROBLEM DO THEY POSE FOR SURVEY RESEARCH?

Increased incidence of telephone answering machines and theuse of such devices to screen calls pose a potential threatto the representativeness of samples in telephone surveys. Usingdata from nine statewide surveys, this analysis examines theextent to which answering machines are used to screen callsand the demographic characteristics associated with answeringmachine use and call screening. Results show that at most twoto three percent of households use answering machines to screencalls, and that such screening is more likely to take placein households with higher family incomes, outside rural areas,and which include individuals who are younger and have higherlevels of education. While call screening does not presentlythreaten the representativeness of samples in telephone surveys,the increased incidence of answering machines together withthe increased percentage of households indicating these devicesare sometimes used to screen calls demonstrate that the potentialbias from this source is growing.     

DIMINISHED LIFETIME SUBSTANCE USE OVER TIME: AN INQUIRY INTO DIFFERENTIAL UNDERREPORTING

This study investigates underreporting of lifetime marijuanaand cocaine use in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth.Comparing responses provided in 1988 with responses providedin 1984, this study evaluates the prevalence and correlatesof two indicators of underreporting, including use denial anduse reduction. At follow-up in 1988, a high rate of underreportingwas evident for both marijuana and cocaine, with rates of usereduction observed for just under one-third of all 1984 marijuanausers and just over one-third of all 1984 cocaine users. Outrightdenial of use in 1988 was almost twice as prevalent among cocaineusers as it was among marijuana users; nearly 19 percent ofall cocaine users denied use at follow-up, compared with nearly12 percent of all marijuana users. Correlates of under reportingvaried by substance and by measure of underreporting. The mostconsistent correlates of underreporting were interview mode,race/ethnicity, and educational status. Those interviewed bytelephone, minority respondents, and those with lower levelsof education were more likely to underreport. Race/ethnicityef fects were particularly striking in our analyses. Black respondents had at least twice the odds of underreporting comparedwith white/other respondents for every indicator of underreporting.Findings are compared with other recent research on underreportingand are discussed in the context of recent substance use prevalencefindings.     

Primary Health Care Workers' Views about Social Work

Summary SUMMARY A comparison of the views about social work held by 188 primaryhealth care workers—118 GPs, 31 health visitors and 39district nurses—working in the same teams is presentedhere.^* The study focussed particularly on their perceptionsof social workers, their role and performance. The data indicatea general acceptance of the social work role, but a lack ofknowledge of or extensive criticism about, social work performance.Significant differences of view emerged about social work training,role and clients, indicating occupation is a significant factorin perceptions held. In particular, the client group predominantlydealt with appears to have had an impact on perceptions. However,views about social work performance did not differ greatly,suggesting the influence of occupation on perceptions shouldnot be overstated.     

On the Contingent Valuation of Safety and the Safety of Contingent Valuation: Part 2 - The CV/SG "Chained" Approach

This article reports the results of a study aimed at estimating a willingness-to-pay based value of statistical life for road risks using a multi-stage approach which involves "chaining together" responses to contingent valuation and standard gamble questions.The rationale for employing a multi-stage approach is to break the wealth/risk of death trade-off down into a number of conceptually manageable steps, thereby trying to attenuate the various biases that appear to be pervasive in responses to more direct contingent valuation questions in the health and safety field.     

Contract or Con Trick? A Reply to Rojek and Collins

Correspondence should be sent to Leeds Family Service Unit, 15 Lavender Walk, Leeds 9, Yorkshire. Summary In this paper we identify some major misconceptions in a paperwhich appeared earlier in this journal. We argue that contractwork has been misunderstood and that contracts can be used effectivelyand without dishonesty. In particular, the point is made thatcontracts are a practical working concept which offers a meansof discussing and resolving clashes in perspective and of modifyingthe unequal power balance between clients and social workers.     

A Survey of Approved Social Work in England and Wales

Correspondence to Prof. P. Huxley, Department of Psychiatry, University of Manchester, Mathematics Tower, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL. Summary A survey of approved social workers (ASWs) was undertaken withlocal authorities in England and Wales, to review the provisionand organization of ASW services, and the contribution theymake towards the establishment and maintenance of a comprehensivemental health service. The findings show some variation in provisionwhich is in itself indicative of a variety of factors operatingto produce local and regional patterns of provision. Some ofthese are related directly to policy decisions, others to demographicand geographic variables, while still more are related to teamstructure, workload demands, and generic/specialist issues.The future pattern of mental health social work following theimplementation of the NHS and Community Care Act is consideredin the light of the findings from the survey.