The Unfolding Story of the Second Demographic Transition

This article presents a narrative of the unfolding of the Second Demographic Transition (SDT) since the theory was first formulated in 1986. The first part recapitulates the foundations of the theory, and documents the spread of the SDT to the point that it now covers most European populations. Also for Europe, it focuses on the relationship between the SDT and the growing heterogeneity in period fertility levels. It is shown that the current positive relationship between SDT and TFR levels is not a violation of the SDT theory, but the outcome of a “split correlation” with different sub‐narratives concerning the onset of fertility postponement and the degree of subsequent recuperation in two parts of Europe. The second part of the article addresses the issue of whether the SDT has spread or is currently spreading in industrialized Asian countries. Evidence gathered for Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan is presented. That evidence pertains to both the macro‐level (national trends in postponement of marriage and parenthood, rise of cohabitation) and the micro‐level (connections between individual values orientations and postponement of parenthood). Strong similarities are found with SDT patterns in Southern Europe, except for the fact that parenthood is still very rare among Asian cohabiting partners.     

Experiences of Families Inquiring About Donating or Adopting Embryos: Results of an Online Survey

Four hundred thirty-four individuals who had previously inquired with the National Embryo Donation Center (NEDC) or Nightlight Christian Adoptions about donating or adopting embryos responded to an online survey regarding which issues had been raised with them during their inquiry and how well they perceived NEDC and/or Nightlight had answered their questions regarding those issues. In general, respondents perceived that the operational issues surrounding donating or adopting embryos received more attention than the longer-term issues involving family dynamics and relationships. Overall, the inquirers were pleased with the responses to their questions (average >8 on a satisfaction scale of 1–10).     

The Development of Intergroup Forgiveness in Northern Ireland

As societies like Northern Ireland, Israel, and South Africa strive to resolve social conflict, there is growing theoretical and empirical interest in the role of intergroup forgiveness. This study examined intergroup forgiveness among 340 young adults in Northern Ireland. A short form of the Enright Forgiveness Inventory explored possible influences on propensity to forgive. All participants were Catholic and female (mean age 17.36 years), and had experienced verbal or physical injury or bereavement due to the Northern Irish political violence. Overall forgiveness levels were low in comparison with previous studies of interpersonal forgiveness but similar to previous studies of intergroup forgiveness in Northern Ireland. The strongest (negative) predictor of forgiveness was the perceived degree of hurt caused by the injury .     

Transnational social movement organisations in the global political arena

The post-Cold War period has been a time of rapid change in the international system. One major shift is a dramatic increase in the demands placed upon the United Nations. This increased reliance on the UN suggests that there may be a shift in opportunities for this and other international institutions to have a greater effect on the dynamics of global politics than was possible under the bi-polar system of the past. What are the implications of these changes for nongovernmental actors in the global system? We focus on a subset of international non-governmental organisations called transnational social movement organisations (TSMOs), and begin to document their forms and activities in the global arena. In what ways are TSMOs similar to or different from national social movement organisations, and how do TSMOs organise to engage in transnational political efforts? How do TSMOs interact with international institutions? Our analysis consists of detailed, systematic comparisons among seven TSMOs in the human rights, environmental, peace and development issue arenas, including: Amnesty International, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, International Fellowship of Reconciliation, Oxfam, Peace Brigades International and War Resisters International. We examine five dimensions of variation: founding and mission; leadership structure; membership; resources; and tactics. This work builds on the earlier work of Dennis Young (1992) and helps to inform future research in this area.     

The Impact of the National Child Development Study

SUMMARY. For the first 20 years of the National Children's Bureau's life, the massive and many-sided National Child Development Study was the flagship of the Bureau's research. The Study's impact on policy and practice was very considerable and it also earned itself an international reputation scientifically. This article highlights some of the study's major findings in education, health and social policy over the period when the 15,000 or so children involved were still at school     

Who participates,who does not,and why? An analysis of voluntary neighborhood organizations in the United States and Israel

Lack of participation in voluntary associations and the associated issues of why people do or do not participate are major areas of interest in the research literature concerning citizen participation. The present study used three types of variables (demographic, social psychological, and costs/benefits) to investigate the characteristics of participants and nonparticipants in neighborhood-type organizations in the United States and Israel. Findings from analysis of the demographic variables show some cross-cultural similarities (including a surprising lack of race/ethnic and education differences between participants and nonparticipants). There were striking cross-cultural similarities using the social psychological variables. The data from the Israel sample provide important information on the costs and benefits of participation. A discriminant analysis points to the predictive strength of social psychological and cost/benefit variables in comparison to demographic variables. Implications of these results for explanatory and predictive purposes are discussed.     

Empathy — Still at the Heart of Therapy; The Interplay of Context and Empathy

Developing skilled and delicate approaches and interventions aimed at assisting families (or systems) to solve entrenched problems has been an exciting and stimulating aspect of family therapy over its relatively short existence. Recently, more and more authors have re-emphasised the need for respect and mutuality in dealing with clients, the need for the therapist to be aware of the clients' frames of reference and idiosyncratic solutions, some arguing that it is preferable to take less of the expert, interventionist stance. The necessity for empathy underlined in many earlier approaches to therapy is mentioned, though generally ‘in the small print’, in the reports of the processes being investigated and developed. This article re-considers empathy, always known to be at the heart of the counselling/therapy¹ process, but perhaps too easily assumed at present. It contends that empathy remains essential, that it can be understood more fully, and thereby used more effectively. Some of the traditional understandings of empathy, mostly from writings on individual therapy, are considered. Working with families and systems demands a broader understanding and different applications. The therapist must be capable of empathy with the context and the relationships as well as with individuals. While asserting that human beings are generally capable of empathy, the article examines some particular aspects of its use in therapy, particularly with families; it contends further that a fuller understanding of empathy can enrich the whole process of therapy. The article argues that empathy remains an indispensable guide to intervention with the family, the system or the person, whatever form the intervention (or non-intervention) may take.     

Impartial Nominations for a Prize

A group of peers must choose one of them to receive a prize; everyone cares only about winning, not about who gets the prize if someone else. An award rule is impartial if one's message never influences whether or not one wins the prize. We explore the consequences of impartiality when each agent nominates a single (other) agent for the prize. On the positive side, we construct impartial nomination rules where both the influence of individual messages and the requirements to win the prize are not very different across agents. Partition the agents in two or more districts, each of size at least 3, and call an agent a local winner if he is nominated by a majority of members of his own district; the rule selects a local winner with the largest support from nonlocal winners, or a fixed default agent in case there is no local winner. On the negative side, impartiality implies that ballots cannot be processed anonymously as in plurality voting. Moreover, we cannot simultaneously guarantee that the winner always gets at least one nomination, and that an agent nominated by everyone else always wins.