A Measure of Dependence Between Two Compositions

We consider the problem of describing the correlation between two compositions. Using a bicompositional Dirichlet distribution, we calculate a joint correlation coefficient, based on the concept of information gain, between two compositions. Numerical values of the joint correlation coefficient are calculated for compositions of two and three components, respectively. We also present an estimator of the joint correlation coefficient for a sample from a bicompositional Dirichlet distribution. Two confidence intervals are presented and we examine their empirical confidence coefficients using a Monte Carlo study. Finally, we apply the estimator to a data set analysing the joint correlation between the 1967 and 1997, and the 1977 and 1997 compositions of the government gross domestic product for the 50 states of the USA and the District of Columbia.     

Midlife and Older Gay Men Living with HIV/AIDS: The Influence of Resiliency and Psychosocial Stress Factors on Health Needs

HIV/AIDS research has mostly focused on younger gay men. This cross-sectional study originated from a larger study of 316 respondents to include a subsample of 38 midlife and older gay men living with HIV/AIDS. The study explores physical and mental health utilization rates, including physical and mental health status. Resiliency, internal health locus of control beliefs, and psychosocial stressors of age and sexual orientation discrimination, stigma, and internalized homophobia were also examined. A total of 65.8% of the HIV/AIDS participants received no mental health services the past year, despite reporting higher mental health distress. Of those reporting an HIV status, 10.5% indicated having no health visits in the preceding year and more delays in seeking care when needed and unmet health needs for which services were not sought. Participants reporting higher resiliency indicated less mental health distress and better health access indicators. Stigma and internalized homophobia negatively affected resiliency. Implications for practitioners working with midlife and older gay men are provided.     

International conference on Jewish civilization in eastern and central Europe,Minsk, 24–26 January 2000

A Symposium on Soviet Jewry

The Jews in Soviet Russia, Since 1917, Lionel Kochan (ed.). London, Oxford University Press for Institute of Jewish Affairs. 1970. ix + 357 pp. Index. £2.50.

Wanted: a history of Soviet Jewry

The Silent Millions: A History of the Jews in the Soviet Union by Joel Cang. London, Rapp and Whiting. 1969. 246 pp. £2.10.

Red Rose

Rosa Luxemburg, Ich War — Ich Bin — Ich Werede Sein, by Harry Wilde. Wien‐Muenchen‐Zurich, Verlag Fritz Molden. 1970. 264 pp.

A Book on Georgian Jewry

Yehudey Gruzia: Ma'avak Al Ha'shiva Le‐tsion (The Jews of Eorgia: A Struggle for the Return to Zion), by Mordecai Neishtat. Tel‐Aviv, Am Oved Publishers, Ltd. 1970. 148 pp. (in Hebrew).

Menshevism and the Jewish question

Russian Social Democracy; the Menshevik Movement. A Bibliography, by Anna M. Bourgina. Hoover Institution Bibliographical Series: XXXVI, The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, Stanford University, Stanford, California. 1968. 392 pp. (no price listed), (in Russian; English introduction).

Jewish writers of Byelorussia

Pismienniki Savieckaj Bielarusi: Karotki Bijabiblijahraficny Davednik (Writers of Soviet Byelorussia: a short Biobibliography), A. Harodzicki et al (comp.). Minsk, Vydavectva ‘Bielarus’. 1970. 440 pp. 82 kopeks.     

In Pursuit of Empirically Based Responsible Gambling Limits

The present study sought to (1) obtain expert opinion on the importance of low-risk limits for the field of gambling; and (2) establish the face validity for a tentative set of low-risk limits empirically derived from a recent analysis of population data on gambling (Currie et al., 2006). Gambling experts (171 researchers, clinicians and policy-makers in Canada and the United States) completed an online or paper survey to assess their support for the concept of low-risk gambling limits, their opinions of existing responsible gambling guidelines and the face validity of tentative low-risk limits for gambling frequency, dollars spent, percentage of gross income spent on gambling and duration per session. The majority of those surveyed endorsed the need for low-risk limits and rated the limits as being face valid. Concerns voiced pertaining to their dissemination to the public included the potential for creating a false sense of security among gamblers, encouraging people to gamble and difficulties in applying the limits across different forms of gambling.     

The Education of Booker T. Washington: American Democracy and the Idea of Race Relations

Over the past decades, the impact of Atlantic ideas and ideologies in the Americas has become a constant subject of discussion. The ways in which the French and Haitian revolutions determined the actions of African slaves in the Americas have only been matched by the relevance given by scholars to the impact of British Abolitionist policies from 1807 onwards. West African wars associated with the transplantation of Islam were just as important. Until today, the impact and the very existence of Islam among West African slaves taken to Cuba have been all but overlooked. In this article, I attempt to establish connections between Islam in West Africa and Islamized West African slaves in Cuba. My key argument is that in one way or another, Islamized Africans were present in Cuba from a very early period and that they continued to arrive in the following centuries. There are certainly enough elements to offer a first, preliminary sketch of the presence and impact of Islamized West Africans in Cuba.     

In Their Own Words: Participants' Perceptions of the Impact of Adult Day Services

Despite the growth in the number of adult day services programs providing long-term care in the United States, researchers have struggled to consistently identify the benefits of the services to older adult participants. Instead of identifying participant outcomes driven by administrative databases, funding requirements or accreditation expectations, this study attempted to identify outcomes through the lived experiences of the older adult participants through one-on-one interviews after 3 months of attendance. The purpose of this qualitative study was to gain an understanding of the experiences of older adult participants and to build theoretical understandings that connect experiences with outcomes. Twenty-eight semistructured interviews were conducted with older adults attending 4 day health programs administered by 1 organization in a large mid-west City. Three main program experiences were identified: social connections with participants, empowering relationships with staff, and participation and enjoyment of activities and services. These experiences seemed to be associated with perceived improvements in psychosocial well-being and a perceived decrease in burden or dependence on the caregiver. The findings provide theoretical connections that are helpful for exploring the impact of adult day services based on participant perspectives. Results suggest a need for further examination of the role social workers play in supporting psychosocial services within adult day programs.     

A Canadian Population Level Analysis of the Roles of Irrational Gambling Cognitions and Risky Gambling Practices as Correlates of Gambling Intensity and Pathological Gambling

Using population data (N = 11,562) drawn from five Canadian gambling prevalence surveys conducted between 2000 and 2005, the current study investigated the relationship between irrational gambling cognitions and risky gambling practices upon (a) gambling intensity, as measured by percent of income spent on gambling and (b) tolerance, a diagnostic indicator of pathological gambling. First, we found irrational gambling cognitions and risky gambling practices to be positively related. Second, irrational gambling cognitions moderated the relationship between risky gambling practices and gambling intensity. Specifically, people engaging in risky practices, spent less of their income on gambling when they had fewer irrational gambling cognitions compared to those with more irrational cognitions. Third, irrational gambling cognitions moderated the relationship between risky gambling practices and tolerance. Of the people engaging in risky practices, those with no irrational cognitions reported lower levels of tolerance than those with at least one irrational cognition. Interactions with gender are reported and discussed. These findings demonstrate the importance of both gambling cognitions and gambling practices upon the intensity of gambling and pathological gambling.

Replication of Low-Risk Gambling Limits Using Canadian Provincial Gambling Prevalence Data

A set of low-risk gambling limits were recently produced using Canadian epidemiological data on the intensity of gambling behavior and related consequences (Currie et al. Addiction 101:570–580, 2006). The empirically derived limits (gambling no more than two to three times per month, spending no more than $501–$100°CAN per year or no more than 1% of gross income spent on gambling) accurately predicted risk of gambling-related harm after controlling for other risk factors. The present study sought to replicate these limits on data collected in three independently conducted Canadian provincial gambling surveys. Dose–response curves and logistic regression analyses were applied to gambling prevalence data collected in surveys conducted in 2001–2002 within the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario (combined sample N = 7,675). A comparable dose–response relationship between gambling intensity and risk of harm was found in each province. The optimal thresholds for defining an upper limit of low-risk gambling were similar across the three provinces despite variations in the availability and organization of legalized gambling opportunities within each region. These results provide additional evidence supporting the validity of the low-risk gambling limits. Quantitative limits could be used to augment existing responsible gambling guidelines.

Effects of subtle heterosexism on gays, lesbians, bisexuals

This study examined heterosexism that is not specifically targeted at LGB individuals, but may be experienced as antigay harassment, and may contribute to the stigma and stress they experience. LGB participants (N = 175, primarily Euro-American college students), read scenarios of heterosexuals saying or assuming things potentially offensive to gay men or lesbian women. For each scenario, they indicated extent to which they would be offended and less open about their sexuality, and their perceptions of the behaviors as evidence of antigay prejudice. Not only did respondents find the scenarios to be offensive and indicative of prejudice, but perceived offensiveness was associated with a decreased likelihood of coming out. In comparison to gay men, lesbian women and bisexuals found the scenarios more offensive and more indicative of prejudice. Limitations of the current study and directions for future research are outlined.     

Technological change and sociocultural models in China: A case study of train commuters in Beijing

ABSTRACT

China’s mobility turn has created the world’s largest public rail system, contributing extensively to citizens’ economic, social, and spatial mobility. Concurrently, this technological transformation has introduced many opportunities for individuation, which could potentially challenge the social, collectivistic, and Confucian foundations of China’s sociocultural and political ideology. While the notion that ‘mobility produces culture’ is readily accepted, research on train mobility in China is rare. In this study, we use Albert Bandura’s Model of Triadic Reciprocal Causation to conceptualize mobility as agency. We employ Hermeneutic Content Analysis, a mixed methods framework, to study how this rapidly evolving mobility environment connects to the lives of 31 regular train users living in Beijing. Studying agency in China enables us to systematize the sociocultural models within which mobility practices are embedded and how they manifest. We find that our interviewees embed agentive practices in a cultural model that is intertwined with collectivistic aspirations of the country. Technological developments are thus integrated into existing sociocultural models and political expectations, contradicting existing debates on the fracturing impact of disruptive technologies.