Die psychodramatische Organisationsskulptur als Weiterentwicklung des Organigramms

The psychodramatic organization sculpture as a further development of the organigramThe psychodramatic organization sculpture represents a further development of the organigram. It provides the opportunity to analyse psychological aspects in a demonstrative and vivid way. By discussing four case examples of working with the psychodramatic organization sculpture, the article informs the reader about (1) formal and informal role aspects, (2) external role demands, (3) personal role demands and (4) social and sociometric criteria.     

Mortality inequality in two native population groups

A sample of people aged 40-67 years, taken from a longitudinal register compiled by Statistics Finland, is used to analyse mortality differences between Swedish speakers and Finnish speakers in Finland. Finnish speakers are known to have higher death rates than Swedish speakers. The purpose is to explore whether labour-market experience and partnership status, treated as proxies for measures of variation in health-related characteristics, are related to the mortality differential. Persons who are single, disability pensioners, and those having experienced unemployment are found to have substantially higher death rates than those with a partner and employed persons. Swedish speakers have a more favourable distribution on both variables, which thus notably helps to reduce the Finnish-Swedish mortality gradient. A conclusion from this study is that future analyses on the topic should focus on mechanisms that bring a greater proportion of Finnish speakers into the groups with poor health or supposed unhealthy behaviour.     

Somerville Youth Council

In fall 2004, after many years of discussion, the Somerville Youth Council started. Its mission is to create an ongoing process of discussion, critical thinking, and problem solving to develop solutions to the challenges that youth encounter. In order to be an effective voice for youth, the Somerville Youth Council will have a diverse membership, develop expectations of mutual understanding and respect, and ensure that the means of communication builds bridges between youth, decision makers, and all others in Somerville. Owadokun, one of the council founders, has since moved to Nigeria, where she is forming a youth council in her community. Avilés is an active Youth Council youth member.     

Assortative Mating by Education and Postponement of Couple Formation and First Birth in Britain and Sweden

This paper focuses on postponement of couple formation and first birth. We analyze couples born 1930–1979 who have experienced both events. First, we estimate a spouse choice equation based on individual human capital and family of origin characteristics as well as marriage market indicators, using a multinomial logit model. We create nine educational categories using predicted probabilities. Secondly, we estimate the rates of union formation and first birth using Weibull hazard models with individual unobserved heterogeneity, predicted educational categories from the first step, and other fixed and time varying variables. Higher education of one of the spouses, duration of education, and unfavorable labor market conditions delay couple formation and first birth. Swedish women form their unions later than British women, but once the union has been formed, they have their first birth sooner.JEL Classification: D1, J1An earlier paper, co-authored by Eiko Kenjoh, was presented at the Scholar seminar on Education and Postponement of Maternity, University of Amsterdam. We are thankful for comments from Shoshana Grossbard-Shechtman, Michael Lindahl, Adriaan Kalwij, Andrey Launov and other seminar participants at the University of Groningen, the University of Lund and ESPE 2004. We thank Howard Yourow for improving substantially our English and Sebastiene Postma and Robert Helmink for typing several versions of the paper. Further, we thank Eiko Kenjoh for giving us the country comparable education variable, which she constructed for earlier work (see Kenjoh, 2004).     

Labour Migration and Competitiveness in the European Union

The study is about the characteristics and phenomena of the labour migration that fluxes from, through, and into the East Central European region. The typical groups of migrant workers are emphasized, like the qualified employees, the commuters, the illegal workers, or the migrants according to the family's income optimization. The brain drain is analyzed as a problem of the absence of experts in the region. The tools and possibilities of migration policy are discussed, too, to find suggestions for the state how to turn the direction of migration to the desired way. Through this topic, the countries of destination are introduced with the competitive position of the eastern migrants. The study also reflects on the problem of asymmetric flux of labour out of the region.     

Crisis management during "live" supervision: clinical and instructional matters

In this article, we illustrate two examples of "live" supervision with marriage and family therapy trainees whose clients presented in the therapy room in immediate crisis. The case examples, one a client with suicidal thoughts and the other a parent who had struck her child, demonstrate how the university-based therapy team managed the recursive clinical and supervision processes that unfolded during the sessions. We present the case examples from the perspective of both supervisees and supervisor, discussing how our different experiences of the supervision unfolded in real time. Case discussion and reflections later in the article illustrate the need for an open, transparent, dialogical process throughout supervision. A case is made for supervisory participants to create alternative formats in which multiple supervisory voices can be heard.     

Book reviews

Política en Penumbra. Patronazgo y Clientelismo Políticos en la España Contemporánea A. Robles Egea (Ed.) Siglo Veintiuno de España Editores, S.A. Madrid, 1996

Mujeres y Hombres en la Formación de la Teoría Sociológica M. Ángeles Duran Heras CIS, Madrid, 1996; 340 pp     

A characterization of the geometric distribution

We show that for a simple random sample from a discrete distribution on the positive integers, the regression ofX _(2∶n) onX _(1∶n) is linear with unit slope if and only if the distribution is geometric.     

A Method for Comparing the Impact on Carcinogenicity of Tobacco Products: A Case Study on Heated Tobacco Versus Cigarettes

Comparing the harmful health effects related to two different tobacco products by applying common risk assessment methods to each individual compound is problematic. We developed a method that circumvents some of these problems by focusing on the change in cumulative exposure (CCE) of the compounds emitted by the two products considered. The method consists of six steps. The first three steps encompass dose-response analysis of cancer data, resulting in relative potency factors with confidence intervals. The fourth step evaluates emission data, resulting in confidence intervals for the expected emission of each compound. The fifth step calculates the change in CCE, probabilistically, resulting in an uncertainty range for the CCE. The sixth step estimates the associated health impact by combining the CCE with relevant dose-response information. As an illustrative case study, we applied the method to eight carcinogens occurring both in the emissions of heated tobacco products (HTPs), a novel class of tobacco products, and tobacco smoke. The CCE was estimated to be 10- to 25-fold lower when using HTPs instead of cigarettes. Such a change indicates a substantially smaller reduction in expected life span, based on available dose-response information in smokers. However, this is a preliminary conclusion, as only eight carcinogens were considered so far. Furthermore, an unfavorable health impact related to HTPs remains as compared to complete abstinence. Our method results in useful information that may help policy makers in better understanding the potential health impact of new tobacco and related products. A similar approach can be used to compare the carcinogenicity of other mixtures.     

On the impact of collaborative strategies for goods delivery in city logistics

Abstract

City logistics refers to the process of total optimisation of the logistics and transport activities in urban areas while considering economic, environmental, social and safety aspects. This paper considers a collaborative scenario for the urban goods transport planning and management as a way to reduce transport costs, congestion and environmental impact of this activity. An approach from the Operations Management field, using mathematical modelling, for tactical and operational decision-making is proposed to discuss and compare both collaborative and non-collaborative scenarios. This approach is validated using real data taken from the city of Bogotá, Colombia. Results put in evidence the quantitative benefits that can be achieved when collaborative logistics operations are implemented, represented in both transportation costs and environmental impacts. Although these results might not be surprising (like in the field of supply chain management), the contribution of this paper is centred in the fact that the impacts of collaboration in city logistics have not yet been quantified until now. This allows an ‘ex ante’ evaluation of the benefits of collaborative goods transport in cities.