Understanding the Relationship Between Egalitarianism and Affective Bias: Avenues to Reducing Prejudice Among Adolescents

In an era during which affirmative action in education is in jeopardy, it is important to understand how the ideologies of high-status ethnic group members maintain (or reduce) social inequality. We examine the extent to which the relationship between egalitarianism and prejudice among European American and Asian American adolescents can be explained by outgroup orientation (i.e., how much one values interacting with members of other ethnic groups) and strength of identification with one's ethnic group. Using structural equation modeling, we tested whether these two variables mediate the relationship between egalitarianism and intergroup prejudice. Results revealed that outgroup orientation was a mediator, but ethnic identity was not. Implications for mutual acculturation theory, prejudice-reduction programs, and affirmative action in education are discussed.     

Transition Shock and the Relocation of People from Mental Handicap Hospitals and Hostels

The process of deinstitutionalisation has been gathering momentum in Britain and the United States since the mid-1970s. A discussion of these trends provides the background to an examination of “transition shock” as it affects people relocated from mental handicap institutions. The paper explores the theoretical underpinnings of the concept of transition shock and links them to the findings of a follow-up study of the behavioural consequences of relocation.     

Issues Related to Sports Gambling

This paper looks at various issues that are of interest to the sports gambler. First, an expression is obtained for the distribution of the final bankroll using fixed wagers with a specified initial bankroll. Second, fixed percentage wagers are considered where the Kelly method is extended to the case of simultaneous bets placed at various odds; a computational algorithm is presented to obtain the Kelly fractions. Finally, the paper considers the problem of determining whether a gambling system is profitable based on the historical results of bets placed at various odds.     

The Statistics and Registration Service Act

"When we first saw the draft act, we were dismayed." The new Act for the independence of official statistics has now passed into law. Is the Royal Statistical Society (RSS) still dismayed? Tim Holt , President of the RSS, explains the Act, its workings, how parts of it have been changed for the better and what concerns still remain.     

Representations of Labour: Visual Sociology and Work

This paper explores the potential that visual methods, approaches, and resources offer to the sociologist of work. It looks at the way work is represented in a range of publications and asks questions about what the visual can add to our understanding of the workplace, workers, and work processes. It argues that we need to develop and expand a sociological language of the visual in order to better understand cultural and other aspects of work and employment.     

Transformative power: a study in a human service organization

This article focuses upon the relationship between power and organizational change. It specifically considers the question of under what conditions and utilising what tactics can people be induced to see their organizational existence in new ways. At the same time it focuses upon the basis of resistance to the methods employed within the organization and in so doing delineates the limits of such transformative power. For these purposes, it draws upon a three-year study conducted in the probation service and employs Callon's concept of a sociology of translation alongside the ideas of Weber and Foucault. The argument then extends beyond the probation service to note that the form and methods of these tactics are currently being employed throughout the public sector.