Violence against women in Spain and Cuba: The same reality,two different visions / Violencia hacia la mujer en España y Cuba: una misma realidad,dos visiones diferentes

This study aims to analyse the acceptance of gender violence in Spanish and Cuban populations. We analysed the influence of sexist beliefs and other ideologies that justify unequal gender relationships. A total of 230 men and women from Spain and 200 from Cuba participated by answering a questionnaire. The results showed the effect of participants’ gender and nationality as well as ideological variables (sexism, beliefs in a just world and codes of honour) that legitimise the status quo of gender violence. The male participants and the Cuban participants accepted violence against women more than the female participants and the Spanish participants. What is more, the results showed a pattern in the influence of the ideological variables that differed depending on the participants’ nationality. In Spain, the relationship between participants’ benevolent sexism and the justification of violence was mediated by codes of honour. In Cuba, the relationship between hostile sexism and acceptance of violence against women was mediated by beliefs in a just world.     

Stress and musculoskeletal discomfort among hydrocarbon industry workers in Mexico

This study of 114 workers in the hydrocarbon industry was conducted to identify the relationship between stress and musculoskeletal discomfort, and to view the roles played by such factors as age, schooling, obesity, workplace and job seniority. All factors except seniority were found to affect the presence of musculoskeletal discomfort in some area of the body.     

Participatory ergonomics among female cashiers from a department store

The objective of this paper was to control ergonomic risks among female cashiers working in a department store belonging to the retail market. This study was conducted between May and November 2010. Participatory ergonomics was applied through knowing and understanding how the company works, establishing the work team (Ergo group), training the team in ergonomics-related topics, and making decisions and interventions. The sample was composed of 71 participants--mostly female cashiers--, and all of them have a musculoskeletal compromise, declaring pain or discomfort mainly in the neck, lower back, right wrist and shoulders. Among others, following problems were found: postural overload, repetitive work, manual load handling, mental fatigue, environmental discomfort, variable work schedules, extended working days, and absence of breaks. In the intervention, the main implemented changes were the redesign of workstation, complete change of chairs and keyboards, and the implementation of a rotation system, as well breaks for compensatory exercises. After that, an evident improvement of found problems was observed, therefore it can be concluded that participatory ergonomics is an attractive methodology, appropriate and efficient for solving and controlling ergonomic risks and problems.     

Schooling and Factors Affecting Decisions on Schooling by Household Members in the Rural Areas of Turkey

Despite the fact that rural education has always been one of the most important means of rural development, it has been ignored in many developing countries, with the result that rural development has not achieved great success. The problems of education in rural areas are not only related to the amount the country spends on education or to the system of education. The socio-economic condition of the individuals living in these areas and the form of rural education also play an important part. The present study deals with the socio-economic factors that influence the education level which is achieved. The assessments in the study are based on data gathered in a survey of 386 households carried out in the Aegean Region of Turkey. The work consists of three parts: the state of education in rural areas; the factors adversely affecting an individual’s decision to continue at school; and the employment situation of individuals who did not continue their education. In the results section, some suggestions have been made regarding the provision of employment opportunities to individuals who have not completed their education and who have had no job training.     

Work Trajectories of Female and Male Immigrants in Spain

This article aims to examine in depth the work trajectories of individuals over time, in order to provide a wider perspective of the employment history of immigrants compared to native people, by gender and for more than one decade (2005–2017) in Spain. We use microdata (cohort and multivariate analysis) from the Labour Force Survey and carry out a comparison for three groups: the Spanish born in Spain, the Spanish born abroad, and the non-Spanish born abroad. The results confirm that the non-Spanish born-abroad group is characterized by the existence of segmented assimilation. All foreigners suffered a loss in their work trajectories, since their employment rate in 2017 has as yet neither reached the level of the last years of the previous economic expansion nor the level of the previous cohorts at the same age.     

Strains in Sustainability Debates: Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Western Science through the Lens of Extension Agents in a Pastoral Region

Those involved in sustainability debates on developmental pathways concur in the synergistic potential of integrating traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and Western scientific approaches. Transhumant pastoralism is a livelihood strategy adapted to spatiotemporal environmental variability in many mountainous and arid regions worldwide. This form of livelihood is based on a mobile logic that is increasingly threatened by novel lifestyles promoted from a Western mind-set and by climate change. The aim of this article is to identify and characterize the different perspectives of environmental and social issues in a pastoral region and their association with labor collaboration among extension agents, framed in an institutional action. We tackled the inquiry about viewpoints with Q methodology and related it to regional problems, alternative solutions, and future development pathways for transhumant pastoralism and landscape management in northwest Patagonia. We identified six perspectives and characterized them with their topological position in the social network. Mediating positions registered the highest network centrality of labor collaborations among agents, whereas more dominant perspectives emphasizing TEK or scientific knowledge registered intermediate centrality. There was consensus on the need for sustainable developmental options, but the emphasis on combining knowledge still needs convergent solutions.     

Model-based clustering with determinant-and-shape constraint

Statistics and Computing - Model-based approaches to cluster analysis and mixture modeling often involve maximizing classification and mixture likelihoods. Without appropriate constrains on the...     

Using geotagged tweets to track population movements to and from Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria

Population and Environment - After a disaster, there is an urgent need for information on population mobility. Our analysis examines the suitability of Twitter data for measuring post-disaster...