Applying anticipatory and relational perspectives to the Nigerian delta region oil crisis

This paper addresses crisis communication shortcomings of oil companies working in the Nigerian delta region. The anticipatory model of crisis communication is blended with the public relations relational perspective to demonstrate how oil companies have responded to crises in the delta region in a manner contrary to what would be consistent with these perspectives. The result has been persistent turmoil in the region and significant distrust of the organizations.     

Linking Financial Strain to Marital Instability: Examining the Roles of Emotional Distress and Marital Interaction

Using a sample consisting of 4,997 married couples from the National Survey of Families and Households, individual emotional distress, the occurrence of couple disagreements, couple fighting, and couple quality time together mediated the relationship between financial strain and personal assessments of marital instability. The overall results suggest that financial strain influences both positive and negative forms of couple interaction which are stronger mediators than personal emotional distress of the relationship between financial strain and marital instability. The results further suggest that there were no gender differences among these linkages.     

Risk Factors of Sexual Harassment by Peers: A Longitudinal Investigation of African American and European American Adolescents

The present research explores risk factors for, and longitudinal associations of, sexual harassment by peers during adolescence. Eight‐hundred and seventy‐two African American and European American adolescents (65.4% African American, 51.1% females) were assessed during the summer after the eighth grade (mean age=14.2 years) and then again in the 11th grade (mean age=17.1 years). At the first assessment, adolescents were asked about their experiences with sexual harassment, their psychological reactions to sexual harassment, and also about their peer relationships, perceived pubertal timing, problem behavior, and mental health. At the second assessment, adolescents reported on their problem behavior and mental health. In general, youth who associated with peers who were involved in problem behavior were at risk for victimization. Among females, those who perceived themselves to be experiencing early pubertal development were also at risk. Additionally, for some adolescents, sexual harassment predicted later adjustment difficulties.     

The Psychology of Working: A New Framework for Counseling Practice and Public Policy

The authors present the psychology‐of‐working perspective (D. L. Blustein, 2006; N. Peterson & R. C. González, 2005; M. S. Richardson, 1993) as an alternative to traditional career development theories, which have primarily explored the lives of those with choice and volition in their working lives. The major historical and conceptual features of the psychology of working are reviewed, with a focus on how this framework provides a more inclusive and, ideally, more just vision for the career counseling field. Implications for career counseling and a case presentation are provided to examine how this new perspective can inform counseling practice. A brief overview of public policy implications concludes the article.     

Decentralization: The American Experience and its Relevance for Australia

An explanation is sought for the general lack of any significant amount of decentralization in Australia. Major, ongoing trends in the decentralizing of manufacturing industries in the United States are examined, and an attempt is made to identify specific forces attracting industry to country locations and those deterring it. Detailed comparison of the American and Australian situations reveals marked differences in the presence of conditions that either promote or discourage decentralization. It is concluded that, on present indications, the outlook for decentralization in Australia remains unfavourable.     

Whither the profession of sociology?

Sociological practice and applied sociology have long held an ambiguous status within the profession. A major source of tension has been the debate over the utility of knowledge: one faction views sociology as inescapably involved with societal problems and social action; another faction seeks scientific status and academic acceptance. In recent years, sociological practice and applied sociology have received greater recognition within the ASA. In the future, the vitality of the sociological enterprise will depend more upon its perceived social utility than its academic standing. The demand for useful knowledge and skills in social analysis will grow as a result of the increasing need for program assessments and the need to democratically “manage” diverse ethnic and cultural differences in the common interest.     

Bayesian hierarchical regression models for detecting QTLs in plant experiments

Quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping is a growing field in statistical genetics. In plants, QTL detection experiments often feature replicates or clones within a specific genetic line. In this work, a Bayesian hierarchical regression model is applied to simulated QTL data and to a dataset from the Arabidopsis thaliana plants for locating the QTL mapping associated with cotyledon opening. A conditional model search strategy based on Bayesian model averaging is utilized to reduce the computational burden.     

Advertising, Individual Consumption Levels, and the Natural Environment, 1900–2000

One central determinant of global environmental change is the continued expansion of personal consumption levels. In order to more fully understand the relationship between consumption and environmental degradation, the determinants of consumption must first be identified. Prior research in this area has focused on economic factors, primarily personal disposable income and population demographic characteristics. The role of cultural factors, including advertising, has been actively mentioned in theoretical analyses of the driving forces of individual consumption. However, this has not been empirically tested. In this article, we conduct an analysis of the impact of advertising on consumption levels in the United States. We start with a theoretical discussion of the literature on advertising and consumption. Based on this literature, we establish three hypotheses regarding the relationship between advertising expenditure and personal consumption. These hypotheses are then tested using time series analysis over the time period 1900–2000. The results show that advertising significantly impacts overall consumption and that these effects vary by type of consumption. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of this analysis for further research into the driving forces of global environmental change.