Disability and social stratification.

This paper suggests that, for a variety of reasons, the sociology of social stratification--and, as a consequence, mainstream sociology more generally--has neglected the topic of disability. Using material drawn from a range of sources, it is argued that disability is related in definite ways to social class. Further, it is also argued that disability must be considered as a factor contributing to the production and reproduction of stratification in its own right, independently of class relations. These arguments are further advanced in the course of a more detailed consideration of research evidence concerned with mental handicap. The paper ends with a consideration of the role of non-class factors--specifically social status and citizenship--in the stratification systems of modern industrial societies.     

Deconstructing Diasporas: Networks and Identities among the Irish in Buffalo and Toronto, 1870-1910

With a view to contributing to recent calls for the integration of comparative and transnational perspectives in Irish migration history, this essay describes various networks established within Irish communities in two North American cities from 1870 to 1910, and explores their role in personal and group identity formation in particular. Case studies from Buffalo and Toronto are used to underscore the importance of spatial, as well as historical, contingency in appreciating the geographies of not simply one, but several, interrelated Irish diasporas. Focusing on these cities also illuminates the difference that these networks made to the everyday lives and social landscapes of Catholics and Protestants of Irish background in the United States and Canada during a period of intensified industrialisation. As this study shows, networks socially interconnected economic, cultural, religious and political spheres for these migrants, while also linking their localities to social fields operating at wider geographical scales.     

Restructuring Flexibility: Case Studies of Part‐Time Female Workers in Six Workplaces

The article is based on six workplace case studies within a local economy and investigates the reasons behind the different utilization of part‐time workers within these workplaces. The research examines the content and nature of part‐time work in these organizations and the experiences of the part‐time workforce. The findings suggest that we need to distinguish between three types of part‐time workers; core, peak and ancillary. It is argued that such distinctions capture the variegated utilization of part‐time workers and contribute to the debate concerning the integration or marginalization of part‐time staff within workplaces. Furthermore, workplace cultures are an important arena for contextualizing these discussions. It is contended that the different uses of part‐time workers can be explained by different sectoral and organizational contexts but that the nature of part‐time work is also influenced by existing social relations within the workplace, notably with respect to gender, class and age.     

Children taken into care and custody and the ‘troubled families’ agenda in England

Children taken into care and custody are arguably the most vulnerable and problematic groups within the wider debate and responses developing to the ‘troubled families’ agenda in England. They represent what the state most wants to avoid when it intervenes in the life of a family. This paper is based on an analysis of the service involvement and needs of the 196 children taken into care or custody over a 3‐year period (2008–2011) in one city local authority in England. The research was undertaken to inform the response to prevention of entry into care and custody which was the original focus of the most intensive part of the troubled families programme in the city. Interviews with 10 senior professionals from a range of agencies involved in setting up this local programme, explored the way the emerging troubled families agenda was shaping ideas about the understanding of and response to the needs of these children and their families. Key findings of the study illustrate the range and complexity of need as well as the sequence and amount of agency involvement. Professionals were often critical of the thinking behind the troubled families agenda, but were positive and creative about new ways of working with these families.     

Assessment in Adult Protective Services: do multidisciplinary teams make a difference?

This study compared 2 approaches to the assessment of Adult Protective Services (APS) cases. Using administrative data from 869 cases in 2 counties in Maryland, the differences between a nurse/social worker team and a lone social worker in case disposition, risk reduction, recidivism, and cost effectiveness were examined. Lone social workers were significantly more likely to confirm financial exploitation, physical abuse, and neglect by others; while the team approach resulted in significantly greater risk reduction. No differences were observed in relation to recidivism, self-neglect and cost savings. Given limited resources, research that examines optimal staffing patterns in APS agencies is warranted.     

Boundary Ambiguity in Gay Stepfamilies: Perspectives of Gay Biological Fathers and Their Same-Sex Partners

Gay stepfamilies have their own unique stressors that impact the individual member's ability to form a family. Through in-depth interviews, gay biological fathers and their same-sex partners described their experiences in their stepfamilies. The conceptual framework of boundary ambiguity is used to frame the experiences of institutional and interpersonal stressors that influence these family members.