Limitations of the Individualistic Response to Inequality: An Examination of Title VII

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act is viewed in this paper as a response to inequality which places the burden for change on the individual. It is argued that this individualistic approach to change is limited in scope. By examining characteristics of the suits filed under Title VII, it is shown that the current system of stratification is not seriously threatened by laws such as Title VII, particularly when narrowly interpreted.     

The money laundering control act and proposed amendments: Its impact on the casino industry

In their efforts to track unreported income, Congress passed the Money Laundering Control Act in 1985. Because they are often involved in large cash transactions, casinos were required to report on cash transactions in amounts of $10,000 or more in much the same manner as banks and other financial institutions. However, because of the unique nature of cash and chip transactions within modern casinos, the Act, or state variants of it, have created significant compliance costs for casinos. This analysis examines the implications of the Act for the casino gaming industry, and evaluates some of the recent suggested Amendments to the Act.     

Semi-parametric modelling of temperature records

A range of instrumental and proxy temperature records are examined semi-parametrically, using empirical densities and quantile autoregressions containing a unit root, to assess the extent of non-stationarity and the presence of global warming trends. Only the instrumental records covering the last century and a half show any evidence of non-stationarity, but the trend behaviour of these series remains elusive.     

What kind of country we want for our children: an analysis of media coverage of the 2017 New Zealand General Election

ABSTRACT

This article is the third in a series investigating media reporting of New Zealand elections. Based on content analysis of 510 articles published in the New Zealand Herald, and thematic analysis of a subset of news stories related to young people, the study examines media coverage of the 2017 elections by looking at the topics of news stories, presence of party policies, diversity of sources and references to social groups. Comparing the 2017 results with the results of the Herald’s coverage of 2014 elections, we register a shift towards a stronger presence of policy issues, more female voices in the reports and significantly higher reference to young people. We further investigated the high number of references to young people by conducting qualitative analysis on the subset of articles mentioning young people.     

Fertility in Advanced Societies: A Review of Research

This paper provides a review of fertility research in advanced societies, societies in which birth control is the default option. The central aim is to provide a comprehensive review that summarizes how contemporary research has explained ongoing and expected fertility changes across time and space (i.e., cross- and within-country heterogeneity). A secondary aim is to provide an analytical synthesis of the core determinants of fertility, grouping them within the analytical level in which they operate. Determinants are positioned at the individual and/or couple level (micro-level), social relationships and social networks (meso-level); and, by cultural and institutional settings (macro-level). The focus is both on the quantum and on the tempo of fertility, with a particular focus on the postponement of childbearing. The review incorporates both theoretical and empirical contributions, with attention placed on empirically tested research and whether results support or falsify existing theoretical expectations. Attention is also devoted to causality and endogeneity issues. The paper concludes with an outline of the current challenges and opportunities for future research.     

Maternal mental health in Australia and New Zealand: A review of longitudinal studies

AimThe aim of this paper is to describe the factors that impact on the mental health of Australian and New Zealand (NZ) women in the perinatal period (pregnancy and the year following birth), and to determine the impact of perinatal mental health on women's subsequent health by summarising findings from prospective longitudinal studies conducted in Australia and NZ.MethodsA systematic search was conducted using the databases, Scopus, Medline, PsychInfo and Health Source to identify prospective longitudinal studies focused on women's social and emotional health in the perinatal period. Forty-eight papers from eight longitudinal studies were included.ResultsThe proportion of women reporting depressive symptoms in the first year after birth was between 10 and 20% and this has remained stable over 25 years. The two strongest predictors for depression and anxiety were previous history of depression and poor partner relationship. Importantly, women's mood appears to be better in the first year after birth, when compared to pregnancy and five years later. Becoming a mother at a young age is by itself not a risk factor unless coupled with social disadvantage. Women report a high number of stressors in pregnancy and following birth and the rate of intimate partner violence reported is worryingly high.ConclusionMidwives have an important role in the identification, support and referral of women experiencing mental health problems. As many women do not seek help from mental health services, the potential for a known midwife to impact on women's mental health warrants further examination.     

On intra-annual consumption-poverty in the U.S: Response to SNAP and the importance of within-year variation

We use U.S. quarterly consumption data and decomposable poverty indexes to study consumption-based intra-annual poverty and its relationship to participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Intra-annual spells of consumption-poverty account for half of the incidence and one-third of the severity of all consumption-poverty among U.S. households. Households experiencing consumption-poverty for at least one quarter, but not for the whole year, are more likely to self-select into SNAP than the general population but less likely to do so than those who are poor for the year. SNAP participation, in turn, reduces annual and intra-annual poverty.