Contradictions and Confounds in Coverage of Obesity: Psychology Journals, Textbooks, and the Media

Although obesity is not listed as a psychiatric condition in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, psychologists focus on obesity in their research, clinical practice, and teaching. This article reviews the methods and outcomes of the weight loss research in psychology journal articles, and discusses some of the confounds. These studies focus on comparisons among treatment conditions rather than on the low amounts of weight lost, and do not use clinical criteria for evaluating outcome. Although improvement in physical health is viewed as the reason for weight loss programs, few studies assess physical health. There has been little concern about how weight loss participants feel when they regain weight. Furthermore, the journal peer review process does not encourage paradigm shifts. The article also discusses how the results of the weight loss research studies are covered in undergraduate psychology textbooks and how they are (mis)interpreted by the media. Recommendations for a paradigm shift in the peer review process, coverage in textbooks and the media, are offered.     

A resilience enhancing trauma-informed program for children and mothers in domestic violence shelters: A qualitative study

In domestic violence (DV) shelters, offering psychosocial support services to mothers and children is vital. The program ‘Time for Tony the Turtle’ has been developed for mothers and children residing in DV shelters in the Netherlands. It aims to foster attachment and regulation skills, which can also prepare for trauma treatment if sought after later on. This qualitative study explores the experiences of mothers, children and professionals with the program and its perceived impact and what components function as facilitators and barriers in the implementation of such a program in DV crisis shelters in the Netherlands. We conducted in-depth interviews with 15 mothers, 11 children and 18 professionals from three organizations offering DV shelters. We used thematic analysis to identify patterns of meaning in the interviews. Mothers, children and professionals valued that the program provided a calm moment for reflection in hectic times and that the playfulness in which the program addressed trauma-related topics. However, mothers find it difficult to attend the program in the beginning of their shelter stay, therefore hampering the applicability of the program. Our findings suggest that integrating the topic of discussing father in a program in crisis shelters is complex and deserves more attention.     

(Un)Intentional Community: Power and Expert Knowledge in a Sustainable Lifestyle Community*

This ethnography of a cohousing organization examines power and expert knowledge in a sustainable intentional community. Intentional communities are forming at a growing rate both internationally and in the United States. Cohousing communities are part of this growing trend of alternative communities that utilize participatory democracy as both their central decision‐making process and a core component of their alternative identity. This article analyzes the tensions that evolve as cohousers build a communal housing development in one of the fastest‐growing cities in the United States. I identify mechanisms through which the constraints of operating in the highly professionalized field of housing development transform participatory decision making. When group members try to minimize loss of time and capital while competing with experienced for‐profit developers, they establish leaders and cede power to those with greater technical expertise. Yet, they continue to model their commitment to consensus decision making despite emerging hierarchies among members. I describe how the use of expert knowledge restructures the conditions governing group interaction and explore what the group's oligarchic organizational practices mean for the study of contemporary collective community organizing.     

Whistle-blowing regulation in different corporate governance systems: an analysis of the regulation approaches from the view of path dependence theory

The research question of this paper is, if and why countries need different legal approaches to whistle-blowing regulation. The paper specifically explores whether regulation approaches from other countries are suitable to regulate whistle-blowing in the German corporate governance system. First, it is clarified which factors influence the choice of the desired action—that is, “internal whistle-blowing”—and it is demonstrated that the underlying corporate governance system has a potential influence on these factors. Next, it is shown that the consistency of systems is responsible for the lack of success of some legal approaches of the whistle-blowing regulation in special corporate governance systems, whereas in other systems they can be very successful. Finally, the paper presents the requirements for whistle-blowing regulation that does not damage the consistency of the underlying corporate governance system. The findings support path dependence theory, which claims that legal approaches of one country cannot be transferred to other countries. Moreover, whistle-blowing literature is expanded by the fact that the underlying corporate governance system of a country influences the power and loyalty of the employee. It suggests new avenues for whistle-blowing research as well as for the potential convergence of corporate governance regulation. The findings offer insights for policy makers interested in the development of legal proposals for whistle-blowing regulation in their countries. Moreover, it provides a new perspective to enable managers of multinational firms to design whistle-blowing systems within different corporate governance systems.     

Prosocial behaviour,inclusion and exclusion: why and when do we behave prosocially? / Comportamiento prosocial,inclusión y exclusión: ¿cuándo y por qué adoptamos comportamientos prosociales?

Two experiments analysed the influence of inclusion versus exclusion on prosocial behaviour. In Study 1, evidence for the social reconnection hypothesis was found. In Study 2, a cross-over interactive effect is demonstrated: excluded individuals tended to be more prosocial when their competence was affected than when their popularity was affected. However, included people were more prosocial than excluded people when their popularity was affected, but they were less prosocial when their competence was highlighted. Besides, Study 2 has shown that affiliation motivation mediates the effect of exclusion on prosocial behaviour, and thus: (1) excluded individuals endorse lower levels of affiliation motivation with their rejecters than included individuals do with individuals who have included them; and (2) individuals with higher levels of affiliation motivation engage in higher prosocial behaviour levels when the behaviour is oriented to people with whom the chance to reconnect exists, but not when it is oriented to people with whom there is no possibility for future affiliation.     

Precarious lives,precarious labour: family support and young men's transitions to work in the UK

This research is about young people, family support and transitions into the workforce. We provide the results of a comparative, qualitative study with young men in two southern English towns. We argue that relationships of support in families are vital to young people's ability to ‘navigate’ precarious labour market opportunities. As Youth Studies has become increasingly preoccupied with individualism, we are compelled to draw attention to the collective support that is necessary to ‘launch’ the life trajectories of young people who are transitioning into an economic environment marked by insecurity and uncertainty. We conclude with recommendations for future research.     

The Profile of Board Membership in Israeli Voluntary Organizations

This study of 161 nonprofit organizations in Israel was aimed at exploring the composition of boards, the methods employed to recruit new board members, and the selection criteria of board members. The results suggest that boards tend to be closed, elitist circles. Most organizations use mainly informal means to recruit new board members. The most important selection criteria were those related to interpersonal relationships, willingness to contribute time, and expressing an interest in working for the organization.     

A regional restoration grants program to promote preservation and enhancement of urban natural areas

The Greenspaces Habitat Restoration Program, a partnership between Metro and US Fish and Wildlife Service in Portland, Oregon was created in 1992, as a component of The Metro Greenspaces and Open Spaces Program—A Regional System of Natural Areas, Open Space, Trails and Greenspaces for Wildlife and People. The goal of the restoration grants program is to fund restoration and enhancement of urban natural areas, with emphasis on opportunities for re-establishment of corridors and consolidation of fragments.Since 1992, more than 91 small citizen or local park agency restoration projects have been funded. Projects have ranged from small replantings to large scale stream restoration or meadow enhancements.An additional objective of the program and this paper is to document true costs, resources and volunteers required to conduct a community based urban restoration project. While the enhancements of each project alone will probably not significantly increase species numbers and diversity in the urban area, each project's value may be the introduction of people to the concepts of biodiversity, landscape ecology and each participant's role as a steward.The Sandee Palisades and Mill Creek restoration projects describe goals, successes, lessons learned and costs of citizen-based restoration projects.     

Sight or insight? Child therapy with a blind clinician

The process of a blind second-year social work student's play therapy with sighted children is analyzed and discussed. The ensuing limitations, compensatory issues, and unexpected opportunities are highlighted. The student's experience in becoming blind, her adaptation to it, and discrimination experienced seeking employment are described. Major themes in describing the child therapy focus on compensation for visual cues, utilization of the guide dog as a pet therapist, proxemics and mirroring in relation to blindness, and the impact of the wounded healer on clients. The student's work with a 13 year old girl illustrates the major concepts.     

Is trust in leadership a mediator between transformational leadership and in-role performance among small-scale factory workers?

Globalization and the transformation of the organizational scene are increasing the pressure and threshold for employees to constantly perform maximum output. As such, the measure of success for many organizations is determined by their productivity level. Therefore, we believe that the leadership style adopted by the leader and the level of trust subordinates have in such a leader may be salient in determining the level of in-role performance of the subordinates in question. This study therefore tries to shed light on this issue by testing the hypotheses that transformational leadership and trust in leadership would significantly predict in-role performance, and that trust in leadership would further mediate the relationship between transformational leadership and in-role performance. A sample of 170 factory workers (subordinates) and 6 supervisors participated in the study. The subordinates completed measures of transformational leadership and trust in leadership while that of in-role performance of these subordinates was based on the ratings of their immediate supervisors. The results of the Hierarchical Multiple Regression showed that only transformational leadership positively predicted in-role performance, whereas trust in leadership failed to predict or even mediate this relationship. The study discussed the implications of the findings, limitations, and suggestions for prospective research.