Emergency and Disaster: Pervasive Risk and Public Bureaucracy in Developing Nations

Developing nations experience pervasive risk of devastation, human and property loss resulting from human and natural disasters. This level of risk is attributable to socioeconomic stress, aging and inadequate physical infrastructure, weak education and preparedness for disaster and insufficient fiscal and economic resources to carefully implement the preparedness, response, mitigation and recovery components of integrated emergency management. This article examines these dynamics using a conceptual framework derived from chaos theory and emergency management theory and raises several critical methodological issues related to inquiries into disaster and emergency management dynamics in developing nations.     

Working to learn and learning to work: A profile of service-learning courses in university public relations programs

The purpose of this study was to use quantitative survey methodology triangulated with qualitative interviews to explore faculty perceptions in four key areas of service-learning in public relations programs: (1) conceptualization, (2) outcomes, (3) institutional support, and (4) instructional techniques. Results support findings in other disciplines. Public relations course goals reflect four different types of stated learning outcomes: (1) application to real-world settings, (2) teamwork, (3) interactions with PR clients, and (4) civic responsibility, but most educators include reflection opportunities only on public relations concepts and not on community engagement.     

Reunifying families, cutting costs: housing-child welfare partnerships for permanent supportive housing

In the absence of an adequate supply of affordable, quality housing, child welfare agencies are placed in the unenviable position of separating families to protect children from the debilitating effects of homelessness. This article presents recommendations for costeffective housing-child welfare partnerships that will shift the burden of providing adequate housing back to housing agencies. These partnerships have the potential to move child welfare agencies closer to achieving permanence and well-being for all children.     

Resistive training and long-term function in older adults

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a 24-month moderate-intensity resistive-training intervention on strength and function in older adults. A repeated-measures experimental research design was employed as a sample of 55 apparently healthy, older, community-dwelling volunteers (30 exercisers- 25 women and 5 men; 25 comparisons- 16 women and 9 men) were evaluated for strength of 5 muscle groups that influence lower extremity movement and physical function. Strength and function were evaluated at 6-month intervals. The findings from this study indicate that a moderate-intensity resistive-training program increases strength in older adults and that the strength benefits are retained for the duration of the intervention. Furthermore, a long-term strength-training program can increase independent-function skills in older adults and might therefore aid in prolonging functional independence.     

Professionalizing youth development: the role of higher education

Certificates, credentials, and degrees offered through institutions of higher education allow youth development professionals to acquire educational experiences that are recognized in a formal manner.     

Making Sense of “Quality?” — Toward a Review and Critique of Quality Initiatives in Financial Services

This article provides a broad classification and critique of the theoretical and empirical approaches toward quality initiatives. These are the technical managerialist, social managerialist, and critical nonmanagerialist approaches. The technical managerialist approach is based upon the flawed assumption that practice follows policy almost like night follows day. By contrast, focusing on intraorganizational politics and the tensions of hierarchy, social managerialists recognize that outcomes are always a negotiated compromise. A majority of these authors are concerned with rendering quality initiatives more effective for management. In contrast, critical nonmanagerialists refuse to take on uncritically the assumptions and attitudes of management, and are concerned with understanding the forms and content of quality initiatives. The article provides a conceptual framework for guiding and advancing research on quality initiatives, and it offers themes and issues which warrant exploring.     

DOES ACADEMIC TRAINING BACKGROUND MAKE A DIFFERENCE AMONG PRACTICING MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPISTS?

Using a national sample of practicing marriage and family therapists (MFTs) and their clients, this study investigated whether academic training background is associated with differences in pracice patterns and client outcomes. Clinical members of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy with academic training in psychology, social work, counseling, and marriage and family therapy were compared on a wide range of clinical practice variables, and their clients were surveyed about thier satisfaction and outcomes. Results showed highly similar practice patterns and client outcomes across all four disciplinary groups. Although the findings showed little evidence for the uniqueness of academic marriage and family therapy training among experienced MFTs, they also refute the notion that therapists trained in MFT degree programs practice in unusual or inferior ways compared to MFTs trained originally in other mental health disciplines.     

Internalized homophobia, lesbian identity development, and self-esteem in undergraduate women

This study examined the relationship between internalized homophobia, self-esteem, and lesbian identity development in 35 undergraduate women. Results indicated evidence of a strong relationship between the two identity development measures, the Stage Allocation Measure (SAM; Cass, 1984) and the Gay Identity Questionnaire (GIQ; Brady & Busse, 1994), and moderate relationships between identity development and internalized homophobia, between identity development and self-esteem, and between internalized homophobia and self-esteem. Implications for research and clinical practice are discussed.     

The Internet of Things: Social dimensions

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a vast, dispersed system in which a diverse array of objects, humans, and other living things is connected via “smart” technologies and the Internet. In this article, I present a thematic review of the literature that focuses on the social dimensions of the IoT. Drawing on research published in sociology, anthropology, cultural geography, critical urban studies, science and technology studies, environmental studies, and human–computer interaction studies and design, I outline key conceptual approaches and then discuss four major themes emerging across these dispersed but cognate literatures: (a) techno‐utopian imaginaries, (b) risks and harms, (c) lived experiences, and (d) interventions into futures. As I show, to date, most of the social research literature has focused on the topics of smart cities and smart homes in the context of the Global North. Some researchers have begun to employ innovative methods to generate new and alternative ways of imagining IoT technologies. The article concludes with proposing directions for future research. These include directing more attention to publics' role in intervening in the futures of IoT, to applications of smart technologies beyond the smart city and home, and the IoT in the context of the Global South.