Social Relationships of African American and Hispanic Older Assisted Living Residents: Exploring the Role of Race and Ethnicity

African American and Hispanic older adults are underrepresented in assisted living communities, so little is known about how they experience social relationships in these settings. The purpose of the study was to explore resident-to-resident and resident-to-staff relationships experienced and perceived by African American and Hispanic older residents in assisted living settings. In-depth interviews with 15 African American and 15 Hispanic older adults were conducted in seven assisted living communities in Central Florida. Three salient themes emerged using a grounded theory approach: formation of relationships: emotional vs. instrumental support; language as a facilitator or barrier; and avoidance of inter-racial relationships. Implications for providing culturally competent services in assisted living communities with diverse populations are discussed.     

A Pilot Study of the Application of the Transtheoretical Model During Strength Training in Older Women

A Transtheoretical Model (TTM) goal-setting tool was used during strength training in women. Volunteers (mean age = 69, N = 27) were assigned to a strength training only or strength training/behavior change 12-week intervention. A pre/posttest, quasiexperimental design assessed TTM constructs, Health-Related Quality of Life, and functional fitness measurements. Multiple ANCOVAs revealed significant differences between groups on lower body strength (p = .001), upper body flexibility (p = .002), Decisional Balance (p = .024,) and Stage of Change for Exercise (p = .010). Stage of change progression may be enhanced using a goal-setting tool during strength training in older women.     

A Waif's Progress

This paper draws on a case study of media images of the British model Kate Moss to think through questions of affect, ideology, and pleasure in relation to fashion imagery. The question of whether and to what extent media images affect spectators is central to contemporary feminist media studies. The “turn to affect” has revitalised the debate about the extent to which media images can be held accountable for oppressive effects on the spectator's body image, with affect theory often being pitted “against” feminism in this regard. As Clare Hemmings states, affect theory emphasises how emotions place individual bodies in a circuit of feeling and response, connecting them to one another in ways that are potentially transformative. Through a critical reading of Kate Moss as a highly visible figure of projection, anxiety, and fantasy, I aim to show that whilst affects may be unpredictable, in that some media images become particular objects of attachment and anxiety, they are also mediated and political: that they engage us in intimate relations with ideologies of gender, power, and embodiment.     

Enhancing Student Gerocompetencies: Evaluation of an Intergenerational Service Learning Course

This article describes the development and evaluation of an intergenerational service-learning course designed to promote social work gerocompetencies. Service-learning opportunities were structured into the course, including an optional evidence-based falls prevention program, for older adults, entitled A Matter of Balance (MOB). Significant differences between pre- and posttest scores on the Geriatric Social Work Competency Scale (GSWCS) were noted for students in the service learning course (n = 13). Once MOB was introduced as an independent variable, the MOB participants scored the highest mean posttest scores for 2 GSWCS domains: values, ethics, and theoretical perspectives; and intervention. The benefits of utilizing social work gerocompetencies to guide course objectives, content, and student outcomes are discussed.     

Harmful Algal Blooms in South Carolina Residential and Golf Course Ponds

The South Carolina coastal zone is among the fastest growing areas in the U.S., and population epicenters are marked by dense brackish water pond (lagoon) coverage associated with housing complexes and golf courses. Surveillance efforts in 2001–2002 documented the widespread occurrence of several types of potentially or measurably toxic harmful algal blooms (HABs) in these ponds. These man-made retention ponds were constructed in order to serve as a buffer between developed areas and open estuaries or for aesthetic reasons. However, the combination of restricted tidal flow and nutrient and/or contaminant deposition creates a stimulatory environment for potential HAB formation. These discoveries introduce the need to consider mitigation measures to existing ponds and HAB preventive strategies for future pond construction.     

Cairo and the changing definition of population and development issues

The goal of the United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), held in Cairo in September 1994, was to agree on a Programme of Action in the field of population and development which would supersede the Plan of Action agreed to at Bucharest in 1974 and subsequently amended ten years later in Mexico City. The main purpose of the present paper is to characterize some of the principal intellectual and ideological developments of the last 20 years which have had an impact on the definition of this goal. I conclude with some brief comments on the Programme of Action adopted by consensus at the Conference. This is an amended version of the paper I presented at the Seventh National Conference of the Australian Population Association (in a Plenary Session entitled ‘Messages from Cairo’), held in Canberra in September 1994.     

Circular and linear modeling of female sexual desire and arousal

There is debate in the scientific literature regarding which model most accurately represents the female sexual response. Traditionally, sex research has been conducted within the framework of the linear sexual response model proposed by Masters and Johnson, modified by Kaplan, then Robinson. Criticism of linear models prompted the development of a composite model of the female sexual response by Basson et al., which included linear and circular pathways. This review aims to systematically assess published studies to determine the extent to which circular and linear models or pathways reflect the female sexual response. Medline, EMBASE, and PsychINFO databases were searched for original data papers and review articles. Inclusion criteria were that articles were published since 1990, in English, and compared linear and circular sexual response models or addressed aspects of these models. Reviews were required to be systematic and include a meta-analysis. Of the 898 studies identified through the initial literature search, 13 original studies and one review met the inclusion criteria. Two studies directly compared models providing limited evidence that most women identify with linear sexual response pathways. However, there is increasing evidence that circular pathways may accurately reflect some aspects of the female sexual response. Further comparative studies are encouraged.     

Stigmatizing Indebtedness: Implications for Labeling Theory

Given the low visibility of indebtedness and normative expectations regarding the use of credit and the accrual of debt, questions arise as to whether or not being unable to manage one's finances responsibly should necessarily lead a person to feel shame. Findings from a study, based on forty‐six interviews with members of Debtors Anonymous (DA), exploring the relevance of labeling theory to individual perceptions of one's indebtedness as shameful are presented. Shame is revealed to be a key element in the labeling process. How stigmatized labels arise in interaction, how such labels affect a person's thoughts, feelings, and actions, and how gender affects labeling experiences are discussed. Insights into the interconnections between labeling and shame show the labeling process to be considerably more complex than suggested in the original version of labeling theory.