Indigenous Policy and Mutual Obligation: Shared or Shifting Responsibility Agreements?

Shared Responsibility Agreements (SRAs) are a key instrument of the Federal Government's new arrangements for the administration of Indigenous affairs. SRAs, described by the Government as a form of ‘mutual obligation’, require Indigenous communities to commit to behavioural changes or other actions in order to access ‘discretionary’ government funding for infrastructure or services. There are significant political, moral and practical issues raised by SRAs. In this paper we contend that despite the language of mutuality, flexibility and choice that accompanies SRAs, the approach appears more aptly associated with ‘divide and conquer’ tactics and a subtle shifting of responsibility for problems from governments to Indigenous communities themselves. In this paper we explore the concepts of mutual obligation and reciprocity, the structural biases that favour the state and its agencies over Indigenous communities in the SRA negotiation process, and issues of citizenship entitlements and accountability that are raised. Finally, acknowledging that SRAs can be a means for Indigenous communities to access greatly needed funding, we suggest various strategies and measures that could be taken up to make the SRA framework more equitable and effective.     

How Do Voters Form Expectations about the Parties' Chances of Winning the Election?*

Objective. This article examines the factors that form voters' perceptions of the parties' chances of winning at both the national and the local levels. Method. We make use of the 1988 Canadian Election Study and we employ a HLM model to estimate the effect of individual‐level and contextual‐level variables. Results. It is shown that voters' expectations are affected by a combination of “objective” contextual information and personal preferences (projection effects). Conclusion. The basic contextual information that is utilized to ascertain local chances is the outcome of the previous election in the local constituency, whereas polls are crucial in the case of perceived national chances. We also find that the most politically aware are more strongly influenced by “objective” indicators.     

For Those Who Like Odds: A Direct Interpretation of the Logit Coefficient for Continuous Variables*

Objective. Researchers have suggested a number of different methods for interpreting the coefficients in a logit model. Unfortunately, many of these interpretations suffer from a lack clarity or involve a substantial number of manipulations of the logit coefficient prior to interpretation. In this article, we discuss a straightforward method of interpreting logit coefficients for continuous dependent variables without the need for extensive transformation. Method. Drawing on Stolzenberg's (1979) techniques for interpreting logarithmic regression models, we demonstrate that the logit coefficient multiplied by 100 can be directly interpreted as the percentage change in the odds given a unit change in the independent variable. We also derive an analogous interpretation for ordinal logit models. Results. After these derivations, the ease of this technique is demonstrated using a simple logit model. Conclusion. Given the generality of this interpretation, as well as its ease of computation, it is hoped that researchers from a number of disciplines will adopt this strategy for interpreting logit models.     

Directions in border security research

This research note offers an appraisal of the contemporary state of U.S.-Mexico border security studies. An overview of recent literature on this subject is connected through two landmark political developments impacting the U.S.-Mexico frontier: the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the terrorist attacks on the United States of September 11, 2001. These two political events have had a major effect both on the ground and in the academy as scholars attempt to come to terms with the contradictions, complexities, and general problems of border security under neoliberal free trade and the threat of terrorism. The analysis concludes that while some important research in U.S.-Mexico border security exists, recent developments—coupled with pre-existing gaps in the literature—suggest that much crucial work remains to be done to understand and evaluate the complex dynamics of the new border security environment.     

Cognitive abilities and self-rated health: Is there a relationship? Is it growing? Does it explain disparities?

Although social epidemiologists have recently turned to the role of cognitive abilities in health, the ensuing debate has been largely speculative and numerous questions remain unanswered. Epidemiologists have speculated in three key areas: (i) whether cognitive abilities are associated with health; (ii) whether the association is growing; and (iii) whether cognitive abilities explain disparities. Using the cumulative 1974–2000 General Social Survey, this paper explores these questions using self-rated health as an outcome and a test of verbal ability as an indicator of cognitive abilities. On the one hand, the results suggest a significant and strictly monotonic association between verbal ability (with scores ranging from 0 to 10) and self-rated health. The association has been consistently strong since 1974; there is no evidence for a growing association. On the other hand, the results provide little to no evidence that verbal ability explains disparities. In multivariate models, the coefficients for income and education are reduced by only a small fraction with the introduction of controls for verbal ability (5 and 16%, respectively) and the relationship between verbal ability and self-rated health is, itself, very sensitive to controls for socioeconomic status. Furthermore, verbal ability cannot account for black–white differences in self-rated health: interaction-effect analyses indicate that, conditional on socioeconomic status, verbal ability has no discernable association with self-rated health among African Americans. Altogether, the results suggest that cognitive abilities are related to self-rated health, but also that cognitive abilities will do very little to explain disparities and may have benefits that are limited mostly—and sometimes entirely—to whites. The results are inconsistent with much of the previous speculation regarding cognitive abilities, but consistent with research on health’s “fundamental” causes and, more generally, with sociological research on the role of cognitive abilities in the process of stratification.     

Multidisciplinary Child Protection Decision Making About Physical Abuse: Determining Substantiation Thresholds and Biases

The current study examined the threshold at which multidisciplinary child protection team (CPT) professionals substantiate physical abuse allegations and the extent that they utilize potentially biased constructs in their decision making when presented with the same case evidence. State legal definitions of child maltreatment are broad. Therefore, the burden of interpretation is largely on CPT professionals who must determine at what threshold physical acts by parents surpass corporal discipline and constitute child physical abuse. Biased or subjective decisions may be made if certain case-specific characteristics or CPT professionals' personal characteristics are used in making physical abuse determinations. Case vignettes with visual depictions of inflicted injuries were sent to CPT professionals in Florida and their substantiation decisions, personal beliefs about corporal discipline, and coercive discipline were collected. Results of the study demonstrated relatively high agreement among professionals across vignettes about what constitutes physical abuse. Further, CPT professionals strongly considered their perceptions of the severity of inflicted injuries in substantiation decisions. Although case specific characteristics did not bias decisions in a systematic way, some CPT professional characteristics influenced the substantiation of physical abuse. Practice implications and future directions of research are discussed.     

Erben in Europa

Inheritance research is intergenerational research. Most inheritances stem from parents. However, the importance of inheritance goes far beyond the narrow family circle. Apart from opportunities, needs and family structures, societal contexts are of particular importance for inheritance chances. Nonetheless, especially international comparisons are scarce. This study includes 14 European countries, from Sweden to Italy, from Ireland to Poland. It investigates both previous and future inheritances. The analyses prove striking differences between countries: whereas the frequency of inheritances in Sweden, Denmark, Belgium and Switzerland is quite high, it is significantly lower in former socialist states. There are also large discrepancies between West and East Germany. Furthermore, the empirical results confirm Matthew??s principle: To him that hath shall be given.     

Use of a Parent Management Training Intervention with Urban Foster Parents: A Pilot Study

The development of effective interventions for foster children with behavior problems is essential given the consequences of behavior problems for children's placement stability and permanency outcomes. This article presents findings from a pilot study of an intervention providing parent management training (PMT) and support to foster parents in groups and home visits. The intervention was an adaptation of the KEEP (Keeping Foster Parents Trained and Supported) group intervention, provided in a large urban child welfare agency serving predominantly African American foster parents. The study used an intent-to-treat design, with 25 foster parents of 31 children (ages 4-12) in specialized foster care assigned to either an intervention or treatment as usual control group. Longitudinal outcomes were analyzed using random effect regression models. Over time, children's behavior problems were significantly lower in the intervention group relative to the control group, and the effect of the intervention was partially mediated by parents' understanding of how to appropriately use the intervention parenting skills. These results provide support for the effectiveness of KEEP with urban foster children with significant behavior problems.