Uncertainty Assessment in the Quantification of Risk Rates of Occupational Accidents

Occupational risk rates per hour of exposure have been quantified for 63 occupational accident types for the Dutch working population. Data were obtained from the analysis of more than 9,000 accidents that occurred over a period of six years in the Netherlands and resulted in three types of reportable consequences under Dutch law: (a) fatal injury, (b) permanent injury, and (c) serious recoverable injury requiring at least one day of hospitalization. A Bayesian uncertainty assessment on the value of the risk rates has been performed. Annual risks for each of the 63 occupational accident types have been calculated, including the variability in the annual exposure of the working population to the corresponding hazards. The suitability of three risk measures—individual risk rates, individual annual risk, and number of accidents—is examined and discussed.     

Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories Among African Americans: A Comparison of Elites and Masses*

Objective. Several studies have reported a widespread belief in conspiracy theories among African Americans. Such theories have been shown to have possible deleterious effects, especially when they deal with HIV/AIDS. It has been conjectured that African‐American elites could play a role in dispelling these beliefs, unless, of course, they believe in these theories themselves. To examine this possibility the present study examines the conspiratorial beliefs of African‐American locally elected officials in Louisiana and compares them with a previous study of African‐American churchgoers in the same state. Methods. A systematic sample of 400 African‐American locally elected officials was drawn from a list of all African‐American elected officials in the state and 170 officials completed and returned the mail survey. Confirmatory factor analysis and OLS regression were used to analyze the attitude structure and determinants of beliefs, respectively. Results. The locally elected officials believe in these theories as much as the churchgoers and the structures of their beliefs are also very similar. In some very important ways, however, the predictors of these beliefs differ between the two samples. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that beliefs in conspiracy theories are widespread and that African‐American locally elected officials will not seek to dispel these beliefs.     

The impact of maternal education on children's enrollment in early childhood education and care

This study examined the influence of maternal education and other child and family characteristics on the enrollment of children in early childhood education and care. Data come from the National Household Education Survey for a 14-year period and include children ages 0-5 years old. Multinomial logit analysis was employed to show the effect of maternal education on the likelihood of being enrolled in a specific type of care arrangement including both formal and informal settings. Findings suggest that more advantaged children, even those under 3 years of age, enroll in higher quality settings, thereby granting them an advantage when they begin school.     

Exiting and Returning to the Parental Home for Boomerang Kids

Young adults commonly exit from and return to the parental home, yet few studies have examined the motivation behind these exits and returns using a life course framework. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997, the authors examined associations between mental health problems and economic characteristics and exits from (n = 8,162) and returns to (n = 6,530) the parental home during the transition to adulthood. The average age of the respondents was 24 years. The authors found evidence that mental health and economic characteristics were related to home leaving and returning. Emotional distress was associated with earlier exits from and returns to the parental home; alcohol problems were associated with earlier returns to the parental home. The findings regarding economic resources were unexpectedly mixed. Greater economic resources were linked to delayed exits from and earlier returns to the parental home. The implications of these findings for young adults are discussed.     

HIV testing in pregnancy: Using women's voices to inform policy

BackgroundIn Canadian provinces with opt-out policies for maternal HIV screening, pregnant women are told HIV screening is routine and are provided with the opportunity to refuse. In Newfoundland and Labrador an opt-out screening policy has been in place since 1997.PurposeThis research study aimed to (1) obtain an increased understanding of the information women receive about HIV/AIDS during the opt-out screening process and (2) to advance the policy related dialogue around best practices in HIV screening within the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.MethodsTwelve women who were between 14 and 35 weeks gestation participated. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and a thematic analysis was carried out.FindingsThe major themes are that women have difficulty obtaining clear information about maternal HIV screening, are often not told they have the right to refuse maternal screening, and experience paternalism from physicians.ConclusionWe recommend that physicians and other health care providers in be reminded that that current opt-out testing requires women's consent and that women must be given the option to refuse the test.     

UNEQUAL RISK: COMBAT OCCUPATIONS IN THE VOLUNTEER MILITARY

This study evaluates the characteristics of the men who served in the volunteer military in combat occupations. It examines whether these characteristics stem from supply-side or demand-side decisions, or reflect class bias. The findings suggest that, on the supply side, men who had greater academic abilities were more likely to go to college, thereby avoiding military service and the possibility of serving in a combat occupation. On the demand side, the armed forces were more likely to exclude men with lower academic abilities but were more likely to assign such men in the military to combat occupations. Net of the impacts of these supply-side and demand-side decisions, men who served in combat occupations still differed from those who did not in terms of their family background. The impact of family background was stronger on entering the military than on being assigned to combat occupations once in the military.     

Money matters: An exploratory study of the socio-cultural context of consumption, saving, and investment patterns

This study focuses on 36 professional South Asian (Indian) families in a metropolitan city in Canada in order to understand motives for financial behavior. In accordance with the Hindu world view, Indians view wealth acquisition as necessary for the natural progression of an individual's life and take a long view of time when it comes to investment decisions. Their primary purpose is to invest money in order to provide for their children's education. Their cultural roots allow them to take a long-term view and makes them more risk tolerant. Although these families take economic criteria into account, such criteria alone do not fully explain their consumption, saving, and investment patterns. It would appear that their need for saving determines their consumption, not the other way around. To understand their financial behavior, one has to identify the cultural worlds in which Indians live. The study highlights the importance of understanding the socio-cultural context of decisions that may appear to be purely economic decisions at first sight.     

The Accessibility of Public Spaces for People with Dementia: a new priority for the 'open city'

The social model of disability de-medicalises disability and politicises it as an issue of universal rights. However, the rights of people with dementia have been less strongly advocated than those of people with physical disabilities. This is particularly the case with environmental planning and design. The needs of people with dementia are now informing the design of residential homes and day centres, but the issue of accessibility to public spaces and amenities has been almost completely neglected. Many outdoor environments such as shopping centres or parks may be inhospitable for people with dementia because they are disorientating, difficult to interpret and navigate, threatening or distressing. The article reviews the literature on indoor design for dementia, reports on research investigating the accessibility of outdoor environments, and describes a new approach using virtual reality technology to enable people with dementia to identify and test outdoor design and planning improvements themselves.