Risking the qualitative study of risk

The topic of risk has received extensive coverage in recent years. Hundreds of articles and numerous books have dealt with risk in occupations, safety, medicine, public health, and environmental pollution. However, in qualitative studies the subjective assessment of risk in everyday life have been badly neglected. Some of the reasons for this neglect, and its consequences for risk research, have been outlined in this paper.     

A cross-cultural comparison of impressions created by age-related variations in gait

Cross-cultural similarities and differences in impressions of age-related gait qualities were investigated. Specifically, Korean subjects' perceptions of the age, sex, and traits of 5 to 70 year old American men and women, whose gaits were depicted in point-light displays, were compared with American subjects' perceptions documented by Montepare and Zebrowitz-McArthur (1988). Substantial cross-cultural agreement was found for perceptions of the walkers' age and sex. Moreover, with walkers' perceived age and sex controlled, both American and Korean ratings of the walkers' strength and happiness showed a linear decrease with age, and ratings of their sexiness showed a curvilinear relationship to age. Whereas American ratings of dominance showed a linear decrease with walkers' age, no such relationship was observed for Korean ratings. The findings supported both the ecological theory of social perception and an interactionist model of cross-cultural perception, which suggest that some reactions to gait information are universal while others are determined by culturally specific values which may influence the movements of younger and older individuals and the meanings perceivers associate with these movements.This research was supported in part by BRSG S07 RR07044 awarded by the Brandeis Research Support Grant Program, Division of Research Resources, NIH. Thanks are extended to Terry Amgott-Kwan who helped prepare the gait displays and to Professor Jae-Ho Cha and the Department of Psychology at Seoul National University who provided laboratory space, access to subjects, and other research support. We also thank Mr. Ki-Duk Nam who assisted in recruiting subjects and running the experiment. Finally, we thank Chung-Sook Lee of Ewha Women's University for her help in preparing the Korean questionnaires.     

The Relationship Between Work-to-Family Conflict and Family-to-Work Conflict: A Longitudinal Study

The relationship between work-to-family conflict and family-to-work conflict was tested using a longitudinal research design with 234 dual-earner couples caring for both children and aging parents. Two waves of mailed survey data were collected. The mediating effects of role-related satisfaction were hypothesized to link these two forms of work-family conflict. The analytical steps for determining mediating effects followed suggestions by Baron and Kenny (1986). The results failed to show significant mediating effects of role-related satisfaction between the two forms of conflict over time for both husbands and wives, contrary to suggestions by Frone, Yardley, and Markel (1997). Instead, positive, direct relationships between the two types of work-family conflict were found. Limitations and implications are discussed.     

Modeling Age Differences in Infant Category Learning

We used an encoder version of cascade correlation to simulate Younger and Cohen's (1983, 1986) finding that 10‐month‐olds recover attention on the basis of correlations among stimulus features, but 4‐ and 7‐month‐olds recover attention on the basis of stimulus features. We captured these effects by varying the score threshold parameter in cascade correlation, which controls how deeply training patterns are learned. When networks learned deeply, they showed more error to uncorrelated than to correlated test patterns, indicating that they abstracted correlations during familiarization. When prevented from learning deeply, networks decreased error during familiarization and showed as much error to correlated as to uncorrelated tests but less than to test items with novel features, indicating that they learned features but not correlations among features. Our explanation is that older infants learn more from the same exposure than do younger infants. Unlike previous explanations that postulate unspecified qualitative shifts in processing with age, our explanation focuses on quantitatively deeper learning with increasing age. Finally, we provide some new empirical evidence to support this explanation.     

Management in the 1980s—Key issues and priorities

The author sets out the tasks confronting managers in British industry and commerce throughout the 1980s. His analysis is based upon lengthy practical experience as a top executive in engineering management and manufacture. He presents his views against the background of a fast-changing world— politically, economically, socially—and also provides a commentary on Britain's major overseas competitor nations and markets. In his analysis of U.K. management problems, he makes clear that much depends upon changed policies and attitudes to ensure the successful restoration and revived growth of British manufacturing industry.     

What do midwives fear?

BackgroundThere is evidence that a significant number of women are fearful about birth but less is known about the fears of maternity health providers and how their fear may impact on the women they care for.AimThe aim of this study was to determine the top fears midwives in Australia and New Zealand hold when it comes to caring for childbearing women.MethodFrom 2009 to 2011, 17 workshops were held in Australia and New Zealand supporting over 700 midwives develop skills to keep birth normal. During the workshop midwives were asked to write their top fear on a piece of paper and return it to the presenters. Similar concepts were grouped together to form 8 major categories.FindingsIn total 739 fears were reported and these were death of a baby (n = 177), missing something that causes harm (n = 176), obstetric emergencies (n = 114), maternal death (n = 83), being watched (n = 68), being the cause of a negative birth experience (n = 52), dealing with the unknown (n = 36) and losing passion and confidence around normal birth (n = 32). Student midwives were more concerned about knowing what to do, while homebirth midwives were mostly concerned with being blamed if something went wrong.ConclusionThere was consistency between the 17 groups of midwives regarding top fears held. Supporting midwives with workshops such as dealing with grief and loss and managing fear could help reduce their anxiety. Obstetric emergency skills workshops may help midwives feel more confident, especially those dealing with shoulder dystocia and PPH as they were most commonly recorded.     

"Around the Verge of Parting Life":

Few Blacks were involved in the gerontological movement of the 1950s. Only eight attended the 1950 White House Conference on Aging. One of these individuals was Hobart Jackson who was administrator of the Stephen Smith Home for the Aged, originally the Home for Aged and Infirm Colored Persons which was founded in 1864 by Blacks and Quakers. It is now the oldest Black Nursing Home in the United States. Jackson emerged as the leading spokesman for the Black elderly. His administration of the Stephen Smith Home, guided by the new conceptual formulations and emerging philosophies of care, brought it abreast of the times and led Jackson to the broader arena of advocate for Black gerontology. His activities culminated in the founding of the Washingtonbased National Caucus on Black Aged in 1970 and the National Center in 1973. Primarily a practitioner but at times a theorist, Hobart Jackson, the Father of Black gerontology, deserves a significant place in the annals of gerontology.     

Do Hispanic and Asian Adolescents Practice Panethnicity in Friendship Choices?*

Objectives. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), we investigate whether Asian and Latino youth value racial boundaries more than ethnic boundaries. We evaluate the relative preferences of same‐ethnic, same‐race (but different‐ethnic), and different‐race friends. Methods. We use multilevel multinomial logistic regression models to examine the odds of choosing same‐ethnic, different‐ethnic (but same‐race), and different‐race friends net of the opportunity to interact. Results. We find strong effects of school racial and ethnic composition, immigrant status, and parental education on the likelihood of crossing boundaries in the selection of friends. In addition, we develop a new scale of panethnicity and find substantial ethnic group variation in panethnic sentiment. Conclusion. We find an overwhelming preference for same‐ethnic peers over same‐race (different‐ethnic) and different‐race peers.     

Working with Me,Working at Me: Fathers' Narratives of Child Welfare

This article examines the experiences of fathers involved in the child welfare system. Fathers who were interviewed as part of a multiyear Canadian project were atypical in that they were actively engaged with the child welfare system. Their stories show how, although not always physically present, child welfare's ghostly form is still very much a part of the daily lives of fathers and their families. These fathers had to be resourceful and resilient as they endeavored to look “promising” to the child welfare system. The critical analysis offers insights into a more father-inclusive approach to child welfare that has implications for policy and practice development.