Sexual Risk Behavior in Young Adulthood: Broadening the Scope Beyond Early Sexual Initiation

A robust link between early sexual initiation and sexual risk-taking behavior is reported in previous studies. The relationship may not be causal, however, as the effect of common risk factors is often not considered. The current study examined whether early initiation was a key predictor of risky sexual behavior in the 20s and 30s, over and above co-occurring individual and environmental factors. Data were drawn from the Seattle Social Development Project, a longitudinal panel of 808 youth. Early predictors (ages 10 to 15) and sexual risk taking (ages 21 to 24 and 30 to 33) were assessed prospectively. Early sexual initiation (before age 15) was entered into a series of probit regressions that also included family, neighborhood, peer, and individual risk factors. Although a positive bivariate relation between early sexual initiation and sexual risk taking was observed at both ages, the link did not persist when co-occurring risk factors were included. Behavioral disinhibition and antisocial peer influences emerged as the strongest predictors of sexual risk over and above early sexual initiation. These results suggest that early sexual initiation must be considered in the context of common antecedents; public health policy aimed at delaying sexual intercourse alone is unlikely to substantially reduce sexual risk behavior in young adulthood.     

Broadcasting multiple messages in the 1-in port model in optimal time

In the 1-in port model, every vertex of a synchronous network can receive at most one message in each time unit. We consider simultaneous broadcasting of multiple messages from the same source or from distinct sources in such networks with an additional restriction that every received message can be sent out to neighbors only in the next time unit and never to already informed vertex. We use a general concept of level-disjoint partitions developed for this scenario. Here we introduce a subgraph extension technique for efficient spreading information within this concept. Surprisingly, this approach with so called biwheels leads to simultaneous broadcasting of optimal number of messages on a wide class of graphs in optimal time. In particular, we provide tight results for bipartite tori, meshes, hypercubes, Knödel graphs, circulant graphs. We also propose several open problems and conjectures.     

Comparison of efficiencies of some symmetry tests around an unknown centre

In this paper, some recent and classical tests of symmetry are modified for the case of an unknown centre. The unknown centre is estimated with its α-trimmed mean estimator. The asymptotic behaviour of the new tests is explored. The local approximate Bahadur efficiency is used to compare the tests to each other as well as to some other tests.     

National survey on lifestyles and gambling in Serbia: gambling participation and problem gambling in adult population

The aim was to examine the association of socio-demographic and lifestyle characteristics with gambling severity level. The study was a part of the National Survey on Lifestyles in Serbia: Substance Abuse and Gambling, in 2014. The sample consisted of 5385 individuals. Based on the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) score participants were divided into non-problem gambling, low-/moderate-risk gambling and problem gambling. Prevalence of problem gambling was 0.5%, which was associated with having poor self-perceived financial status, having moderate or high risk for psychological distress, playing sports betting, casino games and slot machines. Low/moderate gambling was associated with having poor self-perceived financial status, number of drinking days per year, using any illicit drugs in the last 30 days, playing sports betting, slot machines, and online betting. Programmes of early detection of problem gambling should be developed, and regulation of availability of slot machines and sports betting.     

A mixed-method exploration of functioning in Safe Schools/Healthy Students partnerships

This paper presents a mixed-method approach to measuring the functioning of Safe Schools/Healthy Students (SS/HS) Initiative partnerships. The SS/HS national evaluation team developed a survey to collect partners’ perceptions of functioning within SS/HS partnerships. Average partnership functioning scores were used to rank each site from lowest to highest. Sites with the most favorable perceptions of partnership functioning were defined as having average scores in the top 10% (n = 10) and sites with the least favorable perceptions of partnership functioning were defined as having average scores in the bottom 10% (n = 10). Qualitative data for these 20 sites were inductively open coded for emergent themes and analyzed for patterns using grounded theory approach. Six themes emerged that distinguished sites reporting the most favorable and least favorable perceptions of partnership functioning: partner engagement, facilitators, barriers, shared decision making, partnership structure, and sustainability. Sites reporting the most favorable perceptions of partnership functioning effectively utilized collaboration processes that facilitate coalition building, such as shared decision making, effective communication, and developing a clearly defined structure. Qualitative themes from this analysis provide evidence of validity for the partnership functioning scale used and illustrate distinguishing features between sites with the most favorable and least favorable perceptions of partnership functioning.     

Harassment at work? Empowerment and autonomy as coping strategies of young workers

There is a considerable number of researches about workplace violence, but few relate young workers and work harassment. This study aimed to investigate the reported perceptions of young apprentices and trainees about moral harassment at work and related coping strategies. Forty adolescent workers (22 men and 18 women) between 15 and 20 years old who received training by a non-governmental organization in S?o Paulo, Brazil, participated in the study. Data collection included individual and collective interviews. It was used an in-depth semi structured interview protocol. The discourses were analyzed using the hermeneutic-dialectic frame. Results showed that young workers reported little or no knowledge of strategies to cope with moral harassment at work, showing vulnerability to the effects of aggression. Effective coping strategies at work should embrace two important concepts of health promotion: empowerment and autonomy.     

The role of usability in the evaluation of accidents: human error or design flaw?

This article aims to highlight the role of consumer products companies in the heart and the extent of accidents involving these types of products, and as such undesired events take part as an agent in influencing decision making for the purchase of a product that nature on the part of consumers and users. The article demonstrates, by reference, interviews and case studies such as the development of poorly designed products and design errors of design can influence the usage behavior of users, thus leading to accidents, and also negatively affect the next image of a company. The full explanation of these types of questions aims to raise awareness, plan on a reliable usability, users and consumers in general about the safe use of consumer products, and also safeguard their rights before a legal system of consumer protection, even far away by the CDC--Code of Consumer Protection.     

Supporting the Caliph's Project: Bosnian Muslims and the Hejaz Railway

This article will analyse Bosnian Muslims response and contribution to the construction of the Hejaz Railway. Based on primary sources during the 1900–1908 period, the article will argue that Bosnian Muslims actively followed news about the progress of the railway and financially contributed to its construction. Bosnian Muslim contribution took the form of establishing committees for the collection of voluntary donations in a number of Bosnian towns in 1905 and 1906. The active involvement of Bosnian Muslims in the construction of the Hejaz Railway shows that the spiritual bonds between Bosnian Muslims living in Austria-Hungary and their Caliph in Istanbul were not completely severed by the Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia in 1878. Following a brief survey of Bosnian Muslim history within the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the article describes the Hejaz Railway project and surveys the Bosnian Muslim contribution to the project.     

Sozialer Status und prosoziales Handeln: Ein Quasi-Experiment im Krankenhaus

Sociological, social psychological and economic research on the nexus between socioeconomic status and prosociality has so far provided contradictory findings. Some studies suggest that actors with a high socioeconomic status act more egoistically than actors with a lower socioeconomic status. Other studies find the opposite to be true. In contrast to previous research, which has worked with one-dimensional measures for socioeconomic status, this study examines prosocial behavior among occupational groups that have regular real-life contact in their workspace. About 150 hospital employees (physicians, nursing staff and nursing students) participated in experiments on altruistic giving in dictator games. The findings are surprisingly strong and clear-cut: Actors with higher social status act more prosocial than low-status actors. Furthermore, we find hardly any in-group effects, which have been repeatedly postulated. Our findings support the claim that high status promotes prosocial behavior. Also, they indicate that the inconclusive and in part contradictory findings provided by previous research stem to a considerable degree from deficient measures of social status and problematic experimental designs.     

Strengthening family cohesion through shared participation of family members in religious activities in Croatia

This article presents research results pertaining to an examination of the relation between family members’ participation in shared religious activities, perception of family cohesion, satisfaction with family life, and the level of conflict in the family. The survey of 503 parents of preschool children was conducted in Zagreb, Croatia. The findings demonstrate a significant correlation between shared participation of family members in religious activities, perception of family cohesion and satisfaction with family life, but not with perception of the level of conflict in the family. The results suggest that spiritual and religious matters are an important element necessary for understanding family functioning, and that cultivating shared religious practices in the family can contribute to the strengthening of family cohesion and greater satisfaction with family life.