Understanding the Relationship Between Direct Experience and Risk Perception of Natural Hazards

Risk perception has been largely examined in studies that have aimed to explain and predict preparedness behavior in the context of natural hazards. Findings from studies on the relationship between previous experience, preparedness, and risk perception in disaster situations have been inconsistent. Hence, the main goal of this work was to explore the influence of physical and emotional experience on risk perception regarding natural hazards. This study was conducted in a statistically representative sample of the city of Iquique, in northern Chile (n = 701), who completed a survey one month after the occurrence of an earthquake and tsunami (8.2 Mw). The survey assessed the experience and preparation actions of survivors in relation to this event. Using a structural equation model, we examined nine proposed relationships, six of which were significant. The final model had an adequate fit (χ² = 752.23, df = 283, comparative fit index [CFI] = 0.90, root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = 0.049). Direct experience showed the greatest influence on risk perception: while direct physical experience (i.e., the physical and material consequences associated with the earthquake) maintained a direct positive effect on risk perception, direct emotional experience (i.e., the fear of experiencing an earthquake) produced an indirect positive effect (through worry). Emotional experience, however, did not directly influence current preparedness and risk perception. Implications for understanding the relationship between risk perception and direct experience are discussed.     

Are people overoptimistic about the effects of heavy drinking?

We test whether heavy or binge drinkers are overly optimistic about probabilities of adverse consequences from these activities or are relatively accurate about these probabilities. Using data from a survey in eight cities, we evaluate the relationship between subjective beliefs and drinking. We assess accuracy of beliefs about several outcomes of heavy/binge drinking: reduced longevity, liver disease onset, link between alcohol consumption and Driving While Intoxicated (DWI), probability of an accident after drinking, accuracy of beliefs about encountering intoxicated drivers on the road, and legal consequences of DWI—ranging from being stopped to receiving fines and jail terms. Overall, there is no empirical support for the optimism bias hypothesis. We do find that persons consuming a lot of alcohol tend to be more overconfident about their driving abilities and ability to handle alcohol. However, such overconfidence does not translate into over-optimism about consequences of high levels of alcohol consumption.     

Observing Women Caregivers’ Everyday Experiences: New Ways of Understanding and Intervening

This article discusses the practice implications of videographic research examining the everyday lived experiences of 5 women family caregivers of older adults with chronic illness. The women’s nonverbal expressions and gestures revealed how caregiving is accomplished and lived on a daily basis, in particular through emotion and body management, abnegation, and performance. The findings from this microethnographic study suggest that observing women caregivers’ everyday experiences can open new avenues for holistic intervention with this population. Observing nonverbal cues can offer a way for practitioners to better understand women caregivers’ realities, to question their practice, and to adapt their interventions accordingly.     

‘The World Will Never Be the Same Again’? Reflecting on the Experiences of Jubilee 2000, Mobilizing Globally for the Remission of Unpayable Debts

The emergence of global citizen action has been widely recognized as having become part of the discourse and practice of democratic politics and social change. Jubilee 2000 was a remarkable example of global citizen action, campaigning against unpayable Third World debt. Whilst Jubilee 2000 had novel features, however, the conclusion that ‘the world will never be the same again’ invites further exploration, both in relation to the implications for theoretical debates and in relation to social movements as these have been developing globally, in practice.

This paper starts by summarizing key features of differing approaches to the study of social movements in general and global social movements more specifically. This provides the context for exploring their relevance to the analysis of the experiences and achievements of Jubilee 2000. The evidence comes from published sources and discussion papers and from interviews with particular individuals involved, as staff and activists, in Jubilee 2000 itself and its constituent organizations.     

A self-comfort oriented pattern of regulatory behavior and avoidant attachment are more likely among infants born moderate-to-late preterm

Infants born preterm (<37 gestational weeks, GW) are at increased risk for regulatory difficulties and insecure attachment. However, the association between infants' regulatory behavior patterns and their later attachment organization is understudied in the preterm population. We addressed this gap by utilizing a Portuguese sample of 202 mother–infant dyads. Specifically, we compared the regulatory behavior patterns of 74 infants born moderate-to-late preterm (MLPT, 32–36 GW) to those of 128 infants born full-term (FT, 37–42 GW) and evaluated the associations of these regulatory patterns with later attachment. Infants' regulatory behavior patterns (Social-Positive Oriented, Distressed-Inconsolable, or Self-Comfort Oriented) were evaluated in the Face-to-Face-Still-Face paradigm at 3 months, and their attachment organization (secure, insecure-avoidant, or insecure-ambivalent) was evaluated in the Strange Situation at 12 months corrected age. In both samples, the Social-Positive-Oriented regulatory pattern was associated with secure attachment; the Distressed-Inconsolable pattern with insecure-ambivalent attachment; and the Self-Comfort-Oriented pattern with insecure-avoidant attachment. However, compared to FT infants, infants born MLPT were more likely to exhibit a Self-Comfort-Oriented pattern and avoidant attachment. Most perinatal and demographic variables were not related to infant outcomes. However, infants with a higher 1-min Apgar were more likely to exhibit the Social-Positive-Oriented regulatory pattern and secure attachment.     

Disparities in Gender Preference and Fertility: Southeast Asia and Latin America in a Comparative Perspective

Population Research and Policy Review - A preference for sons and a sex selection against females are widespread in vast regions of the world, including a great number of Asian and East European...     

Small business and the coming labor shortage

The author is president and chief executive officer of the National Federation of Independent Business.