Body Dissatisfaction: Commitment,Support, and Trust in Romantic Relationships

Research investigating dimensions of relationship quality has suggested that aspects of relationship quality (e.g., commitment, support, trust) are related to lower levels of body dissatisfaction in women. However no studies have examined the effect of all three measures of relationship quality on body dissatisfaction simultaneously. Trust and support correlated with body dissatisfaction in men and women. Additionally, the results showed that lack of support is a predictor of body dissatisfaction in men and lack of trust is a predictor in women; relationship commitment did not appear to relate to body dissatisfaction.     

The denial of emergency protection: factors associated with court decision making

Despite the importance of civil orders of protection as a legal resource for victims of intimate partner violence, research is limited in this area, and most studies focus on the process following a court's initial issuance of an emergency order. The purpose of this study is to address a major gap in the literature by examining cases where victims of intimate partner violence are denied access to temporary orders of protection. The study sample included a review of 2,205 petitions that had been denied by a Kentucky court during the 2003 fiscal year. The study offers important insights into the characteristics of petitioners and respondents to denied orders and outlines individual, contextual, structural, qualitative/perceptual, and procedural factors associated with the denial of temporary or emergency protective orders. Recommendations for statutory changes, judicial education, and future research to remedy barriers to protection are offered.     

Predictors of out-of-pocket medical expenditures in low-income households

From a sample of low-income households, out-of-pocket medical expenses are found to average about $25 per month. For each household, these expenses vary with annual income, type of insurance for medical care, priority of medical expenses, ethnicity, and number of ill family members. Expenses are reported for households with different socioeconomic characteristics and composition. Multiparticipation in insurance programs is shown. Fourteen percent of the survey participants say they have no insurance, public or private. Thirty-three percent participate in Medicaid.Flora L. Williams is an Associate Professor in Consumer Sciences and Retailing at Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907. She received her Ph.D. from Purdue University and includes family economic well-being, and financial problems and expenditures among her research interests.Amy Hagler received her M.S. from Purdue University in Consumer Sciences and Retailing.Mary Pritchard is an Associate Professor in the Department of Human and Family Resources at Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115-2854. Her Ph.D. was earned at Purdue and her areas of research focus on family economic well-being and economic socialization of adolescents.Marshall A. Martin is a Professor of Agricultural Economics at Purdue University. His research addresses agriculture and food policy, and economic assessment of emerging agricultural technology.William C. Bailey is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Indianapolis, 1400 E. Hanna Avenue, Indianapolis, IN, 46227-3697. He received his Ph.D. from Texas Tech University and focuses his research on economic psychology and health care cost.     

The Impacts of Supermarket Procurement on Farming Communities in India: Evidence from Rural Karnataka

The rapid expansion of supermarket retailing, with its impact on farmer communities, represents a contentious part of India's recent economic development. This article reports on three districts of Karnataka, where a survey of 78 farmers supplying fruits and vegetables to Reliance Fresh, a leading supermarket chain, reveals low levels of vertical co‐ordination, a lack of written contracts, and highly competitive environments, with the quality parameters used by supermarkets specifying only a limited set of conditions. These findings suggest that supermarket‐led restructuring in India has not yet reached a stable institutional situation.     

Effectiveness of a screening tool to detect injuries during Army Health Care Specialist training

The purpose of this project was to evaluate the effectiveness of an initial screening and referral process in reducing the impact of musculosketetal injuries among soldiers attending Health Care Specialist training. Musculoskeletal injury among Army Health Care Specialist students have been reported to be approximately 24% for men and 24-30% for women. The highest student visit rate to the troop medical clinic for musculoskeletal injuries, for men and women, occurs during the first week of training. Anecdotal reports indicate that many students arrive for training with existing injuries or symptoms. This project was designed to assess whether formalized early screening, referral, and intervention could 1) identify arriving students who need musculoskeletal injury-related medical attention, 2) reduce the number of students receiving limited duty status during their 10-week training, 3) decrease the total number of limited duty days for students, and 4) decrease the number of students who cannot graduate due to musculoskeletal injury. Students (N=291) from one company were divided into three groups of 97 students. Three methods were used to screen and refer students for medical intervention: 1) traditional (T), 2) by health care providers (HCP), or 3) by Drill Sergeants (DS). Screening by HCP and DSs involved using a new screening tool to identify and consequently refer students with symptoms to a troop medical clinic (TMC) for early evaluation and intervention. Using the screening tool, HCPs identified 92% of students with injuries, while DSs accurately identified 80%. The screening did not reduce the number of students receiving limited duty status, total limited duty days, or the number of students that could not graduate due to musculoskeletal injury ("holdovers") (p>0.05). The screening tool demonstrated good sensitivity and specificity whether conducted by HCPs or DSs. It failed to demonstrate efficacy in reducing the impact of musculoskeletal injuries among Combat Medic soldiers, as measured by limited duty days and holdovers.     

Comparing UK and Other Western Countries' Health Expenditure,Relative Poverty and Child Mortality: Are British Children Doubly Disadvantaged?

We examined the UK's effectiveness in reducing Child Mortality with 20 other Western countries, in the context of their national health expenditures, and, relative poverty — measured by ‘Income Inequality’ the gap between top and bottom 20 per cent of income. W.H.O. Child (0–14) Mortality Rates (CMR) and GDP Expenditure on Health (% GDPHE) were examined and a cost‐effectiveness ratio calculated, which is the reduced CMR over the period divided by average GDPHE. The highest average % GDPHE was USA at 13.2 per cent; the UK's 7.3 per cent was equal lowest. The widest Income Inequality was USA 8.5 times; the UK at 7.2 was third widest. The highest CMR was the USA 2436 per million (pm), the UK's 1630 pm, although representing a fall of 62 per cent was fourth highest. However, UK cost‐effectiveness ratio (1: 350) was eighth best of 21 countries. Only Income Inequality correlated significantly with CMR. UK CMR fell significantly more than five countries but ten others declined more. If UK deaths had been at the average of the 17 countries with lower CMR, there would have been 1827 fewer deaths. British children's poverty and health expenditure means they and their services are doubly disadvantaged although the NHS relatively achieved more with comparatively less.     

Can there be such a thing as a ‘wrongful birth’?

With the growing application of modern genetic technology to everyday healthcare provision, concern over its moral defence is increasing. This paper discusses pre-natal genetic testing, currently the healthcare situation in which the technology is most frequently applied. In doing this it addresses the justification for the resulting marked increase in legal cases compensating those thought to have suffered a wrongful birth, as well as the fears surrounding these developments that, to some, resonate of the dangerous mind-set of the 19^th and early 20^th century, which led to the atrocities defended under the name 'eugenics'. The discussion is presented in terms of Beauchamp and Childress' (1994) ethical principles for healthcare: autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence and justice. The conclusion emphasises the role of context, both societal and individual in shaping the outcome of the difficult decisions involved in undertaking pre-natal genetic testing.