Household structure and labor force participation of black,hispanic, and white mothers

This paper investigates whether the inclusion of nonnuclear adults in a household facilitates the labor force participation of single and married mothers. Results based on a sample of extended and nuclear households show that the extension mechanism facilitates the labor market entry of married mothers, but not of single mothers. Interactions between extended structure, ethnicity, and poverty, however, suggest a complex relationship. For extended family households, the gender and employment characteristics of nonnuclear adults affected the labor force participation of single mothers, but the number of nonnuclear members was inversely associated with the market activity of married mothers. Policy implications are discussed in the final section.     

Migrant Balancing Acts: Understanding the Interactions Between Integration and Transnationalism

In this article, we explore ways of understanding the interactions between migrant integration and transnationalism, based on a review of quantitative and qualitative literature. Integration is taken as the starting point, and the assumption that integration and transnationalism are at odds with one another is questioned. When considered as constituents of a social process, we argue that there are many similarities between integration and transnationalism. A typology for understanding these interactions is developed, based on an acknowledgment of migrants' agency in straddling two societies—as a balancing act. This typology is presented as a tool to enable migration scholars to move beyond simply acknowledging the co-existence of transnationalism and integration and towards an analysis of the nature of interactions between the two—understood in relation both to particular places and contexts and to the human beings involved and their functional, emotional and pragmatic considerations.     

For the Love of Art? Episodic Volunteering at Cultural Events

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - Although episodic volunteering is a popular form of volunteering and has received increasing attention from researchers,...     

Converting education into earnings: The patterns among Hispanic origin men

We evaluate the functional form of the relationship between education and earnings for Hispanic and non-Hispanic white men to determine whether the payoffs to education vary with level of schooling, and whether credential effects can be discerned. Results indicate that for all groups the usual linear specification, while offering the advantage of parsimony, fits the data less well than more complex models. The levels model best predicts the earnings of Puerto Rican and other Spanish origin workers, while the credential model is best suited for Mexican, Central/South American, and non-Hispanic white men. Credential effects accrue to all groups, except the other Spanish, but Central/South Americans only receive added income bonuses for the completion of a college degree, whereas Mexican, Puerto Rican, and non-Hispanic white men also receive a bonus for a high school diploma.     

An Empirical Analysis of Social Capital and Economic Growth in Europe (1980–2000)

It is of paramount concern for economists to uncover the factors that determine economic growth and social development. In recent years a new field of investigation has come to the fore in which social capital is analysed in order to determine its effect on economic growth. Along these lines the work presented here examines the relationships that exist between human and social capital and economic growth. The applied part of the analysis is performed using a panel data model for 14 economically developed countries (OEDC) and by using a series of chronological periods that fall within the 1980–2000 time-frame. A revision of the social capital literature was first carried out and the potential links between social and human capital discussed. The study begins by assessing the way in which the two types of capital interact, how they should be measured and the best way of quantifying their importance within applied models. The econometric model uses panel data, and this enables the analysis to obtain robust results with respect to the role of different types of capital i.e. human physical and social.     

An opportunity for the social and employment activation of social assistance clients: an example of the effectiveness of a project implemented in Poland

Social and employment activation of individuals at risk of social exclusion gains in significance if it results in their more active attitudes. An increasing number of systemic projects currently implemented by social assistance centres (SACs) in Poland provide a great number of people with an opportunity to take steps to improve their circumstances. The research objective was to assess the results of the project called ‘Use Your Opportunity’, implemented by the SAC in Andrychów, in order to draw conclusions concerning the forms of assistance offered as a part of social and employment activation scheme. The research encompassed 79 individuals before and after their participation in the project in 2010 and 2011. It has been found that the participation in the project and contact with the specialists definitely contributed to the SAC clients' greater knowledge about the way in which they function in the society, their abilities and limitations and also their life skills and employment opportunities. There is no doubt that systemic projects implemented by the SACs in Poland significantly increase the opportunity for their clients to receive support that is not only limited to financial help, which has been common practice so far, but also grants access to the otherwise inaccessible training and specialist counselling services.     

Breaking Through the Information Blockade: Election and Revolution in Ukraine 2004

The mass media are an important part of modern elections and revolutions. This was certainly the case in Ukraine in 2004 when a key Presidential election erupted into the Orange Revolution and resulted in a change in the country’s ruling political elite. This paper looks at the impact of the mass media on political events in Ukraine during the 2004 presidential election campaign, and suggests that television in particular played a central role in the events which led to the Orange Revolution and its aftermath. It looks at how both the establishment and the opposition used the media to try and achieve their political goals, whether they were successful, and what the implications are.