Passion,Intimacy, and Commitment in Casual Sexual Relationships in a Canadian Sample of Emerging Adults

Research on casual sexual relationships (CSRs) among emerging adults is prevalent, yet our empirical and theoretical knowledge of relationship processes involved in these relationships is limited. The present study’s objective was to compare four CSR partner types (acquaintance, friend, non-dating partner, ex-romantic partner) on passion, intimacy, and commitment, the components of Sternberg’s triangular theory of love. A total of 441 Canadians aged 18–25 years who were not in a romantic relationship, and who reported having had more than one sexual contact with their last CSR partner, completed an online survey. Across all partner types, passion was highest, followed by intimacy and commitment. Levels of passion, intimacy, and commitment generally increased with partner familiarity. However, CSR partner type differences on the three components were partially explained by CSR components (i.e., frequency of sexual activity, frequency of social activity, whether partners saw each other with the main goal of having sex, sexual exclusivity agreement, and hopes about the relationship). Results are consistent with CSRs’ emphasis on sexuality, and, to a lesser extent, emotions. However, they challenge the mainstream and scientific conflation of CSRs with an absence of emotional bond, commitment, or love.     

Simulated Clients in a Group Practice Course: Engaging Facilitation and Embodying Diversity

Social work students need to develop practice skills with racially and ethnically diverse clients. Previous research has found benefits to using individual simulated clients, and working with a group would not only provide facilitation opportunities, it could also increase students’ exposure to diversity. This article presents a social work group practice class that used simulated clients and the evaluation of the pedagogy using a mixed-methods design. Students’ scores on the Diversity and Oppression Scale significantly improved from pretest to posttest. Focus groups clarified the impact. The results of this exploratory pilot study suggest that this approach allowed students to learn to manage emotional responses, promoted student insights, and provided opportunities to challenge student assumptions.     

Delivery of Devolve Social Services: Its Contributions to the Socio-economic Conditions of Women in Columbio Sultan Kudarat

This is an evaluative study on the delivery of devolved programs in health, agriculture and social welfare. It aimed to identify the major devolved programs/projects implemented by the LGU of Columbio, Sultan Kudarat; the responsiveness of the actual delivery of devolve services in terms of human resources, facilities and fund allocation; the status of devolve services implemented if it was effective and efficient; and the inadequacies encountered. The “expose facto” method of research was used. There were 49 implementers and 132 beneficiaries of the various devolved programs. There were 181 total respondents. A four-part questionnaire was constructed and the gathered data were supplemented by information extracted through interviews with Key Informants, Focus Group Discussions and document analysis. There were three departments implementing the devolved social services programs such as the Municipal Health Office with 6 devolved health programs; the Municipal Agriculturist Office with 6 devolved agricultural projects; and the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office with 7 devolved social welfare programs. The respondents rated the implementation of devolve services in health, agriculture and social welfare programs between rank 5 to 9 for the aspects of human resources, facilities and fund allocations. The respondents assessed the implementation of devolved programs as Very Efficient and Most Responsive programs to the needs of the people specially the children, youths and women. The study also found some inadequacies observed during the implementation of devolved social services programs which were Agreed by the majority of the respondents. These findings implied that the implementation of various devolved social services for several years has made a significant difference in the lives of the people of the Municipality of Columbio, Sultan Kudarat, the Local Government of Columbio and program implementers with their commitment and solidarity to serve the people especially the marginalized is a manifestation of their unselfish dedication to uplift the socio-economic condition and well-being of the people. Hence, continuing projects should further be strengthened and supported to ensure the sustainability of the projects even if the support of different institutions has been terminated.     

Adolescent Sibling Relationship Quality and Adjustment: Sibling Trustworthiness and Modeling,as Factors Directly and Indirectly Influencing These Associations

The main goal of this study was to examine the direct and moderating effects of trustworthiness and modeling on adolescent siblings' adjustment. Data were collected from 438 families including a mother, a younger sibling in fifth, sixth, or seventh grade (M = 11.6 years), and an older sibling (M = 14.3 years). Respondents completed Web‐based surveys describing sibling conflict and warmth. Siblings reported on trustworthiness and modeling, and mothers described adjustment. Sibling conflict was directly associated with internalizing and externalizing behaviors for both siblings. The older siblings' reports of trustworthiness were directly associated with the outcome measures. The younger siblings' reports of trustworthiness were less directly associated, but a possible salutary effect was most evident under the highest levels of sibling conflict or warmth. Higher sibling modeling was a risk factor for adjustment problems in relations characterized by high conflict. Results support exploring trustworthiness as a key dimension of sibling relations.     

Preschoolers' Bistrategic Resource Control,Reconciliation, and Peer Regard

Bistrategic resource control entails using both coercive and prosocial strategies in competition for resources. The present study sought to clarify whether bistrategic involves more than simply using both strategies some of the time. Examining 88 preschoolers' coercion and prosociality over an entire school year, results showed that coercive resource control was used most frequently at the start of the school year, presumably to access resources and establish social dominance. Rates of prosocial resource control increased over the school year, and socially dominant preschoolers showed higher rates compared with peers, presumably to maintain resource control while keeping peers as allies. Socially dominant preschoolers also used reconciliation more often than peers, resulting in higher rates of affiliation between former competitors and more positive peer regard from fall to spring. Findings are discussed in terms of resource control theory and the importance of situating social behaviors within the behavioral and relationship context in which they are embedded.     

Improving confidence in tree species selection for challenging urban sites: a role for leaf turgor loss

High species diversity is argued to be the most important requisite for a resilient urban forest. In spite of this, there are many cities in the northern hemisphere that have very limited species diversity within their tree population. Consequently, there is an immense risk to urban canopy cover, if these over-used species succumb to serious pests or pathogens. Recognition of this should motivate the use of less commonly used species. Analysis of plant traits, such as the leaf water potential at turgor loss (Ψ_P0), can provide useful insights into a species’ capacity to grow in warm and dry urban environments. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate Ψ_P0 of 45 tree species, the majority of which are rare in urban environments. To help evaluate the potential for using Ψ_P0 data to support future decision-making, a survey of professionals engaged with establishing trees in urban environments was also used to assess the relationship between the measured Ψ_P0 and the perceived drought tolerance of selected species. This study demonstrates that Ψ_P0 gives strong evidence for a species’ capacity to tolerate dry growing conditions and is a trait that varies substantially across species. Furthermore, Ψ_P0 was shown to closely relate to the experience of professionals involved in establishing trees in urban environments, thus providing evidence of its practical significance. Use of plant traits, such as Ψ_P0, should, therefore, give those specifying trees confidence to recommend non-traditional species for challenging urban environments.     

Bayesian variable selection with spherically symmetric priors

We propose that Bayesian variable selection for linear parametrizations with Gaussian iid likelihoods should be based on the spherical symmetry of the diagonalized parameter space. Our r-prior results in closed forms for the evidence for four examples, including the hyper-g prior and the Zellner–Siow prior, which are shown to be special cases. Scenarios of a single-variable dispersion parameter and of fixed dispersion are studied, and asymptotic forms comparable to the traditional information criteria are derived. A simulation exercise shows that model comparison based on our r-prior gives good results comparable to or better than current model comparison schemes.     

Doing Good,Public Good,and Public Value

In this article, using multiple illustrative case examples, we demonstrate that philanthropic institutions are in the business of creating public value. In framing the work of philanthropy more broadly to include the process of public value creation, philanthropic institutions and leaders are challenged to be more strategic not only in their mission‐fulfillment grant‐making with nonprofit organizations but also in the way they stimulate and encourage collaboration, create the “third space” necessary to incubate ideas to transform society, and leverage resources to increase the return on their investments toward system‐wide change. The implications for philanthropic actors and institutions suggest that the strategic contributions they make toward creation of public value are those that go beyond transactional performance measures, such as number of dollars spent or clients receiving services, to include ways that their investments are amplified by meaningful partnerships with nonprofit and other organizations, changed behaviors of institutions and individuals, and transformative public policies.