Value Similarities Among Fathers,Mothers, and Adolescents and the Role of a Cultural Stereotype: Different Measurement Strategies Reconsidered

In research on value similarity and transmission between parents and adolescents, no consensus exists on the level of value similarity. Reports of high‐value similarities coexist with reports of low‐value similarities within the family. The present study shows that different conclusions may be explained by the use of different measurement strategies. In addition, we demonstrate that measured value similarities may be biased by a cultural stereotype, that is, an indirectly measurable phenomenon outside the family most likely attributed to shared cultural experiences. We examined similarities in 8 social–cultural value orientations among fathers, mothers, and adolescents from 433 Dutch families. Results revealed different outcomes when using ordinary correlations (r), absolute difference scores (d), or profile correlations (q). Similarly, different influences of a cultural stereotype were found when applying different measurement strategies. We discuss which measurement strategies are best used under which circumstances and which role the cultural stereotype plays.     

‘There’s a lot of places I’d like to go and things I’d like to do’: the daily living experiences of adults with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities during a time of personalised social care reform in the United Kingdom

Adult social care services in the United Kingdom have undergone a period of transformation over recent years, characterised by a drive towards personalised care. Concurrently, social care budgets have been significantly reduced. This study aimed to explore the daily living experiences of adults with mild/moderate intellectual disabilities, who are at risk of no longer meeting eligibility criteria for statutory support. Focus group discussions, which included both people with intellectual disabilities and support workers, were analysed thematically. Two broad themes are presented: independence and agency; and social capital and well-being. While some participants echoed ideas central to the personalisation narrative, a number of contextual barriers to achieving greater independence and agency were discussed. Moreover, greater independence was not a desired goal for all participants. The findings highlight the potential mismatch between personalised social care, as delivered within significant budget constraints, and the needs of adults with intellectual disabilities.     

Identity Work,Techniques of Neutralization,and Deviance: Exploring the Relationship Among Older Adult Gamblers

This study investigates the value of techniques of neutralization in understanding how people involved in marginal to widely deviant behaviors perform identity work. Based on 33 in‐depth interviews with older adult gamblers, we show how techniques of neutralization are used to align personal and social identities. We describe the techniques of neutralizations our participants use along a continuum of gambling involvement, showing how techniques differ in variety and content and are contingent on larger narratives about appropriate behaviors, identities, and selves operating in contemporary society. Our research helps to refine sociologists' understandings of relationships between levels of involvement in deviant behaviors and identity work.     

European Civil Societies Compared: Typically German–Typically French?

According to the ‘social origin theory’ of civil society studies (Salamon and Anheier, Voluntas, 9(3): 213–248 (1998)), the nonprofit sector of today constitutes a ‘repository of former societal struggles and conflicts’. Correspondingly, nonprofits are embedded in administrative and organizational settings, which in many cases date as far back as the latter half of the 19th century—a time when industrialisation and urbanisation started to exert influence in the western world. France and Germany stand for very different societal traditions, political legacies and administrative structures. Traditionally, France is a highly centralized country in which local governments do not enjoy much autonomy. In contrast, Germany is a federalized country where self-government of local communities was introduced as early as at the beginning of the 19th century. Against this background, it comes as a surprise that, aside from few exceptions, the nonprofit sectors in the two countries are very similar. How does this come? We argue that the reason why the French nonprofit sector of today is very similar to the German nonprofit sector is closely linked to the growth of the welfare state in the two countries.     

Development in youth enterprises

Business enterprises run by youth can create jobs and teach the principles of free enterprise but also convey skills that can be used by employees in large companies, as well as political activists and entrepreneurs. Research is needed to test the efficacy of this approach and identify its key components.     

Exercising Property Rights to Pollute: Do Cancer Risks and Politics Affect Plant Emission Reductions?

This paper examines whether firms' decisions about reductions in toxic emissions depend on the magnitude of dangers arising from their pollution and on who bears pollutant risks. Controlling for the quantity of air toxics released in 1988, this article finds that plants whose emissions generated higher numbers of expected cancer cases did reduce their emissions more between 1988 and 1991. The nature of the community bearing the pollution risk also affected firm decisions. The higher the voter turnout in the area, a proxy for residents' likelihood of collective action, the greater the reductions in a plant's release of air carcinogens.     

Planning for permanency planning in foster care

The perceived severity of the problem of “drift” in the foster care system has encouraged agencies nationwide to accept permanency planning, but perhaps with limited attention to the planning process. This article examines the phenomenon of permanency planning from a planning perspective by focusing on: (a) definition of the permanency planning problem, (b) understanding of issues relevant to permanency planning (caseworker, program and systemic), (c) appreciation of the operational context (political, economic and social factors), and (d) evaluation of available options and possible consequences in developing or improving a permanency planning program. Permanency planning is not a simple, ready-made program applicable to any situation; it involves coordinated efforts by workers, service systems, and society in general, and requires time, commitment and resources. Successful planning for permanency planning can permit more children to grow up in homes providing continuity and stability.     

Adolescent group therapy membership selection

Conclusions Social agency practitiooners can employ adolescent group therapy as an effective treatment mode, as long as a great deal of attention and planning is put into the details of group membership selection. The authors have presented suggestions and guidelines that can be used in overcoming the logistic problems inherent in forming an adolescent therapy group. We feel that proper pregroup planning is just as important in determining group results as is the ongoing group process. Group treatment does not necessarily incease a therapist's productivity or reduce the amount of time spent in therapy, but it does offer a unique experience which has certain qualitative advantages for teenagers experiencing behavioral and relationship problems within and, particularly, outside of the family system.     

Können Organisationen nicht lernen? Facetten organisationaler Lernkulturen

Recently, the concept of ‘learning culture’ has entered the discussion on learning organizations and organizational learning, especially in the German speaking countries. Most of the academics, but also practitioners seem to use the term ‘learning culture’ in a particular sense as nurturing a self-directed, on-the-job learning of all employees. An implicit, often neglected assumption of this conception is that organizations can be divided into those who have a learning culture and those who do not. Although this idea of a dichotomy is also found in the discussion on learning organizations, it can be called into question. Past research has shown that (organizational) learning is a multifaceted phenomenon. Different organizations engage in very diverse kinds of learning due to the fact that they are facing varying environmental conditions. This brings us to doubt the idea of a ?one-best-way“ learning culture. Following the basic question, who learns what, how, when and why, the article presents a set of distinguishing attributes to distinguish between different types of learning cultures. Finally, yet unanswered questions and paths for future research are discussed.