Causes and indicators of housing quality

This paper examines the feasibility and validity of one method for combining measures of different dimensions of the quality of a household's housing situation into a summary index value. Housing quality is treated as an unobservable variable for which there are multiple observable causes and indicators. Alternative mathematical models are specified, and their parameters are estimated using data from a sample of low-income renter households in a major U.S. metropolitan area.     

Type Methodology and Type Myth: Some Antecedents of Max Weber's Approach*

The methodological proposals of Windelband, Knies, Schmoller, Menger, Simmel, Dilthey and Rickert are surveyed and compared. Two difficulties in the writings are identified: the strict division which is urged (or accepted) between science and history, and the tendency to treat societies as “social wholes,” which have an autonomous existence and are self-developing.     

Responding to a Community Need: Oakland University's Adult Career Counseling Center

Rapid changes in the world of work coupled with changes in individuals' needs necessitate career counseling assistance. The Oakland University Adult Career Counseling Center uses the services of counseling students to offer career advising to community adults at no charge. The center and its approach are described, along with brief examples of typical clients.     

Reconceptualizing the Role of Conformity Behaviors in Family Communication Patterns Theory

Family communication patterns theory is one of the most influential theories in the field of family communication. The current article examines the construct of conformity, arguing that current conceptualizations of conformity paint this behavior as largely a negative familial element. Instead, this research argues for the concept of warm conformity behavior, where parents communicate their ideas in ways that promote warmth and closeness rather than just adherence to hierarchy and rules. This move does not add to the two dimensions of the theory, but rather speaks to the different ways in which parents might communicate the dimension of conformity to their child. To further this idea, our article includes a series of three studies designed to create and validate new measures of warm and cold conformity. Overall, the studies found general support for the validity of the scales. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Introduction to Special Issue: ‘Translating Urban Planning Research and Pedagogy into Practice: An Australian perspective’

Abstract

The six papers in this special issue describe a deep schism in the relationships between research, teaching and practice, with a focus on Australia. There are many reasons why translating urban research and pedagogy into practice has increased in importance in recent years. This introduction provides three negative factors—decreasing funding, relevance and voice—and two more positive factors—the rise of the ‘pracademic’ and increasing social media forms of interaction. The papers describe how the empirical and theoretical foci of planning research are symbiotic, presenting challenges and opportunities for linking practice, teaching and research into positive change.     

Economic empowerment or cash‐dependency for orphans and vulnerable children in Kenya: Evidence from an alternative to cash‐only models

Orphan and vulnerable children (OVC) often have worse educational, developmental, nutritional, and behavioral outcomes than non‐OVC. Much of these disparities come from reduced household earnings due to the loss of parental income. The present study used conditional process analysis to evaluate income and savings among OVC households, using cross‐sectional data from 1,060 OVC in a 3‐year Kenyan empowerment program that combined elements of cash transfer, psychosocial support, and small business entrepreneurship. Higher monthly earnings were significantly associated with program participation in a graded fashion. Approximately one‐third of the association was mediated by material inputs, indicating that a substantial portion may be explained by other unobserved program elements. Eighty‐five percent of increased rates of saving money in the past year were mediated by improved monthly income, cash transferred and improved food consumption. Data analysis highlights the need for multisectoral approaches and the need for more research to understand how to improve household economic stability among OVC. Key Practitioner Message: ? Orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) are at risk of greater poverty, leading to multiple developmental and health challenges; ? Current policy in Kenya to offset costs of caring for OVC utilizes monthly cash transfers to households providing care for OVC; ? The present study found that increases in monthly income in an OVC multisectoral empowerment program were largely due to factors beyond the material inputs.     

Vocational Guidance Requests Within the International Scene

This article summarizes the work of a diverse group of researchers and practitioners from 5 continents on “Vocational Guidance Requests Within the International Scene” presented in the discussion group at a symposium of the International Association for Educational and Vocational Guidance, the Society for Vocational Psychology, and the National Career Development Association, in Padua, Italy. The role of societal and cultural forces in individuals' vocational decisions, the need to serve a larger percentage of the population with vocational guidance services, and suggestions to address these challenges in the field of vocational guidance were addressed.     

The Real Book of Mormon Musical: Latter-day Saint Family Home Evening as a Weekly Ritual

Abstract

Scholars of religious ritual have noted that inadequate attention has been paid to religious ritual in the social sciences. Based on what has been done, it is apparent that sacred family rituals (when done well and with relational sensitivity) can enhance structure, meaning, and family unity. The present study examines the family-level ritual practice of weekly Family Home Evening among members of 26 Latter-day Saint (LDS) families (N?=?58 individuals). Qualitative analyses found the following three themes: (a) Family Home Evening as a Conversation; (b) Challenges of Family Home Evening; and (c) The Value of Family Home Evening. Primary data that support and illustrate the three themes are presented, along with implications and applications.     

On the Equivalence of Bayesian and Dominant Strategy Implementation

We consider a standard social choice environment with linear utilities and independent, one‐dimensional, private types. We prove that for any Bayesian incentive compatible mechanism there exists an equivalent dominant strategy incentive compatible mechanism that delivers the same interim expected utilities for all agents and the same ex ante expected social surplus. The short proof is based on an extension of an elegant result due to Gutmann, Kemperman, Reeds, and Shepp (1991). We also show that the equivalence between Bayesian and dominant strategy implementation generally breaks down when the main assumptions underlying the social choice model are relaxed or when the equivalence concept is strengthened to apply to interim expected allocations.