Protection against outliers in empirical bayes estimation

The proven optimality properties of empirical Bayes estimators and their documented successful performance in practice have made them popular. Although many statisticians have used these estimators since the landmark paper of James and Stein (1961), relatively few have proposed techniques for protecting them from the effects of outlying observations or outlying parameters. One notable series of studies in protection against outlying parameters was conducted by Efron and Morris (1971, 1972, 1975). In the fully Bayesian case, a general discussion on robust procedures can be found in Berger (1984, 1985). Here we implement and evaluate a different approach for outlier protection in a random-effects model which is based on appropriate specification of the prior distribution. When unusual parameters are present, we estimate the prior as a step function, as suggested by Laird and Louis (1987). This procedure is evaluated empirically, using a number of simulated data sets to compare the effects of the step-function prior with those of the normal and Laplace priors on the prediction of small-area proportions.     

Improving Educational Opportunities for Students With Disabilities Who Are Homeless

Students who are homeless constitute a unique subset within today's school population; those who also have disabilities face even greater challenges. This article highlights the uniaue needs of students with disabilities who are homeless, legislative mandates for serving these students (the McKinney Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), and promising practices for overcoming educational and institutional obstacles to service delivery. Suggestions will focus on developing collaborative relationships at multiple levels, creating responsive systems through staff development and procedural revisions, and providing students with the social and instructional support they need to be successful.     

Counting family support

Preventative family support approaches are positioned as central to child welfare policy reforms aiming to address the problems of relying upon investigation and out‐of‐home care as the main modes of intervention. Extensive claims are made for family support but relatively little is known about its scope, processes and impact. This study examines the provision of family support in one jurisdiction. A census‐type survey of family support services in one Australian state was conducted using a performance measurement framework in which inputs, outputs, processes and outcomes were measured. Family support services constituted a minor part of child welfare expenditure. They provided a narrow range of service types, and most families received short duration, low intensity services. Workers had difficulty identifying the specific child and family needs that were met by services. For family support to be a genuinely alternative response to concerns about the care of children, it must be capable of making an observable difference in the lives of families experiencing serious difficulties. The collection of aggregate performance data on family support would assist in understanding the nature and outcomes of service provision, as well as ensure family support is ‘counted’ in measurement‐orientated policy and budget processes.     

Random Drug Testing and Religion*

Research recently has begun to examine the link between religion and social control. It has been noted that religion, in particular Protestant conservatism, does play a role in shaping public opinion, and as a result, public policy on crime, crime control, and justice. The present research examines the issue of public support for random drug testing by focusing on the role of religion, specifically religious affiliation, in shaping public opinion. Analysis of survey data from a city in the Southwest identifies two separate dimensions of public support for random drug testing–a utilitarian dimension that is grounded in safety concerns, along with a normative dimension that reflects conservative moral beliefs, including a concern with the “evil” of drugs. Evidence from the data also indicates that conservative Protestants, compared to liberal-moderate Protestants, Catholics, and those with no affiliation, display higher levels of normative-based support for random drug testing. Researchers are encouraged to further explore the role of religion in shaping public support for the development of drug policies and other more general social control policies.     

Re‐Organizing Work Roles in Health Care: Evidence from the Implementation of Functional Flexibility

Functional flexibility has been advocated as a mechanism for improving efficiency and service quality and is, it is argued, especially appropriate to service environments. In recent years the UK public health service has been subject to an ongoing programme of reform, designed to modernize the way in which health services are provided. A central feature of the reform involves breaking down traditional boundaries and the re‐organization of work roles. This article is concerned with examining the implementation of functional flexibility in three health‐care settings. Case‐study data are presented, focusing on the responses of employees and managers to initiatives to work more flexibly. For managers the implementation achieved efficiency gains and improvements to service quality, in spite of some resistance from employees. For employees the outcomes were more mixed. There was evidence of ‘humanization’ through greater job variety, challenge and access to training, but there were also costs in terms of intensification, role confusion and stress. The implications of these findings both for understanding the issues raised by the use of functional flexibility and for the implementation of policies in the NHS involving job redesign are discussed.     

Analysis of Australian Research Council Grants Awarded for Social Work Projects 2008–2017

ABSTRACT

The quantity and quality of social work research is central to creating knowledge for the profession and maintaining social work’s presence and status in universities. This study examines Australian Research Council grants awarded for social work projects for the 10-year period 2008–2107. It investigates the quantum of grants and the topics addressed, and compares social work to related social sciences. The field of social work was awarded 84 research grants over the 10-year period, a total of $23 million and an average of 8.4 grants per year. However, this did not match the grant successes of the two comparator fields of criminology and social policy and administration. Having a clear picture of research achievements, including grants, is necessary to enable the discipline to plot a strategic way forward, addressing gaps and deficits, and building on strengths.

IMPLICATIONS

• Increasing research grant success is vital to the ongoing development of the social work knowledge base, and bolsters the standing of social work in universities.

• Maximising the use of social work Field of Research codes will increase the visibility of social work research, especially in multidisciplinary projects.

• Social work researchers should publicise competitive grant successes

     

The influence of anthropogenic resources on multi-scale habitat selection by raccoons

With the continuing spread of urban areas, gaining a greater understanding of the effect of human presence on wildlife species is essential for wildlife managers. We determined the influence of anthropogenic resources on home range size and habitat selection of raccoons (Procyon lotor) during summer (June–August) 1996–2000 for 120 raccoons at three sites exposed to varying levels of urbanization and anthropogenic resources, specifically food. Home range estimates were larger (P < 0.05) at the rural site than the suburban and urban sites for both genders. We used compositional analysis to examine raccoon habitat selection at the second-order home range, second-order core area, and third-order home range scales. Woodland was consistently a highly-selected habitat type for both sexes at every spatial scale. Relative to other habitat types, habitat associated with human-related food (human use areas) was selected most often at the urban site, intermediately at the suburban site, and not selected at the rural site. Spatial scale also affected habitat selection. Human use areas were preferentially selected at the second- and third-order level at the urban site, third-order level only at the suburban site, and at neither level at the rural site. Additionally, intersexual differences in habitat selection were reduced at the urban site, with both sexes preferentially selecting for human use areas as well as woodland habitat. Smaller home ranges in urbanized environments are often attributed to the abundant and concentrated anthropogenic resources associated with human activity, but with little empirical support. Our habitat selection analyses followed our predictions that raccoon foraging is strongly influenced by the artificial distribution and abundance of human-related food. Male and female raccoons in urban areas reduce their foraging patterns and focus their foraging activity on anthropogenic foods.     

EVALUATING PDAS FOR DATA COLLECTION IN FAMILY RESEARCH WITH NON-PROFESSIONAL COUPLES

Repeated measures designs such as daily diary methods provide flexibility for examinations of fluid phenomena. The focus of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) as data collection tools with an end of the day (EOD) diary design and a non-professional sample. Participants reported the PDA was easy to use, convenient and enhanced the privacy of their responses. The PDAs minimized data entry errors and increased the data validity because responses were time stamped. Given the overall positive nature of participant reactions and the additional data PDAs make available to the researcher, the technology is recommended for further use in collecting data with non-professionals or in other couple or family research.     

Relationships Between the Great Recession and Widening Maternal and Child Health Disparities: Findings from Washington and Florida

The purpose of this study was to explore relationships between the Great Recession in the United States and maternal and child health (MCH) disparities in