Do Women Cause Unemployment? Evidence from Eight OECD Countries

ABSTRACT: In this paper the authors present the results of preliminary estimates on the effects of changes in the composition of labour forces throughout eight OECD countries during the period 1966-1986. The analysis proceeds in two steps. First, the effect of changes in the distribution of the labour force on group unemployment is computed. Second, the impact of this effect is combined with the direct effect of changes in the distribution of participation on total unemployment rates, to calculate a hypothetical unemployment rate which corresponds to what would have occured had there been no compositional changes. The paper challenges the thesis which sustains that alterations in the age-sex composition of the labour force have exerted an upward pressure on the aggregate unemployment rate.     

Drivers of variability in water use of native and non-native urban trees in the greater Los Angeles area

Trees in urban ecosystems are valued for shade and cooling effects, reduction of CO₂ emissions and pollution, and aesthetics. However, in arid and semi-arid regions, urban trees must be maintained through supplemental irrigation, in competition with other water needs. Currently, a comprehensive understanding of the factors which influence water use of urban tree species is lacking. In order to study the drivers of whole tree water use of two common species in the Los Angeles Basin urban forest, four sites in Los Angeles and Orange County were instrumented with sap flow and meteorological sensors. These sites allowed comparisons of the water use of a native riparian (Platanus racemosa Nutt.; California sycamore) and non-native (Pinus canariensis C. Sm.; Canary Island pine) Mediterranean species, as well as the spatial variability in water use under different environmental and management conditions. We found higher rates of sapflux (J _O ) in native California sycamore as compared to non-native Canary Island pine. Within each species, we found considerable site-to-site variability in the magnitude and seasonality of J _O . For Canary Island pine, the majority of inter-site variability derived from differences in water availability: response to vapor pressure deficit was similar during a period without water limitations. In contrast, California sycamore did not appear to experience water limitation at any site; however, there was considerable spatial variability in water use, potentially linked to differences in nutrient availability. Whole tree transpiration (E) was similar for the two species when water was not limiting, but Canary Island pine was able to withstand unirrigated conditions with a very low E. These results add to the currently small pool of data on urban tree water use and ecophysiology, and contribute to establishing a more quantitative understanding of urban tree function.     

Availability of emergency contraceptive pills at university and college student health centers

The author used the stages of change model to determine how ready student health centers at surveyed universities and colleges were to make emergency contraceptive pills (ECPs) available to students. Of the 358 centers that responded, 52.2% offered ECPs and 47.8% did not. The benefits of offering ECPs were listed as pregnancy prevention, the opportunity to introduce students to traditional contraception methods, and students' appreciation. Barriers to offering ECPs included institutions' religious affiliations, clinic and administrative staff objections, inability to prescribe or dispense medications, fear of liability, concern that ECPs would undermine students' use of traditional contraception methods, and no expressed need. Whether ECPs were available was associated with demographic characteristics of the institutions that responded, including geographic region, type of institution, size of student population, and students' status as commuter or on-campus residents.     

A Note on Maritally-Disrupted Men’s Reports of Child Support in the June 1980 Current Population Survey

Data from the June 1980 Current Population Survey on fathers’ reported provision offinancial support to children from previous marriages living elsewhere is compared to previously published tabulations from the April 1979 CPS of women’s receipt of child support payments. The comparison indicates that the number of men with children from previous marriages living elsewhere is substantially underreported in the June 1980 CPS. Because of the apparent underreporting, the data on the provision of financial support should be interpreted with caution.     

Stormwater basins of the New Jersey coastal plain: Subsidies or sinks for frogs and toads?

Stormwater basins are commonly employed structures designed to mitigate the negative effects of urban runoff. They are ubiquitous in the urbanized landscape; yet the effect of these basins on anurans has only recently been addressed. Stormwater basins have the potential to influence the breeding distribution of anurans by being sources for some species and sinks for others. Our study aims to determine which species benefit from the existence of stormwater basins, which species are negatively impacted, and what variables are the best predictors of these effects. We monitored thirty-six permanently-ponded basins in southern New Jersey for the presence of anuran larvae and calling males by aural surveys, dip-netting and trapping. We assessed fish presence by interviews, visual encounters, dip-netting, and traps. We divided near shore buffer areas into impervious surface and managed or unmanaged categories for both grass and woody vegetation. Two connectivity metrics, distance to canopied corridor and percent of undeveloped upland were analyzed with ArcGIS. Fish were detected in 92% of the basins. Resistance to fish predation distinguished successful species, those with larvae present, from unsuccessful species, those with calling activity but no larval presence. Connectivity to and availability of terrestrial habitat were significant predictors of the breeding species richness at the basins. Number of calling species increased as access to and amount of terrestrial habitat increased. Therefore, design, management, and placement of permanently-ponded basins can impact anuran communities. Additionally, as wet basins are sources for Rana catesbeiana, where bullfrogs are invasive, basins will likely increase propagule pressure.     

Child fatality review teams: a content analysis of social policy

Child fatality review teams (CFRTs) have existed since the 1970s; yet, a comprehensive understanding of their procedures, practices, and outcomes is lacking. This article addresses that gap in this study of CFRT state statutes. Findings indicate CFRT laws address nine areas of practice, from team composition, to purpose, to outcomes. Results also indicate that laws address prevention three times as often as investigation, but that both areas are related to state crime rates.