Scientific Certainty Argumentation Methods (SCAMs): Science and the Politics of Doubt*

At least since the time of Popper, scientists have understood that science provides falsification, but not “proof.” In the world of environmental and technological controversies, however, many observers continue to call precisely for “proof,” often under the guise of “scientific certainty.” Closer examination of real‐world disputes suggests that such calls may reflect not just a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of science, but a clever and surprisingly effective political‐economic tactic—“Scientific Certainty” Argumentation Methods, or SCAMs. Given that most scientific findings are inherently probabilistic and ambiguous, if agencies can be prevented from imposing any regulations until they are unambiguously “justified,” most regulations can be defeated or postponed, often for decades, allowing profitable but potentially risky activities to continue unabated. An exploratory examination of previously documented controversies suggests that SCAMs are more widespread than has been recognized in the past, and that they deserve greater attention in the future.     

Understanding Women's Underrepresentation in Science,Technology, Engineering,and Mathematics: The Role of Social Coping

Enrollment of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors is disproportionately small and declining. This study examines social coping to explain the gender gap. Women undergraduates reported using significantly more social coping than did men. Multiple regression analyses revealed that social coping was a stronger predictor of commitment to major for women than for men. Social coping negatively predicted intent to turn over, or withdraw from, their major for women, but not for men. Unexpectedly, social coping negatively predicted academic course grade for men but not for women. Results suggest that women benefit more from social coping than do men. Implications for counselors and policy are discussed.     

Naturalistic Observations of Peer Interventions in Bullying

This study examined peer intervention in bullying using naturalistic observations on school playgrounds. The sample comprised 58 children (37 boys and 21 girls) in Grades 1 to 6 who were observed to intervene in bullying. Peers were present during 88% of bullying episodes and intervened in 19%. In 47% of the episodes, peers intervened aggressively. Interventions directed toward the bully were more likely to be aggressive, whereas interventions directed toward the victim or the bully-victim dyad were more likely to be nonaggressive. The majority (57%) of interventions were effective in stopping bullying. Boys were more likely to intervene when the bully and victim were male and girls when the bully and victim were female. The implications for anti-bullying interventions are discussed.     

Work–Family Balance Self‐Efficacy's Relationship With STEM Commitment: Unexpected Gender Moderation

The number of students, particularly the number of women, completing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) undergraduate degrees is insufficient to meet the U.S. demand. Thus, research investigating key predictors of STEM commitment is of high importance. Applying the Social Cognitive Model of Career Self‐Management (SCCT‐CSM; Lent & Brown, 2013 ) as a guiding framework, this study examined the relationship between work–family balance self‐efficacy (WFSE) and STEM commitment as moderated by gender. The sample included 246 STEM students (106 women, 140 men) from a southeastern university. A 3‐step hierarchical regression analysis demonstrated that WFSE accounted for incremental variance in STEM commitment beyond traditional social‐cognitive predictors, and gender moderated the relationship between WFSE and STEM commitment. Contrary to expectations, the relationship was stronger for men than for women. Findings suggest resiliency among women, showing that they are committed to STEM regardless of low WFSE. Practical implications for university and workplace contexts are discussed.     

Learning manual handling without direct supervision or support: a case study of home care workers

How home care workers (HCWs) adapt their classroom training to their workplaces is central to their own safety and that of their care recipients. A case study approach was adopted for this inquiry into HCW training in Australia, where new workers were directly observed and interviewed in their workplaces following classroom training. Findings from the study advance four contributions: (a) learning is person-dependent, (b) artefacts in the form of written materials afford a valuable form of learning support; (c) opportunities for these workers to meet, share and refresh their knowledge are important for further development of occupational capacities; and (d) more organisational support for such socially isolated workers’ learning is needed.     

Private Property Wrongs: Uncovering the Contradictory Articulations of an Hegemonic Ideology*

One of the most effective sources of legitimation for privileged access to the environment and its natural resources comes in the form of hegemonic ideologies, such as private property rights. The concentratiosn of ownership and control over land and natural resources is rarely contested, because to question the rights of an industrial actor's property rights would be to question the ideological premise that private property ownership promotes societal well-being and progress. The staying power of this and other hegemonic ideologies, however, derives from the ability to keep certain internal contradictions associated with those ideologies concealed. Using recent conceptual work on ideology, this article focuses on recent events in forest politics in northern California, to illustrate the means by which environmental catastrophe has served as a source of vulnerability to the present hegemony of the ideology of private property rights. As with other instances of environmental justice mobilization, this case illustrates how the ability to elucidate contradictions in hegemonic ideologies may provide a more potent avenue for social transformation than attempts to introduce alternative ideologies.