Sleepless in school? The social dimensions of young people’s bedtime rest and routines

There are increasing concerns that social pressures, such as family changes and social media, are ‘invading’ the sanctuary of the bedroom with the result that students arrive at school tired and stressed. This paper seeks to examine whether these concerns are justified and contribute to the growing literature on the social dimensions of sleep through examining the rest and routines of two cohorts of young people aged 12–13 and 14–15 years old. Our research indicates that, in general, most young people have ‘reasonable’ amounts of sleep and routines. But, a significant proportion does go to school tired, with apparent negative consequences for their well-being. The paper examines some of the within-cohort variations, in particular, the significance of volume of sleep, routines and engagement with social media and how these may reflect the material and cultural circumstances of the young people. The paper concludes by arguing for more research on the complex social causes and consequences of sleep deprivation among today’s youth.     

Wellbeing and urban living: nurtured by nature

Urban Ecosystems - In recent decades, empirical evidence has demonstrated that nature can enable urban environments to support human wellbeing. Research into links between nature and human...     

Is aspiration and sclerotherapy treatment for hydroceles in the aging male an evidence-based treatment?

Symptomatic hydroceles are commonly treated with surgical repair. They are associated with sexual dysfunction in the aging male. Patients who are not fit for surgery often undergo aspiration and sclerotherapy of the hydrocele. There is a range of sclerosing agents used in the literature. I performed a literature search to assess whether one sclerosant was better than the others. STDS is the sclerosing agent with the best cure rate after a single injection and low side effect rates. The cure rates of sodium tetradecyl sulphate (STDS) after a single aspiration and injection were 76%. After multiple treatments 94% achieved a cure. Patient satisfaction rates at mean 40 months were 95%. Complication rates were generally low and much lower than surgical repair. Aspiration and sclerotherapy have a role in treating symptomatic hydroceles. This literature review shows that this is over and above its current use in the UK, where it is used for patients unfit for general anaesthetic. If the patients are carefully selected for this procedure, they can have a good outcome and avoid the higher complication rate and longer recovery rates of surgical repair. Patients should be counselled about aspiration and sclerotherapy as part of the informed consent process.     

Assessing Multidimensional Approaches to Measure Program Outcomes in Human Service Organizations

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - This study explores scholars’ approaches to measure performance in nonprofit human service organizations. While...     

SOVEREIGNS VERSUS BANKS: CREDIT,CRISES, AND CONSEQUENCES

Two separate narratives have emerged in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis. One interpretation speaks of private financial excess and the key role of the banking system in leveraging and deleveraging the economy. The other emphasizes the public sector balance sheet and worries about the risks of lax fiscal policy. However, the two may interact in important and understudied ways. This paper examines the co‐evolution of public and private sector debt in advanced countries from 1870 to 2012. We find that in advanced economies financial crises are not preceded by public debt build‐ups nor are they more likely when public debt is high. However, history shows that high levels of public debt tend to exacerbate the effects of private sector deleveraging after financial crises. The economic costs of financial crises rise substantially if large private sector credit booms are unwound at times when the public sector has little capacity to pursue macroeconomic and financial stabilization.     

Ethnographic perspectives on the enumeration of aboriginal people in remote Australia

This paper compares population counts and age distributions from the last two Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) enumerations of the Aboriginal population of Aurukun, Cape York Peninsula, with the results of detailed ethnographic surveys of the same population at similar points in time. This reveals substantially lower numbers for the ABS counts, particularly of young adults and children. Reasons for this discrepancy are sought in the ethnographic realities of remote indigenous communities and an alternative methodology for Aboriginal enumeration in remote regions is suggested.     

Going Back and Giving Back: The Ethics of Staying in the Field

This article analyzes the benefits and ethical dilemmas of going back and continuing to write about the troupe of drag queens featured in our book, Drag Queens at the 801 Cabaret. The benefits include providing the drag queens the opportunity to revise and add to the stories we told about them and, through deepening friendships, changing the balance of power among us. Challenges include dealing with responses to the book, including those of family members, and conflicts over the royalties we shared with the troupe. Despite the pitfalls, going back contributes to public sociology by continuing conversations about research findings.     

Housing services for child welfare-involved families: an initial evaluation using observational data

This study evaluated the impact of housing services among child welfare-involved families using observational data. Propensity score matching with data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being compared intact families (n = 183) who received housing services 12 months after initial investigation to nontreated families balanced on characteristics at the time of investigation. Results suggested that general housing services failed, on average, to effectively address the needs of inadequately housed families.     

Aftershocks of Chile's earthquake for an ongoing, large-scale experimental evaluation

Evaluation designs for social programs are developed assuming minimal or no disruption from external shocks, such as natural disasters. This is because extremely rare shocks may not make it worthwhile to account for them in the design. Among extreme shocks is the 2010 Chile earthquake. Un Buen Comienzo (UBC), an ongoing early childhood program in Chile, was directly affected by the earthquake. This article discusses (a) the factors the UBC team considered for deciding whether to put on hold or continue implementation and data collection for this experimental study; and (b) how the team reached consensus on those decisions. A lesson learned is that the use of an experimental design for UBC insured that the evaluation's internal validity was not compromised by the earthquake's consequences, although cohort comparisons were compromised. Other lessons can be transferred to other contexts where external shocks affect an ongoing experimental or quasi-experimental impact evaluation.