Relating the Central and the Local

Although a number of valuable models of central‐local relationships in the nonprofit sector have been developed, particularly in relation to federal structures, there has been a tendency to assume that in any given organizational relationship central‐local structures will follow one common pattern. We argue that wider strategies are available: central dependency along one dimension may run with greater local autonomy along another. Such mixed tight‐loose structures may be of considerable importance in the “boundaryless” organizational environment of the future.     

The role of interagency collaboration in facilitating receipt of behavioral health services for youth involved with child welfare and juvenile justice

Unmet need for behavioral health care is a serious problem for crossover youth, or those simultaneously involved with the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. Although a large percentage of crossover youth are serious emotionally disturbed, relatively few receive necessary behavioral health services. Few studies have examined the role of interagency collaboration in facilitating behavioral health service access for crossover youth. This study examined associations for three dimensions of collaboration between local child welfare and juvenile justice agencies - jurisdiction, shared information systems, and overall connectivity - and youths' odds of receiving behavioral health services. Data were drawn from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being, a national survey of families engaged with the child welfare system. Having a single agency accountable for youth care increased youth odds of receiving outpatient and inpatient behavioral health services. Inter-agency sharing of administrative data increased youth odds of inpatient behavioral health service receipt. Clarifying agency accountability and linking databases across sectors may improve service access for youth involved with both the child welfare and juvenile justice systems.     

Assessing Value Differences Between Leaders of Two Social Venture Types: Benefit Corporations and Nonprofit Organizations

This study considers key value differences between leaders of two types of social ventures: for-profit social benefit corporations and nonprofit organizations. The research question asks to what degree the value sets of leaders of benefit corporations are congruent with those of similarly situated individuals in nonprofit organizations. The results show the values of leaders working in benefit corporations and nonprofit organizations are in many ways aligned, but there are notable statistical differences. A sectoral association of values is also present with employees in both types of organization, especially when the previous work experience of employees is considered.     

A qualitative study investigating adolescents' understanding of aggression,bullying and violence

There is a general consistency across the research literature regarding the definition of bullying. This has filtered down into the construction of governmental and school anti-bullying policies around the world. However, research suggests that children and adolescents are failing to accurately identify cases of bullying. This in turn has implications upon the accuracy of our perception of the extent of the problem of bullying within schools. The current study aimed to investigate how 11–17 year olds understand and differentiate between terms relating to interpersonal peer aggression, violence and bullying. Fifty-seven (twenty male, thirty-seven female) participants were recruited via an opportunity sample. Participants took part in focus group interviews within which they were asked to provide a definition for a list of words relating to both traditional and cyber forms of aggression, bullying and violence. Thematic analysis revealed that the participants held a shared understanding of the terms relating to aggression, bullying and violence. Participants defined each term by describing the behaviors involved, their perception of the level of control the perpetrators of each type of negative peer interaction have and the perception of those involved. The implications of these findings for both policy and future research are discussed.     

A Theory of Time Preference

This article proposes that people generally prefer present consumption to future consumption because their expected utility from consumption (eventually) falls as their mental and physical abilities (eventually) decline with age. Moreover, contrary to the ubiquitous intertemporal formulation with a constant rate of time preference and contrary to three recent theories of time preference that predict decreasing discounting as people age, this article asserts that discounting increases over the life cycle. This hypothesis is supported by data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics as well as evidence from numerous previous studies.     

Family homelessness in Britain: More than just a housing issue

This article offers an analysis of family homelessness in Britain and makes suggestions for change and development in both policy and practice. In Britain, family homelessness too often has been defined solely as a housing issue. The author asserts that this approach ignores the evidence that it is a complex problem in which not only economic and political, but also personal and social, factors play significant roles. The widespread failure to recognize the broad range of needs and problems experienced by homeless families seriously limits British vision and creativity in developing potential solutions. The article sets forth a number of policy recommendations, including developing comprehensive housing and service programs for homeless families; adding an intensive service component to existing homeless-at-home programs; emphasizing homelessness prevention; better utilizing persistently vacant housing; better utilizing the private rental sector; and exchanging Britain's present national commitment to temporary accommodation for an ongoing commitment to build sufficient affordable housing. These recommendations are based on the author's experience as an Atlantic Fellow in Public Policy at the Department of Social Policy and Social Work at the University of Oxford and on her 10 years of work with homeless families in the United States.     

Demographic Comparison of American Individuals in Polyamorous and Monogamous Relationships

Research on polyamorous relationships has increased substantially over the past decade. This work has documented how polyamory is practiced and why individuals might pursue such arrangements. However, there is a lack of a systematic investigation of who is in polyamorous relationships and how they might differ from individuals in monogamous relationships. The present study is one of the first to address this by comparing the demographic backgrounds of individuals in polyamorous (N = 2,428) and monogamous (N = 539) relationships in the United States. Compared to participants in monogamous relationships, those in polyamorous relationships were more likely to report minority sexual identities. Despite similar age distributions, individuals in polyamorous relationships were more likely to report being in a civil union, being divorced, and earning less than $40,000 per year compared to individuals in monogamous relationships. People in polyamorous relationships were also more likely to select “other” options for most demographic characteristics, suggesting that they tend to choose less traditional response options in general. The current research highlights several demographic differences that need to be considered and potentially controlled for in future comparisons of polyamorous and monogamous relationships.     

Teaching Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder to Report Past Behavior With the Use of a Speech-Generating Device

The Analysis of Verbal Behavior -