Identification of the covariance structure of earnings using the GMM estimator

In recent years there has been a rapid growth in the number of studies that have used the GMM estimator to decompose the earnings covariance structure into its permanent and transitory parts. Using a heterogeneous growth model of earnings, we consider the performance of the estimator in this context. We use Monte Carlo simulations to examine the sensitivity of parameter identification to key features such as panel length, sample size, the degree of persistence of earnings shocks and the specification of the earnings model. We show that long panels allow the identification of the model, even when persistence in transitory shocks is high. Short panels, on the other hand, are insufficient to identify individual parameters of the model even with moderate levels of persistence.     

Eating Disordered Behaviors and Body Disapproval in Adolescent Males Adjudicated for Sexual and Nonsexual Crimes

Using a large sample of adjudicated delinquent male youth (N = 696), we compared data from youth who had been adjudicated for sexually aggressive crimes and those who had been adjudicated for nonsexual offenses on eating dysfunction, body disapproval, history of sexual abuse, and pornography exposure. The sample included 526 (75.8%) youth adjudicated for sexual offenses and 170 (24.4%) youth adjudicated for nonsexual crimes. The average age of the sample was 16.8 years (SD = 1.6), and approximately half of the sample (47.7%, n = 310) self-identified as White. The results of hierarchical multiple regressions indicated that sexually aggressive youth scored significantly higher than nonsexually offending youth on both eating dysfunction and body disapproval measures. Pornography exposure and substance use predicted body disapproval and eating dysfunction in the entire sample of adjudicated youth. History of sexual abuse was a significant predictor of body disapproval in all adjudicated youth but was not a significant predictor of eating dysfunction. Implications for research and practice are offered.     

Multidimensional Family Resilience Assessment: The Individual,Family, and Community Resilience (IFCR) Profile

The goal of this study was to develop a broad, multidimensional assessment of individual, family, and community resilience for use in evaluating socioeconomic mobility programs. The Individual, Family, and Community Resilience Profile (IFCR) is a broad, multidimensional measure that evaluates multiple ecological levels of resilience. Based on a sample of 650 low-income families, this study demonstrates the initial reliability of the 75-item IFCR. This evaluation tool assesses 20 separate dimensions of constructs often associated with resilience. The IFCR provided strong reliability with interitem reliability coefficients ranging from α = .71 to.93. The IFCR also showed strong predictive abilities for education levels, employment, and mental health. We also present benchmark scaling of the IFCR for use in practice and future research.     

To War or Not? Engaging Middle School Students in an Ongoing Online Discussion

In seeking to prepare students to be “citizens of a culturally diverse, democratic society in an interdependent world,” teachers engage students in live, online discussions about what justifies war, while at the same time grappling with the requirements to teach the memorization of people, places and isolated events. Teachers and a university professor worked to teach students to think inductively about the justification of war, a theme found in most history curricula.     

Subjective Versus Objective Definitions of Homelessness: Are there Differences in Risk Factors among Heavy-Drinking Women?

Investigations with homeless populations have focused on those living on the streets or in shelters; few have examined phenomena based on respondents’ self-definitions as homeless or not. This investigation examined similarities and differences among risk factors (including mental health, substance abuse, religion/spirituality, social support, and risky sexual behaviors) using two definitions of homelessness: one where place of residence defined individuals as homeless (the ‘objective’ or traditional, definition) and another where respondents defined themselves as homeless (the ‘subjective’ definition). Data come from the baseline survey of the NIAAA-funded “Sister-to-Sister” study (n = 339) of heavy-drinking women. Subjectively defined homelessness was associated with higher rates of mental health and substance use disorders, lower rates of condom use, higher rates of trading sex for food, and less social support. Objectively defined homelessness was associated with higher rates of drinking in abandoned buildings, on the streets, and in public restrooms, more new sexual partners, and higher rates of trading sex for heroin and speedballs. Investigations failing to ask for subjective information may misattribute some factors to homelessness which may overestimate the effect of various factors on homelessness. Investigators should ask respondents to define their homelessness, or they lose an important dimension of the concept of homelessness.

The Influence of Gaming Expenditure on Crime Rates in South Australia: A Local Area Empirical Investigation

Although there has been much speculation about the possible links between gambling and crime rates, relevant quantitative evidence has been practically non-existent in Australia to date. This paper reports the results of research that utilised a model designed to investigate the potential relationship between electronic gaming machine expenditures and property (income-generating) crime rates reported to police in local areas in South Australia in 2002–2003. The research found that the higher the expenditures on gaming machines in a particular local area per adult, the higher the income-generating crime rate in that area. No such relationship was found between gaming machine expenditure and non-income-generating crime rates. However, further research is required before any policy-relevant conclusions can be drawn.