Self-perceptions of unpopularity in adolescence: Links to past and current adjustment

Self-perceptions of unpopularity in 404 high school students were found to reflect current emotional and behavioral distress. The authors studied these youths from ages 9 to 15 to examine early risks and current factors associated with perceptions of unpopularity. Feelings of unpopularity in middle childhood increased the risk of similar feelings in adolescence. However, self-reports of unpopularity at age 9 were not strong predictors of emotional and anti-social problems at age 15. Identification of unpopular adolescents and recommendations for future practice and research are proposed.This research was supported in part by Grant MH41569, National Institute of Mental Health. It was adapted from the doctoral dissertation of Dr. Cohen, Simmons College School of Social Work, completed in June, 1991. The authors wish to thank the dissertation committee members, Craig Edelbrock and Barent Walsh for their major contributions.Dr. Cohen is affiliated with the Early Adulthood Research Project, Simmons College, School of Social Work, and the co-authors are affiliated with the School of Social Work.     

Exploring trends: tracking evaluations data over several months by therapists and parents of children with cerebral palsy

A pilot study was conducted at the outpatient rehabilitation unit of a children's hospital to explore the overall performance trends of children in daily life as perceived by their parents, compared to the evaluations of therapists. A performance goal was set for each child by his/her therapist and parent at an initial consultation. Over a six-month period, data were collected from the parents of children with cerebral palsy (N = 53), and therapists assessed children at each therapy session as well. The evaluations of both parents and therapists showed statistically significant upward trends in performance over several months.     

What's an Oscar worth?

This article examines the impact of an Academy Award nomination and award for best picture, best actor/actress, and best supporting actor/actress on a film's (i) market share of theaters, (ii) average revenue per screen, and (iii) its probability of survival. The model is estimated using weekly box-office data for a matched sample of nominated and non-nominated films. The results indicate substantial financial benefits for a nomination and award for best picture and best actor/actress. The structure of rewards is consistent with that found in two-stage, single-elimination tournaments.     

Online Religion and Religion Online: Reform Judaism and Web-Based Communication

This study examines the online communication practices of American congregations associated with the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ), the governing body of American and Canadian Reform congregations, through a content analysis of 252 American URJ congregational Web sites. Web site content was grouped into two categories, “religion online” and “online religion.” Religion online content promotes the organization and provides organizational information, including information related to organizational identity building, community outreach, and encouraging civic and social action. Online religion content allows the user to engage in spiritual activity via the Internet (Helland, 2000 Helland, C. (2000). Religion online/online religion and virtual communitas. In J. Hadden &; D. Cowan (Eds.), Religion on the Internet: Research prospects and promises (pp. 205–224). New York, NY: Elsevier Science. [Google Scholar]; Farrell, 2011 Farrell, J. (2011). The divine online: Civic organizing, identity building, and Internet fluency among different religious groups. Journal of Media &; Religion, 10, 73–90. doi:10.1080/15348423.2011.572438.[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]). ANOVA and MANOVA analyses were used to determine significant differences in content based on congregation size. Results revealed larger congregations were more likely to use Web sites for organizational identity building, mobilization of civic and social action, and the practice of “online religion,” lending support to the existence of a size-based digital divide among URJ congregations.     

Managing Motivation,Organization and Governance

Journal of Management and Governance -