The Social Economy in a Context of Austerity Policies: The Tension Between Political Discourse and Implemented Policies in Spain

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - Governments face the challenge of fostering the social economy in a context of economic crisis and austerity policies....     

Maternal education influences Australian infants’ language experience from six months

Disparities in children's early language skills associated with socioeconomic factors have led to many studies examining children's early language environments, but few as yet in the first year of life. This longitudinal study assessed the home language environments of 50 Australian infants, who varied in maternal education (university education, or not). Full‐day audio recordings were collected and analyzed using the LENA system when infants were aged 6–9 months and 12–15 months. Using the device‐specific analysis software, we assessed 12‐h projected counts of (1) adult speech input, (2) conversational interactions, and (3) child vocalizations. At both ages, higher maternal education was associated with higher counts of adult words and conversational turns, but not child vocalizations. The study adds to the literature by demonstrating disparities in the infants’ language experience within the first year of life, related to mothers’ education, with implications for early intervention and parenting supports.     

A systematic approach to smoking cessation activities in Danish shelters

Introduction: Shelter users have an alarmingly high smoking prevalence; our aim was to develop systematic smoking cessation activities in the shelters. Method: All available (n?=?13) shelters in Copenhagen were included. This Participatory Action Research had a development/test period and an implementation period for the revised intervention. Shelter-staff completed a questionnaire at baseline. Municipal smoking cessation counselors were trained to work with shelter users. Three types of on-site smoking cessation activities were developed and offered. Results: The estimated mean smoking prevalence in shelter users was 79%. Only two shelters ran smoking cessation activities prior to study start. All but one of the shelters implemented group-based intervention activities and approximately 13% of smokers signed-up; 26.6% of those who attended the first session were abstinent after approximately 12 weeks, as confirmed by staff. Conclusion: Smoking cessation activities in shelters are wanted by staff and shelter users, they are feasible and even very vulnerable persons are able to quit. Based on our experiences in Copenhagen shelters, we propose a systematic approach for future smoking cessation initiatives: smoking activities should be driven by the municipality, be pro-active, on-site, tailored and flexible, in addition, free nicotine therapy should be offered and trained smoking cessation counselors should be available.     

Melanie Klein and the Black Mammy: An Exploration of the Influence of the Mammy Stereotype on Klein’s Maternal and Its Contribution to the “Whiteness” of Psychoanalysis

This article seeks to show the influence of the black mammy stereotype on Melanie Klein’s theorization of the maternal object. It takes as its starting point the underrepresentation of black analysts and their negative experiences within psychoanalysis and links this to the wider cultural phenomenon of “whiteness,” defined as the denial of racialized experience. It then explores a symbol of this whiteness, the colonial stereotype of the black mammy, and demonstrates that she was a well-known figure in the interwar Britain in which Klein developed her ideas. It suggests that the colonial dynamics between the mammy and white people are repeated in Klein’s formulation of the maternal object and infant, and argues that we can see evidence of this in Klein’s analysis of Dick and in her theorization of the maternal object as split and as a combined parent figure. It then shows that a “negress” is central to the article used by Klein in her formulation of reparation, but that Klein transformed this article, replete with questions of racial identity, into a theory of “universal” psychic processes by reading the “negress” as mammy. It argues that the mammy may well have been a potent figure for Klein both professionally and personally due to the modernist trend of using “blackness” to break from tradition and due to a precedent of the mammy facilitating Jewish assimilation into whiteness. The Kleinian theory of the maternal object, inflected with the racial dynamics embodied by the mammy, can therefore be seen as contributing to psychoanalysis’ silence on race, perpetuating the invisibility of whiteness to white subjects and legitimating (psychic) violence toward the black other.     

Organic planning: A new approach to public participation in local governance

In the past few years, a new form of citizen-oriented policy deliberation has emerged. Often using the concept of “visioning” as a vehicle, efforts have been carried out to foster citizen discussions regarding the desired future of a community, region, or jurisdiction. The future orientation of such deliberations allows for a wide array of issues and concerns to be identified and acted upon in a developmental format. This paper seeks to draw some generalizations from this new phenomena. We argue that this is a new form of citizen participation that builds upon, but is distinct from, previous citizen participation practices and models. We call this new variant organic planning.     

A Comparison of Horse-Race, Bingo, and Video Poker Gamblers in Brazilian Gambling Settings

In the present study Brazilian gamblers from different settings were compared on socio-demographic characteristics, gambling behavior, and use of drugs. The SOGS was administered to 171 subjects at bingo (BG), video poker (VP), and horse-racing clubs (HR) of São Paulo. BG concentrated most women, VP the youngest and single gamblers, and HR the lowest income subjects. More VP than HR or BG gamblers reported taking time off work to gamble, as well as returning another day to win back lost money. They also had a higher number of scorable responses on the SOGS. The differences observed suggest that VP gamblers bear a greater risk of developing a pathological gambling pattern. The authors suggest that measures should be taken aimed at the prevention of pathological gambling, particularly among the young population of video poker gamblers.     

Civil Society,Economic Distress,and Social Tolerance

The idea that civil society is declining has been much discussed recently, for example, by Fukuyama (Trust: The Social Virtues and the Creation of Prosperity. New York: Free Press, 1995) and Putnam (The American Prospect 13 (Spring):35–42, 19937semi; Nobel Symposium, Uppsala, Sweden, August 27–30, 1994; PS: Political Science and Politics, December: 664–683:. At the same time, another stream of research suggests that racial tolerance is increasing through time (Quillian, American Journal of Sociology 101 (3):816–860, 1996; Firebaugh and Davis, American Journal of Sociology 94 (2):251–272. This paper combines ideas from several intellectual traditions to suggest that economic conditions may affect civil society, which in turn may influence social tolerance. These ideas are explored, using multivariate analysis of pooled General Social Survey data from 1972 to 1994. The results suggest that the fabric of civil society and economic conditions may contribute somewhat to espoused tolerance. Greater economic security, together with the attitudes fostered by a vibrant civil society including greater trust and less anomia, appear to increase espoused social tolerance. Period effects and the effects of other demographic factors remain strongly related to expressions of tolerance. While alternative interpretations may be offered depending on whether the interaction terms, Year × Education or Cohort × Education, are included in the analysis, the high correlation between the two suggests that these interpretations cannot be seen as oppositional. Finally and most important, the analysis reveals many parallels between espoused racial and homosexual tolerance, suggesting a more generalizable model of social tolerance.     

Coping with Time‐Varying Demand When Setting Staffing Requirements for a Service System

We review queueing‐theory methods for setting staffing requirements in service systems where customer demand varies in a predictable pattern over the day. Analyzing these systems is not straightforward, because standard queueing theory focuses on the long‐run steady‐state behavior of stationary models. We show how to adapt stationary queueing models for use in nonstationary environments so that time‐dependent performance is captured and staffing requirements can be set. Relatively little modification of straightforward stationary analysis applies in systems where service times are short and the targeted quality of service is high. When service times are moderate and the targeted quality of service is still high, time‐lag refinements can improve traditional stationary independent period‐by‐period and peak‐hour approximations. Time‐varying infinite‐server models help develop refinements, because closed‐form expressions exist for their time‐dependent behavior. More difficult cases with very long service times and other complicated features, such as end‐of‐day effects, can often be treated by a modified‐offered‐load approximation, which is based on an associated infinite‐server model. Numerical algorithms and deterministic fluid models are useful when the system is overloaded for an extensive period of time. Our discussion focuses on telephone call centers, but applications to police patrol, banking, and hospital emergency rooms are also mentioned.