'In the real world we're all put on the spot at some time or other,so you need to be prepared for it': An exploratory study of an oral method of assessing knowledge of mental health law

The education and training of Approved Social Workers (ASWs) involves at least 60 days of college and practice-based learning. A major component of the college-based curriculum is the teaching and assessment of knowledge of mental health law. One programme in England assesses student knowledge of law by an oral examination that includes a case discussion and questions about the Mental Health Act 1983. Oral assessment of knowledge of law is commonplace for those entering legal professions. Oral assessment of clinical knowledge in professions such as medicine and psychiatry is similarly frequent. However, examination by oral assessment is not usual in social work education. An exploratory study by postal questionnaire of all past students of the programme and their line managers was undertaken to establish their views of this means of assessing knowledge of law. This paper considers the results of the research and outlines student perceptions of the law oral assessment as preparation for practice as an ASW. The paper focuses on three distinct but interlinked areas--education, assessment and practice--and suggests some implications for educators and practitioners, which are especially relevant in the light of the current review of mental health legislation.     

The Resistible Rise of Sarah Palin: Continuity and Paradox in the American Right Wing1

Sarah Palin clearly holds a powerful appeal for a right‐wing constituency although even her most fervent followers may doubt that she is electable. This article examines the basis of her appeal. We argue that it can be summed up as an appeal to American authenticity, which consists of several elements: the valorization of small town ordinary life takes second place to faith and religious commitment; an equal faith in American exceptionality implies that Americans should never be apologetic about their country and never waver in their belief in its special greatness; the final elements are a foundational libertarian creed and a peculiar brand of right‐wing populism. However, for all her affinities with classical right‐wing sentiment, Sarah Palin, we argue, brings something new to the mix: a genuinely maverick right‐wing feminism. That is why in the end, we call the Palin phenomenon a paradoxical one.     

Adoption Issues: Preparation of Psychologists and an Evaluation of the Need for Continuing Education

This study is an investigation of the level of preparation psychologists have in dealing with adoption issues and an assessment of the need for further education in treating triad members. A questionnaire was mailed to 497 psychologists randomly selected from the National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology who received doctoral degrees between the years of 1990 and 1996. Two hundred and ten psychologists, all of whom were currently treating clients, participated in the study. Psychologists completed a Likert rating of their sense of preparation to treat triad members. The largest group (51%) rated themselves as Somewhat prepared, with the second largest group (23%) rating themselves as Not very prepared. Ninety percent reported they needed more education in adoption, and 81% reported interest in taking a continuing education course in adoption. Of the 210 participants, only 67 reported taking courses that dealt with adoption as part of their formal education. Of those psychologists who reported taking courses that involved adoption, they averaged only 1.3 courses during their undergraduate education, and 1.5 courses during graduate education, while the remaining 143 psychologists received no education in this area. When one considers the proportion of triad members seen clinically, this study suggests psychologists need more education and background information about the effects of the adoption process.     

Codes of ethics and firm size: A stakeholder approach to strategic planning

A firm's capital budgeting and strategic planning decisions have the potential to affect many groups of people called stakeholders. A stakeholder is any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the firm's objectives. This study examines whether the presence of a code of ethics that specifically addresses capital budgeting/strategic planning decisions will significantly raise the awareness of social responsibility during the long-run planning process. This study also examines whether firm size is associated with the awareness of social responsibility during the long-run planning process. Support was found that a code of ethics that addresses long-range planning is associated with higher awareness during the planning process. Firm size was not found to be statistically different.     

Why are residential and school moves associated with poor school performance?

Most research on residential mobility has documented a clear pattern: Residential and school moves are associated with poor academic performance. Explanations for this relationship, however, remain speculative. Some researchers argue that moving affects social relationships that are important to academic achievement. But the association between moving and school performance may be spurious; the negative correlation may be a function of other characteristics of people who move often. We offer several conceptual and analytical refinements to these ideas, allowing us to produce more precise tests than past researchers. Using longitudinal data, we find that differences in achievement between movers and nonmovers are partially a result of declines in social relationships experienced by students who move. Most of the negative effect of moving, however, is due to preexisting differences between the two groups.     

Kinship patterns and household composition: Older unmarried Hungarian women, 1984

Household composition of older unmarried women in Hungary is analyzed using data from the 1984 microcensus. The principal determinants of household composition investigated are kin availability — the number of living children, siblings, and parents — health status, marital status, age, and income. A multinomial logit model distinguishing among five household types reveals that number of children, severe disabilities, age and income are all strongly related to household composition. Trends in fertility and mortality patterns suggest that kinship patterns will change in coming years; these results imply that household composition will, in turn, change as well.     

Statistical and Historical Analyses of Nations Which Deviate From the Size-Density Law

We examine nations which deviate significantly from the ?2/3 sizedensity slope previously observed for the aggregated political subdivisions of 98 modern nations and previously derived from the theory of timeminimization. We correct Stephan’s original list of deviant nations, demonstrate that all slopes more negative than ?2/3 were due to the erroneous inclusion of cities in the original data sets, develop a theory to account for the less negative deviant slopes, and test the theory both through statistical manipulation of current data and through analysis of available historical data.     

Characteristics of gay, lesbian, and bisexual Asians, Asian Americans, and immigrants from Asia to the USA

An exploratory study of self-identified lesbian, gay, and bisexual Asians and Asian Americans surveyed respondents (60 women and 254 men) using a questionnaire in four languages from nineteen different sources in Korea, Japan, China, and the US. Respondents were compared in terms of country of residence, whether they immigrated to the US, having a same-sex lover, living with the lover, being open about their sexual orientation to the family, and age. Respondents in the US were generally more open about their sexual orientation. Openness to the family was related to other variables suggesting an affirmative lesbian, gay, or bisexual identity.     

A comparison of Japanese failure models: Hybrid neural networks,logit models,and discriminant analysis

This article looks at the ability of a relatively new technique, hybrid artificial neural networks (ANNs), to predict Japanese banking and firm failures. These models are compared with traditional statistical techniques and conventional ANN models. The results suggest that hybrid neural networks outperform all other models in predicting failure for one year prior to the event. This suggests that for researchers, policymakers, and others interested in early warning systems, the hybrid network may be a useful tool for predicting banking and firm failures.