The New Jersey Ethnic Life Series

The circular flow of income diagram is a traditional starting point for economics taught at the high school and college level. Although it is an incredibly useful tool for illustrating how money flows through the economy, the model can be abstract and relies on a sophisticated vocabulary that makes it impractical for use with younger students. This paper offers techniques for making the model accessible to middle school students and offers activities for reinforcing the concepts taught.     

Inside Out: An ‘English’ Dispersal into North-West Wales

This article is based on an empirical baseline study undertaken in 2005 which examined the experience of ‘the English’ who have moved and settled into north-west Wales. The movement of the British/white groups and their experiences have been less of a subject for examination and yet a dispersal of ‘the English’/British as both immigrants and colonisers has occurred and is ongoing. Migration between the constituent countries of the UK and the movement of English people into Wales has been a long-standing and accepted practice; it has been resisted by some in the more Welsh parts of Wales as a continuing ‘colonisation’. The rise of devolution within the UK and the burgeoning Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) with its increasing powers for self governance is leading to a decline of English dominance in Wales. This essay explores the experiences of ‘the English’ in Wales as England's influence over Wales becomes diluted, the role of leader and led reversed, and as the ‘empire begins to bite back’ (with apologies to Paul Gilroy).     

Managing Conflict of Interest in Research: Some Suggestions for Investigators

Conflict of interest situations threaten to compromise objectivity and tempt researchers to act wrongly. Allowing oneself to drift into such situations without appropriate preparation is negligence which is, itself, a sort of wrongdoing. Since conflict of interest is unlikely to be eliminated or tamed by the professional---and institutional---level safeguards currently under discussion, individual researchers must make their own preparations. We offer individuals ten strategies for managing their own conflicts of interest.     

Efficacy and agency among poor families with and without children

Families with children and living in poverty are vulnerable to decreased control over their lives and the ability to act in self‐interest. While having children may reduce efficacy among these families, their presence may also, in turn, increase their resilience. Using cross‐sectional data from n= 194 poor families in Southeastern USA, this study compares the constructs of self‐efficacy and agency between families with and without children. Results showed that among families with children, lack of agency was negatively correlated with self‐efficacy Δχ² (1, n= 194) = 12.65, P < 0.001, r=?0.37. Implications are directed towards practice and policy that may increase the efficacy and agency of poor families with children.     

Personal Mastery and Psychological Well-Being Among Young Grandmothers

This study examined the association between relationship quality, personal mastery, and psychological well-being among 83 young Black and White American grandmothers in families with teenage mothers. Interviews were conducted during the early stages of adaptation to grandparenthood due to the birth of a baby to a teenage daughter. Findings indicated that the effects of the mother–daughter relationship are mediated through mastery. When grandmothers feel a sense of mastery, the conflict with the teenage mother is not as detrimental to their psychological health. Findings are discussed in the context of developing supportive services for grandmothers in families with teenage mothers.     

Risky business--health care finance and the VA

Learn how the Department of Veteran's Affairs could analyze risk and return on patients and health care costs using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM).