Parents' psychological self-concepts and children issues in low-income families in Singapore

Drawing on data from a survey of 430 families who were recipients of a government financial assistance scheme, the study found that different types of children issues affected different types of psychological self-concepts experienced by the sample of low-income parents. While parents' sense of self-efficacy was decreased by children's poor grades, parenting stress was aggravated by both children's health and behaviour problems. The effects were stronger for parents with teenage children than parents with younger children. The findings imply the importance of better integration of services to meet the different needs of low-income families, and of a supportive manner of providing assistance.     

From globalization to Europeanization-and then? Transnational influences in lesbian activism of the Western Balkans

The article looks at transnational dynamics in lesbian activism in the Western Balkans, with particular focus on Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, over the last two decades. Based on 30 interviews with activists from local and international feminist, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT), and queer organizations, the article discusses the role played by transnational contacts in the development of lesbian activism in the region and the related issues arising within the conflicting relationship between the "East" and the "West," with special attention to trends related to international intervention and cooperation, globalization, and Europeanization.     

An analysis of Jordan's 2013 policy regarding Iraqi refugees

The Iraqi refugee population in Jordan has become a sustained humanitarian emergency, and Jordan must take new action to respond. The inability of Jordan to address the needs of Iraqi refugees causes not only the suffering of those refugees, but also that of the larger native populations, as needy Iraqis depend upon Jordan's already strained resources. In addition, non-governmental organizations cannot keep up with Iraqi refugee needs due to funding restrictions. Moreover, the UNHCR and other aid agencies may not be suited to performing the task of addressing the Iraqi refugee crisis as a majority of this response relates to humanitarian aid, not addressing the political roots of the problem. There are also fundamental statistical issues relating to Iraqi refugees in Jordan. Numerical discrepancies and political connections make it difficult to determine whether the currently purported number of 450,000 Iraqi refugees in Jordan is accurate. The clear benefits Jordan receives from aid might give rise to suspicions of inflated reported numbers of Iraqi refugees. Also, reports make contrary claims about the average social level of Iraqi refugees, making it difficult to determine what type of aid is needed. Jordan should alter internal policy regarding Iraqi refugees to initiate a political solution for the crisis. It must also carry out up-to-date surveys of the numbers and needs of Iraqi refugees to address the significant gaps in current data, and additionally should push for increased social integration of Iraqis within society.     

The psychic costs of migration: evidence from Irish return migrants

Within the economics literature, the ‘psychic costs’ of migration have been incorporated into theoretical models since Sjaastad (J Polit Econ 70:80–93, 1962). However, the existence of such costs has rarely been investigated in empirical papers. In this paper, we look at the psychic costs of migration by using alcohol problems as an indicator. Rather than comparing immigrants and natives, we look at the native-born in a single country and compare those who have lived away for a period of their lives and those who have not. We use data from the first wave of the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing which is a large, nationally representative sample of older Irish adults. We find that men who lived away are more likely to have suffered from alcohol problems than men who stayed. For women, we again see a higher incidence of alcohol problems for short-term migrants. However, long-term female migrants are less likely to have suffered from alcohol problems. For these women, it seems that migration provided psychic benefits, and this is consistent with findings from other research which showed how migration provided economic independence to this group. The results remain when we adjust for endogeneity and when we use propensity score matching methods.     

Effect of detection methods on risk estimates of exposure to biosolids-associated human enteric viruses

This study illustrates the effect of virus detection methods on estimates of risks of infection of biosolids-associated viruses for occupational workers and residential population during a hypothetical exposure of biosolids. Five gastroenteritis-associated human enteric viruses--enteroviruses (echovirus-12, enteroviruse types 68-71), adenoviruses, rotaviruses, and noroviruses genotype--I-were considered to represent human enteric viruses for risk estimation purposes. Ingested viral doses were calculated using literature-reported total infectious virus concentrations (based on BGM and A549 cell lines) and genome copies (GCs) in Michigan dewatered and class B biosolids. Cell-line-based infectivity parameters (i.e., ratio of total infectious virus concentration to GCs) were developed for different viruses in biosolids to use GCs for calculating ingested viral dose, addressing the issue of integration of molecular methods with biosolids-based virus risk assessment. Use of virus concentrations from molecular methods (with and without using cell-line-based infectivity parameter) resulted in higher risk estimates than culture methods, indicating the effect of the virus detection method on risk estimates. Further, use of virus concentrations from A549 cell lines resulted in higher risk estimates compared to those from BGM cell lines, suggesting the need for a proper choice of cell lines in determining infectious viral dose. The Monte Carlo uncertainty analyses of estimates for risk of infection due to enteroviruses showed that enteroviruses concentration was the most important parameter influencing risk estimates, indicating the need for reducing associated uncertainty. More work is required to develop cell-line-based infectivity parameters for different virus concentration levels and sample matrix types using a cut-off-based approach.     

Healing components of a bereavement camp: children and adolescents give voice to their experiences

This qualitative study is the follow-up to a quantitative controlled study which showed a decrease in childhood traumatic grief and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms in parentally bereaved children participating in a bereavement camp. The purpose of this study was to identify the healing components of this camp model. Semi-structured interviews with 19 children and 13 parents/guardians were conducted 3 to 9 months after participation in the bereavement camp. Therapeutic Interventions and Traditional Camp Activities emerged as themes. The themes are discussed in relation to previous research as are limitations of the study and the implications for theory, practice, and future research.     

Is Greece a Rent Seeking Society? A Research on the Relationship Between Entrepreneurship,Trust and Institutions

The paper analyses the various interactions among the institutional and cultural environment and the quality of entrepreneurial activity in Greece. The institutional context and the way in which institutions perform in particular, shape the structure of entrepreneurial incentives. As explicitly demonstrated by Baumol (J Political Econ 98:893–921, 1990) institutions actually channel entrepreneurial talent toward different activities which may be productive, unproductive or destructive. At the same time, informal institutions, i.e. culture and values have proven to be of equal importance for entrepreneurship. Within this context, the paper builds a simple model of rewards’ satisfaction accounting for first, the existence of income externalities, in order to test the hypothesis that individuals care about their relative position, i.e. economic status, and second, for the institutional quality, trust and values pertaining in the society, in order to analyze the possible existence of an underlying ‘social consensus’ that is supportive of rent-seeking behavior in Greece.     

Cognitive-behavioural interventions for adolescents in residential child care in Scotland: an examination of practice and lessons from research

This paper sets out to examine the basis and use of cognitive‐behavioural interventions with adolescents in residential child care. The paper outlines the results of a survey of the use of cognitive‐behavioural interventions in Scotland. The survey indicates that such interventions are used widely in residential schools and secure units in Scotland. The paper then reviews some of the studies relating to cognitive‐behavioural interventions, which appear to be most relevant to residential child care. The review revealed many of the positive outcomes of cognitive‐behavioural interventions. However, there are some cautionary notes highlighted by the survey and the review. These relate to issues about generalization of learning and the meaning of the intervention for the young person and for the staff. The paper discusses the importance of other factors in determining the success of cognitive‐behavioural interventions. These factors include the importance of accurate assessment, the role of staff training and the need to ensure that interventions are always in the best interests of the child.     

Transnational life and cross-border immobility in pandemic times

The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically disrupted and reconfigured the cross-border movements of people. Based on an anthropological study of the experiences of transnational migrants during the pandemic (May 2020–May 2021), this article explores stories of how cross-border immobility impacts transnational life and sense of belonging. The stories reveal the emotional toll of prolonged family separation across geographical distances when loved ones are no longer ‘just one flight away’ and give voice to experiences of being ‘trapped’, ‘stuck’ or ‘stranded’ in a state of transnational limbo. Running through the stories are intensified experiences of foreignness, non-belonging, precariousness and discrimination. Some also felt abandoned by their country of origin as border closures left them ‘locked out’ and ‘blowing in the wind’, fostering an experience akin to exile.