Implementing a case management initiative in high-need schools

States continue to experiment with ways of improving health and human service use by people with complex needs. Such efforts have often sought to increase individual and family control over services as well as to enhance coordination among providers. Paths to achieving these goals are not well understood. This study draws on two previously distinct conceptual frameworks to examine how 71 public schools implemented a team approach to increasing family and agency engagement for children at risk. Results from the longitudinal data fit the core components expected to affect implementation and also indicated sustainability, but in ways distinctive to the initiative's public school settings. Accountability to the state appeared to be a major catalyst, yet in some respects also constrained local agencies from participating as intended. School inertia may have both undermined the program through some evaluation practices and gaps in administrative support, and supported integration into organizational routines and successful experimentation over time in increasing caregiver involvement. Family hesitation about sharing information with multiple agencies may also help explain why the goal of seamless coordination remains elusive.     

Distress in response to relationship infidelity: The roles of gender and attitudes about relationships

According to the evolutionary model of psychology, biological influences may be a force behind many gender differences in relationship strategies and responses to relationship issues. For example, prior research has shown that males indicated more distress in relation to sexual infidelity, whereas females indicated more distress at the emotional infidelity of their partner. The current study attempted to replicate and extend this previous research by also examining relevant attitudinal factors possibly related to responses to infidelity. Participants (N = 156) were surveyed regarding probable responses to relationship infidelity (sexual vs. emotional infidelity), and measures of participants’ sexual attitudes and romantic beliefs were obtained. Results indicate a clear gender difference: Women were more likely to choose emotional infidelity as most distressing, while more men chose sexual infidelity as most distressing. For the men and women who did choose the same type of infidelity as most distressing, their ratings of the intensity of the distress did not differ. Sexual attitudes were found to be significant in predicting distress caused by either type of infidelity. Romantic beliefs were only significant in predicting distress due to emotional infidelity.     

Self‐reported proficiency in Māori language among those of Māori descent in New Zealand

Abstract

In a national survey in New Zealand (N = 12 992), participants of Māori descent (N = 2936) reported their proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing Māori and in understanding spoken Māori. Only 6–10% reported that they could cope “very well” in these areas while 36–52% reported their proficiency as “no more than a few words or phrases”. There was no evidence of subgroups of Māori with divergent proficiency across oral language or literacy. Six latent classes were fitted but these appeared to lie along a continuum, and analysis employing item response theory (IRT) and factor analysis confirmed this. A simple sum of scores across the four areas correlated very highly with the IRT factor score (r = 0.97). High proficiency was more common among older Māori and females, in the Midland region (lowest in the South), and for those with sole‐Māori ethnicity, followed by multi‐ethnic Māori (seldom seen in those of Māori descent but not ethnicity).     

Rolling with the shakes: an insight into teenagers’ perceptions of recovery after the Canterbury earthquakes

Natural disasters are harmful worldwide events that inflict multiple psychosocial impacts on disaster-exposed individuals. A significant proportion of affected individuals are teenagers (13–18 years old) who, compared with adults, have been historically overlooked in disaster research. The literature is particularly sparse concerning teenagers’ recovery from natural disasters, specifically what recovery means to them and the contributing factors towards their positive recovery. Therefore, the aim of the current study was to gain deeper insight into this largely unexplored area by conducting five focus groups with teenagers (16–18 years) who experienced at least one of the Canterbury, New Zealand, earthquakes since and including the initial September 2010 earthquake. This study directly asked teenagers about their recovery over the three years after the initial earthquakes, with data being analysed using thematic analysis. Two main themes were identified: (1) perceptions of recovery, with three sub-themes (i) knowledge and being less frightened, (ii) talking about the earthquakes and (iii) shift in perspectives; and (2) contributing factors to recovery, with three sub-themes (i) participation in the community response, (ii) returning to school and (iii) the rebuild of Christchurch. These factors provide insight into how we can better support the recovery process for disaster-exposed teenagers to reduce long-term distress.     

A common-features analysis of Amsterdam and London financial markets during the eighteenth century

We examine the financial linkage between the London and Amsterdam financial markets using stock prices recorded in each market over the period 1723-94 in conjunction with tests for common trends, cycles, and regime shifts. These tests reveal a surprising degree of integration between the markets as their prices move together in both the short and long run. Moreover, shocks to the assets translate quickly and accurately between markets. It also appears that Dutch investment did not destabilize London markets and stock prices in London were the primary determinant of prices in Amsterdam.     

Domestic violence and South Korean women: the cultural context and alternative experiences

The present research contributes to the growing body of cross-cultural research on domestic violence. This is accomplished by answering the question of how severity of intimate partner abuse varies for (1) women incarcerated for the homicides of their male partners (2) abused women who sought domestic violence shelter, short of killing their intimate assailants, and (3) a group of South Korean females outside of domestic violence shelters or prison. The article concludes with a discussion of potential policy implications of the findings as well as promising directions for future research.