Gender as a differential indicator of the employment discrimination experiences of Americans with multiple sclerosis

Information from the Integrated Mission System of the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was used to investigate the employment discrimination experiences of women and men with multiple sclerosis (MS). Spanning the years 1992 to 2003, the EEOC database included 3,663 allegations of discrimination filed by 2,167 adults with MS. With respect to women and men with MS, the researchers examined the comparability of a) demographic characteristics; b) industry designations, locations, and size of employers; c) the nature of discrimination alleged; and d) the legal outcome or resolution of those allegations. On average, women and men with MS were in their early forties, with the majority of both groups being Caucasian. Both women and men were most likely to allege discrimination related to discharge and reasonable accommodations, although women were more likely to file harassment charges than men. Men with MS were more likely to allege discrimination regarding hiring and reinstatement. Women with MS were more likely to file allegations against employers in the service industries, and men were more likely to file allegations against employers in the construction, manufacturing, and wholesale industries. No gender differences were found in the geographic distribution of allegations. Both groups had comparable rates of merit closures (23% vs. 27%) as a result of the EEOC's investigatory process. Implications for rehabilitation counseling and employer-oriented interventions are discussed.     

A Small-Scale Study of the Relationship Between Measures of Deprivation and Child-Care Referrals

There now exists an extensive literature on the causes of childabuse. Within the UK, individualistic and inter-personal approacheshave predominated in terms of their influence on social worktheory, research and practice. However, much less emphasis hasbeen given to structuralist explanations. Indeed, of the structuralistwork that currently exists with its emphasis on the relationshipbetween deprivation and child abuse, this relationship has yetto be empirically tested within the UK. This is the focus forthe present article. Drawing upon data relating to all referralsmade to a short-term intake family and child-care team for athree-year period in Northern Ireland (1998–2000), thearticle confirms the strong relationship that exists, at wardlevel, between measures of deprivation and referrals to theteam. In discussing the implications of the findings, it isargued that more use needs to be made of quantitative methodsin social work research in order to identify and understandmore fully the influence of structural factors on issues relatingto family and childcare. The article concludes with a considerationof the implications of the findings for further research andfor social work practice.     

Characteristics of Women With Children Who Divorce in Midlife Compared to Those Who Remain Married

This study evaluated characteristics that distinguish women who end a first marriage in midlife from those who remain married. The sample consisted of 459 married and 180 divorced women who had participated in 3 waves of the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH). Discriminant analyses were used to assess differences that occurred between the two groups in financial and psychological well-being in the 10 years between NSFH Waves 2 and 3. The major finding was that midlife divorce appears to have long-term financial consequences for women, especially in regard to wealth accumulation. The findings provide some initial information about the long-term effects of midlife divorce that will be useful to professionals working with women who are considering divorce at this stage of life.     

Land Rover and colonial-style adventure

This article examines the infamous Land Rover ‘Himba’ advertisement (2000) that shocked South Africans because of its racism and sexism. The South African Advertising Standards Authority ruled that the advertisement constituted a violation of human dignity that perpetuated gender and cultural inequality. This article takes the position that the Himba advertisement builds on the colonial notions of adventure, exploration and discovery of the African continent by the western male. The mystique of travel and discovery during the nineteenth century inscribed the control of the African landscape and its people; colonial explorers and travellers consequently feminized Africa to signify conquest and control. It is proposed that these ideas are re-inscribed in the deeply embedded cultural connotations attached to the Land Rover and Africa as its so-called spiritual home. An investigation into some of the myths and ideologies in the Himba advertisement reveals that a set of binary oppositions operates that draw attention to the distinctions between culture/nature, power/powerlessness, male/female, technology/primitivism and West/Africa. An interrogation of this advertisement is important because of the contentious nature of its content, and because fantasy adventure is a significant tendency in tourism and leisure activities in South Africa.     

Peer Behaviors and Co-occurring Disorders Among Adolescents

The complexity of co-occurring substance use disorders and mental health problems among adolescents challenges both researchers and practitioners. The purpose of this study was to further disentangle those relationships and examine the role that peers who engage in deviant activities plays in that relationship. A subset of variables from a larger study of adolescents referred for substance use assessment was analyzed in this study. The results suggest that as the severity of substance use and mental health problems increases so does the number of peers who engage in deviant activities; peers partially mediates the relationship between those two variables. Implications for social work practice and other professionals are discussed.     

The Epistemic Integrity of NASA Practices in the Space Shuttle Program

This article presents an account of epistemic integrity and uses it to demonstrate that the epistemic integrity of different kinds of practices in NASA's Space Shuttle Program was limited. We focus on the following kinds of practices: (1) research by working engineers, (2) review by middle-level managers, and (3) communication with the public. We argue that the epistemic integrity of these practices was undermined by production pressure at NASA, i.e., the pressure to launch an unreasonable amount of flights per year. Finally, our findings are used to develop some potential strategies to protect epistemic integrity in aerospace science.     

Market Liberalisation,Vertical Integration and Price Behaviour in Tanzania's Coffee Auction

Whether market liberalisation can promote agricultural development in Africa depends on how well existing institutions can facilitate trade by private agents. This article assesses the performance of the Tanzania coffee marketing system after liberalisation and the emergence of private, vertically integrated exporters (VIEs). Increasing producer prices, declining marketing margins, and the continued provision of a useful auction for coffee that is delivered by traders who are not VIEs all suggest a degree of success for liberalisation. The presence of VIEs seems to have provided investment to reduce marketing costs, whilst a sufficient number of competing firms has limited non‐competitive behaviour in the market for coffee that is traded at the auction by non‐VIEs.