Objective indicators,personal characteristics,and satisfaction with safety from crime and violence: An interaction model

An interaction model is presented which allows crime rates, personal characteristics, or both to determine satisfaction with safety from crime and violence. The model is tested with data from recent migrants from California to southern Oregon. Those households which are most vulnerable, particularly those with young children, older people, females, and those with more wealth, would derive the highest levels of satisfaction from reductions in crime rates.     

Motives,Timing, and Targets of Corporate Philanthropy: A Tripartite Classification Scheme of Charitable Giving

Although corporate philanthropy has been an important part of American business for more than a century, the motives and consequences of corporate philanthropy are not well understood. This paper develops a richer classification scheme of philanthropic activity, to aid in theory development and management. Examining simultaneously the domains of why firms give (motive), when they give (timing) and to whom they give (target), a conceptual model identifying distinct categories of philanthropic activity is developed and its implications to present and future research discussed.     

Does Listening to Mozart Affect Listening Ability?

Considerable research has been conducted testing Rauscher, Shaw, and Ky's (1993) Rauscher, F. H., Shaw, G. L and Ky, K. N. 1993. Music and spatial task performance. Nature, 365: 611[Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar] Mozart Effect (ME). This study attempts to replicate, in part, research that tested the ME on listening comprehension abilities. Also included in this study is an examination of control group issues in current day research. We hypothesized that students who listen to Mozart would demonstrate greater listening comprehension than students involved in one of four control groups. Students were exposed to one of five treatments and then completed a listening comprehension test about a videotaped lecture they viewed. Ultimately, results uncovered a ME when comparing the Mozart A (alpha) group with the alternative treatment control groups (Mozart B [beta] music and Rock and Roll music), but no ME when comparing the Mozart A group and the non-music control groups (sitting in silence or working on a crossword puzzle). Discussion focused on the ME and listening comprehension as well as on the nature of control groups in experimental research.     

“Playthings of the Brain”: Phantom Visions in Charles Bonnet Syndrome

Charles Bonnet Syndrome (CBS) is a condition of the visually impaired, in which hallucinations – or, more appropriately, visions – of geometric patterns, people, and objects appear within the visual field. Most people with CBS are older adults, a function of increased likelihood of visual deterioration in later life, but the condition can occur at any age. Diagnostic criteria vary among professions, but generally includes awareness that the visions are not real, the absence of other accompanying sensory hallucinations, and the absence of dementia or other neurological condition. The mechanism by which the phenomenon occurs is not well understood, although some speculation exists that it is akin to phantom limb syndrome. Although there has recently been increasing awareness about the condition, many in the fields of medicine, optometry, and social work have not heard of it. As front-line providers for clients, it is important that social workers be well informed about the condition to alleviate anxiety our clients may have about expressing their experiences with the condition.     

The changing relationship between the Chinese Government and Non-governmental Organisations in social service delivery: approaching partnership?

Using the Guangzhou social governance reform pilot as a case, this paper aims to explore the transformation of Chinese governments in managing collaborative non-governmental organisation (NGO) relationships. Local governments have adopted multiple new governance tools, and the expansion of the NGO sector with genuine grassroots development has been observed. However, valuable principles of New Public Management (NPM) paradigm have not been followed, and strong authoritarian and bureaucratic practices have been revealed. The state–NGO relationship has moved from a typical statist to a state-corporatist model. Findings indicate distinctive features of Asian public administration and the limitations of applying Westernized NPM models.     

Comparison of two life distributions on the basis of their percentile residual life functions

Let F and G be life distributions with respective failure rate functions r_F and r_G and respective 100α-percentile (0 < α < 1) residual life functions q_{α, F}, and q_{α, G}. Distribution-free two-sample tests are proposed for testing H₀: F = G against H_1,α,: q_{α, F} ≥ q_{α, G} and H_{2 α}: q_{β, F} ≥ q_β,G for all β ≥ α. This class of tests includes as a special case the test of Kochar (1981) for the alternative H*₂: r_F ≤ r_G. A theorem of Govindarajulu (1976) is extended in order to obtain asymptotic normality of the test statistics. The condition q_{α, F} ≥ q_{α, G} is implied by r_F ≤ r_G and is unrelated to the stochastic ordering F≤ G; if F and G are Weibull distributions with respective shape parameters c₁ and c₂ such that 1 ≤ C₁ < C₂, then q_α,F ≥ q_{α, G} for all α larger than a function of the parameters.     

Right-to-work laws and union density: New evidence from micro data

Although union density is much lower in Right-to-Work (RTW) states than in states permitting union shops, most studies have found that after correcting for omitted-variable and simultaneity biases, RTW laws do not have independent impact on union density. However, these studies typically use data sets which include certain government, agricultural, supervisory and transportation workers who are not subject to RTW legislation thus diluting the effect of RTW laws. When these employees are excluded from the data set, we find that RTW laws do significantly affect union density in the private sector.     

The effect of unionization on safety in bituminous deep mines

This article examines the impact of unionization on safety in underground coal mines. An accident causation model is used to isolate the effect of unionization from other injury rate determinants. Results indicate that union mines experience more disabling injuries per year than nonunion mines,ceteris paribus. Previous studies attributed higher union injury rates to poor nonunion reporting practices. The data examined here suggest that other factors, including the UMWA’s job bidding system, low productivity, labor characteristics, and other institutional factors contribute to high injury rates at union mines. The authors acknowledge the helpful comments of Michael G. Finn, Clark G. Ross, and C. Louise Nelson. This research grew from work funded under contract DE-AC05-760R00033 between the Department of Energy and Oak Ridge Associated Universities. The views expressed and responsibility for errors or omissions belong to the authors.