An agenda for future research regarding the mental health of young people with care experience

Young people who are currently or were previously in state care have consistently been found to have much higher rates of mental health and neurodevelopmental difficulties than the general youth population. While a number of high-quality reviews highlight what research has been undertaken in relation to the mental health of young people with care experience and the gaps in our knowledge and understanding, there is, until now, no consensus, so far as we aware, as to where our collective research efforts should be directed with this important group. Through a series of UK wide workshops, we undertook a consultative process to identify an agreed research agenda between those with lived experience of being in care (n = 15), practitioners, policy makers and researchers (n = 59), for future research regarding the mental health of young people with care experience, including those who are neurodiverse/have a neurodevelopmental difficulty. This consensus statement identified 21 foci within four broad categories: how we conceptualize mental health; under-studied populations; under-studied topics; and underused methodologies. We hope that those who commission, fund and undertake research will engage in this discussion about the future agenda for research regarding the mental health of young people with care experience.     

Screening children with a history of maltreatment for post-traumatic stress disorder in frontline social care organizations: A process evaluation

The use of standardized screening tools to identify trauma exposure and associated symptoms is commonly recommended as a key component in the development of trauma informed services and is seen as integral to facilitating access to evidence-based therapies. However, there is limited evidence in the UK about the factors influencing the adoption of such tools into routine practice in children's social care. This paper presents the findings from a process evaluation of how practitioners implemented a screening tool for post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression into their day-to-say practice and what worked or did not work during the process. The findings from this study highlight the potential benefits for both young people and practitioners, alongside some of the challenges involved. In particular, practitioners need to see the direct benefit for young people of being assessed. Additionally, practitioners value regular mentoring as they become more proficient in using standardized screening tools.     

Statistical Inference for Stochastic Dominance and for the Measurement of Poverty and Inequality

We derive the asymptotic sampling distribution of various estimators frequently used to order distributions in terms of poverty, welfare, and inequality. This includes estimators of most of the poverty indices currently in use, as well as estimators of the curves used to infer stochastic dominance of any order. These curves can be used to determine whether poverty, inequality, or social welfare is greater in one distribution than in another for general classes of indices and for ranges of possible poverty lines. We also derive the sampling distribution of the maximal poverty lines up to which we may confidently assert that poverty is greater in one distribution than in another. The sampling distribution of convenient dual estimators for the measurement of poverty is also established. The statistical results are established for deterministic or stochastic poverty lines as well as for paired or independent samples of incomes. Our results are briefly illustrated using data for four countries drawn from the Luxembourg Income Study data bases.     

Still Partners After All These Years: Ulrich's and ISSN

Since 2000, an Ulrich's Periodicals Directory (Ulrich's) employee has been located in the Library of Congress's U.S. ISSN Center at the Library of Congress to assign ISSN and create records for both Ulrich's and the international ISSN Register/CONSER database. How this arrangement came about, how it has succeeded over the past ten years, and the broad potential for this partnership becoming a model in both organizations for future automated data sharing and data linking is the subject of this article.     

Nonparametric Comparison for Multivariate Panel Count Data

Multivariate panel count data often occur when there exist several related recurrent events or response variables defined by occurrences of related events. For univariate panel count data, several nonparametric treatment comparison procedures have been developed. However, it does not seem to exist a nonparametric procedure for multivariate cases. Based on differences between estimated mean functions, this article proposes a class of nonparametric test procedures for multivariate panel count data. The asymptotic distribution of the new test statistics is established and a simulation study is conducted. Moreover, the new procedures are applied to a skin cancer problem that motivated this study.     

Immigration and status exchange in Australia and the United States

This paper evaluates the status exchange hypothesis for Australia and the United States, two Anglophone nations with long immigration traditions whose admission regimes place different emphases on skills. Using log-linear methods, we demonstrate that foreign-born spouses trade educational credentials via marriage with natives in both Australian and U.S. marriage markets and, moreover, that nativity is a more salient marriage barrier for men than for women. With some exceptions, immigrant spouses in mixed nativity couples are better educated than native spouses in same nativity couples, but status exchange is more prevalent among the less-educated spouses in both countries. Support for the status exchange hypothesis is somewhat weaker in Australia partly because of lower average levels of education compared with the United States and partly because of the less sharply defined educational hierarchy at the postsecondary level.     

Gender, political ideology, and climate change beliefs in an extractive industry community

This paper presents results from a survey on attitudes toward climate change in Alberta, Canada, home to just 10% of Canada??s population, but the source of 35% of the country??s greenhouse-gas emissions (Environment Canada 2011). Results show high levels of awareness, but much lower levels of perceived climate change impacts for one??s self or region. Women expressed significantly greater awareness and sense of perceived impacts about climate change than men; however, gender differences appear predominantly associated with socioeconomic factors. Indeed, in all, political ideology had the strongest predictive value, with individuals voting for the conservative party significantly less likely to anticipate significant societal climate change impacts. This finding, in turn, is strongly associated with beliefs regarding whether climate change is human induced. Particularly notable is the finding that the gender gap in climate change beliefs and perceived impacts is not attributed to gendered social roles, as indicated by occupational and familial status. Instead, gender distinctions appear to be related to the lower tendency for women to ascribe to a conservative political ideology relative to men.