Emigration from Israel 1950-1981: a simulation study

"Using our mathematical model of a general theory of normative regulation, we have reproduced over 80% of the variance in the cumulative percentages of emigrants [from Israel], as well as the yearly percentages from 1950 to 1981. These results suggest that, except for a limited period following the 'Six-Day War' of 1967, no situation-specific explanations are needed to account for the trends in emigration from Israel, and the phenomenon can be adequately accounted for by the general theory of normative regulation in modern industrialized societies. Some practical conclusions to mitigate the process are drawn from these findings."     

Struggling to Get It Right

This article examines the challenges public and nonprofit human service funders face in the performance measurement process and the strategies they use to address these challenges. We use survey and interview data to compare funders’ experiences across a region. Common challenges included dissatisfaction with formal data collection procedures, difficulty getting providers to comply with reporting requirements, provider performance problems, and lack of capacity to use performance information. Capacity issues were a greater concern for smaller funders. Funders used a variety of strategies to address challenges. Use of some strategies depended on context. Practices were relatively consistent across funder groups.     

Introducing Technology in Child Welfare Referrals: A Case Study

Access to social services is important for the safety of children and ultimately for reunification of families involved in the child welfare system. The process of linking families to services, however, varies by caseworker and can be cumbersome and time consuming. The Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) Needs Portal is an Internet-based intervention to improve the timing and quality of social service referrals in Los Angeles County We used a case study approach including in-depth interviews, direct observations, and user feedback obtained from the Needs Portal to (a) determine perceived benefits and barriers to adopting the Needs Portal, and (b) report how the flow of information between users and developers was used to adapt to user needs. Our analyses revealed four major barriers: (a) caseworker apprehension regarding new technology, (b) variation in communication styles by user type, (c) lack of technological infrastructure, and (d) competing workplace demands. Information sharing between developers and users has the potential to better meet the needs of users and ultimately maximize utilization of new technology. Although Internet-based interventions are designed to inexpensively and effectively coordinate services, emerging interventions may require in-person assistance and modifications in order to succeed.     

Marital Conflict in the Context of Parental Depressive Symptoms: Implications for the Development of Children's Adjustment Problems

Relations among parental depressive symptoms, overt and covert marital conflict, and child internalizing and externalizing symptoms were examined in a community sample of 235 couples and their children. Families were assessed once yearly for three years, starting when children were in kindergarten. Parents completed measures of depressive symptoms and children's internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Behavioral observations of marital conflict behaviors (insult, threat, pursuit, and defensiveness) and self report of covert negativity (feeling worry, sorry, worthless, and helpless) were assessed based on problem-solving interactions. Results indicated that fathers' greater covert negativity and mothers' overt destructive conflict behaviors served as intervening variables in the link between fathers' depressive symptoms and child internalizing symptoms, with modest support for the pathway through fathers' covert negativity found even after controlling for earlier levels of constructs. These findings support the role of marital conflict in the impact of fathers' depressive symptoms on child internalizing symptoms.     

Exploring characteristics of innovative nonprofit organizations in South Korea

The purpose of this study was to explore how employees of Korean nonprofit organizations perceived characteristics of innovative organizations. The social-validation method (first, an open-ended question is given; and later, ideas collected from participants are used to make an instrument) was used to collect the data. Thirteen employees representing a variety of nonprofit organizations in South Korea participated in this study. At the first stage of the study, participants were asked to generate a list of characteristics of innovative organizations. A total of 125 characteristics of innovative nonprofit organizations were summarized into the 25 most often mentioned characteristics. At the second stage of the study, all participants were asked to rate each of the characteristics on how important they were for an innovative organization. Among the highest-ranked characteristics of innovative organizations were: having a clear organizational vision and mission statement, having transparent financial and accounting processes, having a leader who is open-minded and flexible, being responsive to clients’ needs, and having employees who share the vision and mission of the organization. The pattern of agreement among participants indicated a low degree of consensus. Implications were suggested based on the findings.     

论东南亚华人的可商议身份及其国际联系

华人在性质上不同于中国人,因为构成其身份的各个成分,可以和他们各自所在国的非华人社会进行商议,从而使这种身份具有独特性和地方性,而不是跨国性.这种关于华人身份的观点,对如何看待东南亚的华人移民社群具有重大的影响.一般说来,移民社群具有一种由移民、所在国、祖国三个部分组成的三角结构.由于东南亚地区的华人身份具有可商议的特性,移民观念中的祖国部分就变得多余了.而"落地生根的四海为家者"的概念既考虑到其地方性,同时也考虑到其跨国性,因此更具解释功能.     

Nash Equilibrium with Lower Probabilities

We generalize the concept of Nash equilibrium in mixed strategies for strategic form games to allow for ambiguity in the players' expectations. In contrast to other contributions, we model ambiguity by means of so-called lower probability measures or belief functions, which makes it possible to distinguish between a player's assessment of ambiguity and his attitude towards ambiguity. We also generalize the concept of trembling hand perfect equilibrium. Finally, we demonstrate that for certain attitudes towards ambiguity it is possible to explain cooperation in the one-shot Prisoner's Dilemma in a way that is in accordance with some recent experimental findings.     

Family Background in Relation to Deceptive Ability and Understanding of the Mind

The purpose of this study was to determine whether social factors might be linked with the development of certain aspects of deception. Fifty-seven children aged between 4 and 5 years were assessed for their ability to be convincing in an act of deception (expressive deception) and also for their understanding that minds are susceptible to deception (theory of mind). The mothers of 34 of the children completed a questionnaire which provided information on socio-economic status, parenting style, parental stress and family structure. The results revealed significant associations with family background and deceptive ability. Stepwise multiple regression analyses, controlling for age, identified socio-economic status as a predictor of understanding that the mind is susceptible to deception (theory of mind). In contrast, single parent stress emerged as the major predictor of variance in expressive deception. Deceptive socialisation practices specific to single parents were considered. Implications for the dissimilar developmental pathways of theory of mind and expressive performance in deception are discussed.