The emergence of a voluntary sector and philanthropy in Vietnam: Functions, legal regulation and prospects for the future

A significant number and wide range of Vietnamese non-profit and voluntary organisations have developed since Vietnam embarked on a programme of economic reform in late 1986. Philanthropy has begun to grow as well, albeit more slowly. The non-profit and voluntary sector and the state, each face important challenges as development of the sector accelerates. The state has sought both to encourage growth of non-profit, voluntary and philanthropic institutions, but also to control the pace and directions of that growth. Those dual aims are reflected in the state's regulation of the sector since the mid-1980s. This article provides detailed information on the development of the non-profit sector in Vietnam. It examines some common problems many of the new non-profits and voluntary organisations face and discusses the rapidly changing environment for philanthropy in Vietnam. The article also reviews the developing legal environment for non-profits and philanthropy, compares the situation in Vietnam to other countries in transition, and situates the functions of the non-profit sector in Vietnam in the context of the emerging scholarly literature on functions and models of the non-profit sector and government/non-profit relations. formerly Program Officer for Vietnam, The Ford Foundation (1992–1995) The author is grateful to John Ambler, Nguyen Thi Van Anh, Mayusaki Ayuzame, Mary Jane Ballou, Barnett Baron, Christopher Bruton, Emmett Carson, Kathy Charlton, Le Trong Cuc, Ray Eaton, Mary Etherton, Virginia Foote, Peter Geithner, Neil Jamieson, Lisa Jones, Tim Kerr, Minh Kauffman, Viet Huong Kurtz, Borje Ljunggren, Toichi Makita, David Marr, John McAuliff, Noriko Ogawa, James Rockwell, John Rogers, Vo Quy, Tony Salzman, Yasuhiro Tanaka, Nguyen Van Thanh, Ngo Ba Thanh, David Thomas, Phan Toan, Mike Yeldham and Mary Zurbuchen, and representatives of the many Vietnamese groups interviewed for this article. This article represents the author's views and not those of the Ford Foundation nor any other organisation or individual. All translations from the Vietnamese, except as indicated, are by the author.     

Potential and probable pathological gamblers: Where do the differences lie?

A large proportion of adolescents engage in gambling activities and the prevalence of pathological gambling is high. This study presents a factor analysis of responses from 122 college students who obtained a score of 3 or greater on the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS), the most widely used instrument to identify probable and potential pathological gamblers. The analysis showed five dimensions: Illegal Behaviors, Heavy Gambling, Eating Disorders, Parentally Modelled/Less Impulsive, and Worry. Analyses revealed that except for the Eating Disorders factor, all factors clearly differentiated the probable from potential pathological gamblers, as identified by the SOGS. Results raise important questions about the relationship of pathological gambling to other psychopathological or antisocial behaviors. Thus the probable pathological gambler category represents a wide-ranging behavioral profile that goes beyond gambling per se. Avenues for future research as well as clinical implications are discussed.This research was partially supported by grants from Le Fonds Richelieu, le Conseil Québécois de la Recherche Sociale and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.     

Chebyshev's inequality for nonparametric testing with small N and α in microarray research

Summary.  Microarrays are a powerful new technology that allow for the measurement of the expression of thousands of genes simultaneously. Owing to relatively high costs, sample sizes tend to be quite small. If investigators apply a correction for multiple testing, a very small p -value will be required to declare significance. We use modifications to Chebyshev's inequality to develop a testing procedure that is nonparametric and yields p -values on the interval [0, 1]. We evaluate its properties via simulation and show that it both holds the type I error rate below nominal levels in almost all conditions and can yield p -values denoting significance even with very small sample sizes and stringent corrections for multiple testing.     

Children's nonverbal responses to a physically disabled person

A male, who either was wearing a leg brace and carrying a metal crutch or was nondisabled, conducted interviews outside a discount store with 120 children accompanied by their parents and ranging in age from three to 15. A hidden observer recorded aspects of each child's nonverbal behavior and his or her parent's distance from the child-interviewer interaction. When the interviewer was disabled, the youngest children engaged in less self-manipulatory behavior, children of all ages stood closer to him and looked more at his leg and body, and parents stood closer to their children at the start of the interview. It is argued that these findings suggest interest in rather than aversion toward disability. The fact that no major developmental changes or sex differences were detected raises questions about previous findings suggesting that attitudes toward disabled persons become more positive with age and are more positive among girls than among boys. Findings based on obtrusive measures of verbally expressed attitudes may not generalize to situations in which nonverbal responses are unobtrusively observed.Portions of this paper were presented at the annual meeting of the southeastern Psychology Association in Atlanta, March 1985. The authors wish to thank Greg Batts, Tracy Mattingly, and Lee Sigelman for their help.     

Reinforcing Stereotypes? Race and Local Television News Coverage of Congress*

Objective. Despite the increasingly diverse legislative records of African‐American members of Congress, much of the population continues to believe that African‐American legislators are interested only in minority issues. If African‐American House members are becoming more like their nonblack colleagues, then why do many citizens continue to hold these stereotypes about African‐American legislators? Methods. We examine local television news coverage of House members and compare the coverage received by African‐American and nonblack incumbents. Results. We find that local television newscasts devote more coverage to African‐American members of Congress but this coverage is also more race oriented, especially in less diverse markets. In fact, local television stations produce more race‐oriented coverage of African‐American legislators regardless of their legislative records on minority issues. Conclusions. Local television news stations may be partially responsible for the prevailing stereotype of African‐American House members who are narrowly focused on race‐oriented issues.     

Effects of Structuring on Students' Perceptions of Career Counseling

This study examines the effects of the use of structuring on participants' impressions of a counselor during an initial career counseling session. A total of 232 undergraduate students viewed a videotape of an initial career counseling session. Both groups observed the identical tape with the exception that one group was additionally shown a brief structuring segment. The 2 groups were compared across the variables of attractiveness, expertness, and trustworthiness as measured by the Counselor Rating Form. The participants were also asked to rate their willingness to see a counselor about a career issue before and after viewing the videotape. Significant differences were found across the dependent measures. Implications of the findings for counselors are discussed.     

Citizen Perceptions of Risks Associated with Moving Radiological Waste

Much has been written about public support or opposition to the siting of hazardous waste facilities and more generally about concern for radioactive contamination. Much less has been written about the perceived risks of citizens'specific concerns about the transportation of radiological waste to temporary or permanent sites. This study reviews the existing literature in the area and presents new data on the subject from an Idaho survey. The new data indicates: (1) age, gender, and knowledge are the key variables predicting opposition to the transportation of such waste, (2) the primary concern among the opposing and unsure public is the planned use of trucks to move the TRU waste, and (3) respondents have high degrees of trust in officials who make decisions based on technical knowledge, are charged with the safety of transporting TRU waste, and who respond to mishaps. These attitudes need to be understood by policymakers and administrators when designing and implementing waste-transportation programs.