Roma Education in Eastern and Central Europe: some personal reflections

In this article I reflect on my experiences working on educational projects involving Roma in Eastern and Central Europe, especially in Bulgaria. I discuss one particular case study, in which a group of educational experts were able to get the Bulgarian Government to accept and later to support intercultural education materials on the Roma. I also outline an educational approach that I would like to call the “bottle party” approach to education, to be contrasted with the “vessel filling” approach. I close by describing a new initiative in informal education in Central and Eastern Europe that revolves around the concepts of empowerment and mentorship.     

Note on the use of statistics of total fertility to provide estimates of crude birth rates

It is shown that estimates of the total fertility by age of mother can be used to give good rough approximations to birth rates in under-developed countries and that this method is likely to be more accurate than the collection of historical data relating to particular calendar periods.     

The slave trade in the western Sudan during the nineteenth century

The traditional historical narrative has tended to interpret colonization during the Civil War by simultaneously discounting African-American support for the policy and Abraham Lincoln's sincerity in offering it. Challenging these views, this paper examines new evidence of the U.S. government's efforts to enlist the pro-emigration minority of the free black community for a proposed settlement in British Honduras. For a brief period in 1863, black emigrationists including Henry Highland Garnet and John Willis Menard seriously entertained the Lincoln administration's colonization offers, spurred largely by their experiences with racial violence in the USA and the prospect of stronger political rights abroad.     

The role of self-regulation in developing leaders: A longitudinal field experiment

A longitudinal field experiment examined a leader self-regulation intervention in teams engaged in a Business Strategy Module (BSM) of a University course. The BSM, which is an integral part of the degree programme, involved teams of four or five individuals, under the direction of a leader, working on a (simulated) car manufacturing task over a period of 24 weeks. Various aspects of team performance contributed towards module assessment. All leaders received multi-source feedback of leader task-relevant capabilities (from the leader, followers and module tutor). Leaders were randomly allocated into a self-regulation intervention (15 leaders, 46 followers) or control (25 leaders, 109 followers) conditions. The intervention, which was run by an independent coach, was designed to improve leaders' use of self-regulatory processes to aid the development of task-relevant leadership competencies. Survey data was collected from the leaders and followers (on three occasions: pre- and two post-test intervention), team financial performance (three occasions: post-test) and a final team report (post-test). The leader self-regulation intervention led to increased followers' ratings of leader's effectiveness, higher team financial performance and higher final team grade compared to the control (non-intervention) condition. Furthermore, the benefits of the self-regulation intervention were mediated by leaders' attaining task-relevant competencies.     

The Conservative Party and devolved national identities: Scotland and Wales compared

This article focuses on the role of national identity in the behaviour and performance of the Scottish Conservative Party – the main voice of opposition to devolution in the 1990s. In particular, it will address the apparent flat-lining of its popular vote, arguing that this is a direct consequence of the party doggedly adhering to a more traditional form of ‘unionist nationalism’. This can be contrasted with Wales, where the party has adapted well to devolution, and enjoyed a steady improvement in its electoral performances.     

Interactional perspectives on the mistreatment of older and vulnerable people in long‐term care settings

This article draws on a study aimed at developing theoretical and methodological understanding of the abuse and neglect (mistreatment) of older people in long‐term care settings such as care homes and hospitals. It presents an interactionist account of mistreatment of older people in such establishments. Starting with an outline of definitional issues surrounding the topic, the allied concept of dignity is also briefly explored, and one important model described; we present dignity as the converse of mistreatment. The article argues for the potential of a positioning theory analysis of mistreatment. Positioning theory proposes that interactions are based on taking of ‘positions’, clusters of rights and duties to act in certain ways and impose particular meanings, which enable or prohibit access to certain storylines. It is argued that ‘malignant’ positioning can contribute to the creation of a climate that allows mistreatment to take place, or fails to prohibit its development. Mistreatment of people with dementia is used as an illustration, and it is argued that this is potentially generated by negative feedback loops of behaviour patterns, interpretations and malignant positioning by staff or family carers and subsequent response to these interpretations by the person with dementia. Positioning theory also allows for an explanation of the importance and impact of organizational cultures and social factors such as ageism. Individual staff members take positions, use meanings and develop storylines imbued with such factors. This understanding therefore overcomes some of the potential confusions created by concepts such as organizational or institutional abuse, removing the need to ascribe intentions and personal responsibility to such constructs. The article concludes with some suggestions for further research to develop an understanding of the kinds of cultures that allow mistreatment and consequently to inform the development of protective measures.     

Sex Differences in Sociology Specializations, 1975–1985: Women's Liberation to Ghetto Specialization

Abstract

This report explores the division of labor by sex in sociology. Using the Guide to Graduate Departments for the years 1975, 1980 and 1985, first-cited specialty areas for all women and a one-fifth sample for men were obtained. Comparison of these specialty areas for women and men suggests that a division of labor by sex exists in sociology. Further, the correlations between specialty areas for men and women are decreasing over time, indicating an increasing division of labor by sex. Of particular interest are: 1) the nearly exclusive participation of women in Gender Studies and the increase of women over time who choose this as a first-cited specialty; 2) the decline in the core area of Methods by both men and women; 3) the decline in the core area of Theory by women.