Technology Domestication in the Asian Homestead: Comparing the Experiences of Middle Class Families in China and South Korea

Using technology domestication theory as the analytical framework, this paper discusses the findings of ethnographic interviews with middle class families in China and South Korea, comparing how they incorporate information and communication technologies (ICTs) into their lives. It analyses how family priorities, cultural values and social pressures influence the ways in which ICT use is woven into their lives, in the process invigorating traditional forms and networks of communication like guanxi for the Chinese and Cheong for the Koreans. It also pays special attention to supervision of ICT use and considers how the societal valorisation of academic excellence influences parental strategies in this regard.

Examining the impact of gender, race/ethnicity, and family factors on mental health issues in a sample of court-involved youth

Faced with anywhere between one half and two thirds of its youth having a diagnosable mental illness, the identification and treatment of mental health concerns is a critically important endeavor for professionals working with youth who have contact with the juvenile justice system. In addition, the literature suggests that factors related to both the family and to the gender of the adolescent must be incorporated into any approach to assessment and intervention within this special population. Further, prior work that has documented the interaction of gender and family issues with adolescent race/ethnicity warrants further empirical attention, as does the intermediary role that the family may play in the development of both internalizing and externalizing behaviors. The present study extends this literature by examining factors related to gender, race/ethnicity, family factors, and mental health issues in a sample of 2,549 Caucasian and African American youth coming to the attention of juvenile courts. Multivariate analysis of variance results indicated significant main effects for gender and race/ethnicity, as well as a significant gender x race/ethnicity interaction for the family and externalizing variables. A multiple group structural equation modeling procedure was employed in order to test the hypothesis that family environment mediates the relationship between gender and mental health problems, as well as to test for potential differences in these relationships as a function of race/ethnicity. Results indicated support for the mediation model in the sample of African American youth but not in the sample of Caucasian youth.     

Occupational Stress and Psychological Well-Being in Emergency Services

Sources of occupational stress and their impact on job satisfaction and psychological well-being were examined in a questionnaire survey of 617 Malaysian firefighters. The role of coping strategies and work motivation as moderating factors were also tested. Sources of occupational stress had significant reverse correlations with job satisfaction and well-being. The hierarchical regression analysis was used to examine the moderating effect of work motivation and coping strategies on job satisfaction and psychological well-being. The result suggested that coping strategies and work motivation are one of the potential moderating variables between sources of stress and job satisfaction.     

Addiction to mobile text messaging applications is nothing to “lol” about

The recent use of mobile text messaging applications, such as Blackberry Messenger (BBM) and WhatsApp, has increased greatly throughout the world. Unfortunately, this advanced technology is not without problems. In this study, the researcher argues that BBM and WhatsApp may generate noticeable improvements in consumer's lives but may simultaneously cause serious social and personal problems, including addiction to these applications. Amazingly, this topic has received little if any attention from consumer behaviorists, who need to understand the psychological factors that affect BBM and WhatsApp consumers. Hence, the current research examines two personality traits—extraversion and social anxiety—that influence consumer attitudes toward these applications. The results of a survey from 552 BBM and WhatsApp consumers in Kuwait indicate that the interaction effect of extraversion and social anxiety is significantly related to consumer attitudes toward BBM and WhatsApp. Furthermore, addiction to these applications plays a mediating role in the examined effect.     

Protective indigenous collective value of Ubuntu and child neglect: Implications for rural child protection practice

Theories on collective efficacy and social support suggest that indigenous values that support collective practices and sanction community obligations to childcare would be protective against child neglect. Likewise, new qualitative findings show that collective values are stronger in rural areas than in urban. This study tested the claims that the value of Ubuntu, which is a symbolic cultural value of ‘being for others’, will be protective against the likelihood of neglect; this relationship will be stronger in rural compared with urban communities in Ghana. Using data obtained from a nationally representative sample of 1100 mothers (from 22 communities) in Ghana, we tested the claims using fixed effects logistic regression. The Ubuntu norms were significantly endorsed in rural communities compared with the urban. The overall model showed that higher levels of Ubuntu are associated with lower odds of child neglect (OR .47, [.29, .76] p < 0.05), and the relationship remained significant only in the rural sample (OR .13, [.06, .31] p < 0.001). Similar evidence was recorded for the Ubuntu norms of community care and compassion. The results suggest that child protection in rural Ghana can be fruitful when interventions are developed to boost the value of Ubuntu and the norms of collective childcare.     

Multidimensional Comparison of Personality Characteristics of the Big Five Model, Impulsiveness, and Affect in Pathological Gambling and Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder

The phenomenological resemblance between pathological gambling (PG) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) has led to suggestions that PG be categorized as an obsessive-compulsive-spectrum disorder (OCSD). This study aimed to explore whether PG resembles OCD in terms of personality and temperament. Fifteen patients with PG, 18 patients with OCD, and 33 healthy control subjects were included in the study. The study subjects were all male and drug na?ve. We analyzed data obtained from three self-report questionnaires assessing personality, impulsiveness, and affect: the short version of the NEO Personality Inventory-Revised (NEO-PI-R), the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11), and the Positive Affect and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS). Participants with PG and OCD demonstrated less conscientiousness (F = 7.089, P = .002) and less openness to experience (F = 6.268, P = .003) and less positive affect (F = 15.816, P < .001) than did healthy controls. The two diagnostic groups did not differ from each other with respect total BIS-11 scores, but those with OCD showed more neuroticism than did those with PG and healthy controls ( F = 9.556, P < .001), and those with PG obtained higher scores on the non-planning impulsiveness factor of BIS-11 than did those with OCD or healthy controls ( F = 9,835, P < .001). PG and OCD share similar profiles in terms of personality and temperament. This study provides phenomenological evidence supporting the conceptualization of PG as an OCSD.     

The impact of tourism and finance on women empowerment

The Goal-5 of United Nations Development Agenda for gender equality and women empowerment through equalizing the ratio of girls and boys enrolment in primary education remains suffered in almost every part of the globalized world, which does not even violate the basic human rights while it is the mandatory foundation for global peace and prosperity. The contribution of international tourism development to empower women is the key initiative of the developed world to provide an equal opportunity to the women to sustain their livelihoods. This study focused on the role of international tourism development on women empowerment through mediating a number of financial factors in a panel of 24 selected European countries, over a period of 1990–2015. The results show that financial intermediaries act as a catalyst to empower women through international tourism. More specifically, tourism and financial factors promote (i) gender parity in tertiary enrollment, (ii) gender parity in primary and secondary school enrollment, (iii) female employment, and (iv) women’s share in non-agriculture wage employment, while the results further support the (i) growth-led tourism, (ii) finance-led growth, (iii) growth stimulate women empowerment, and (iv) tourism-induced women’s empowerment hypothesis across countries.     

What Behaviors Do Young Heterosexual Australians See in Pornography? A Cross-Sectional Study

This study investigated how frequently a group of young heterosexual Australians (ages 15 to 29) saw a range of behaviors represented in pornography over the previous 12 months. Participants were recruited to an anonymous online survey. Those who reported having viewed pornography in the past 12 months (n = 517) indicated how frequently they saw each of a list of 17 behaviors when they watched pornography in the past 12 months. Men’s pleasure (83%) was seen frequently by the highest proportion of young people surveyed, followed by a man being portrayed as dominant (70%). Women were more likely to report frequently seeing violence toward a woman (p < 0.01). Men were more likely to report frequently seeing heterosexual anal sex (p < 0.01), ejaculation onto a woman’s face (p < 0.01), women portrayed as dominant (p < 0.01), a man being called names or slurs (p < 0.01), and violence toward a man that appears consensual (p < 0.01). Younger age was significantly associated with frequently seeing women’s pleasure (p < 0.05), violence toward women which appeared consensual, and all types of violence (p < 0.01). Older age was associated with frequently seeing men’s pleasure (p < 0.01) and heterosexual anal sex (p < 0.05). Our findings draw attention to the gendered ways that behaviors in pornography are seen and identified by young heterosexual audiences.     

Sample size increase during a survival trial when interim results are promising

This paper is to extend Mehta and Pocock (2011 Mehta, C.R., Pocock, S.J. (2011). Adaptive increase in sample size when interim results are promising: a practical guide with examples. Stat Med. 00(00):00–00. [Google Scholar]) to provide a way in doing sample size increase in survival trials. Sample space is divided by observed test statistic at interim into three zones: unfavorable, promising, and favorable, within which sample size (required number of events) has a proper increase if falling into the promising zone and otherwise remains unchanged. Simulations with scenarios in the presence/absence of censoring, with/without adaptation, and allowing fourfolds versus twofolds of increase in sample size are compared.     

The Use of Different Happiness Rating Scales: Bias and Comparison Problem?

This paper uses data of reported happiness which is measured at 4, 5, 7 and 11 likert-scale points. A group of 137 respondents was selected to study the comparison problem on the estimated mean happiness using direct rescaling. It is found that the 11-point scale’s estimated mean happiness is significantly higher than the 4 and 7-point scale. This paper also proposes an alternate method of rescaling using transition probabilities as weights. This adjusted rescaling resembles the calculation of expected value and provides better mean comparison.