Home‐start and the delivery of family support

The publication of Child Protection: Messages from Research (Department of Health, 1995) and of the ‘Supporting Families’ Green Paper (Home Office, 1998) have both highlighted the importance of developing family support services, in keeping with the word and the spirit of the Children Act, 1989. This article presents some of the findings of a three year study of a voluntary organisation, Home‐Start, which offers support to mothers with children under five through volunteer home visiting. The article makes connections between the activities of Home‐Start and the wider debate about family support in the United Kingdom. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Using auxiliary data for parameter estimation with non-ignorably missing outcomes

We propose a method for estimating parameters in generalized linear models when the outcome variable is missing for some subjects and the missing data mechanism is non-ignorable. We assume throughout that the covariates are fully observed. One possible method for estimating the parameters is maximum likelihood with a non-ignorable missing data model. However, caution must be used when fitting non-ignorable missing data models because certain parameters may be inestimable for some models. Instead of fitting a non-ignorable model, we propose the use of auxiliary information in a likelihood approach to reduce the bias, without having to specify a non-ignorable model. The method is applied to a mental health study.     

A Study of Suicide Risk Using a Cox Cure Model via a Retrospective Sampling and Multiple Imputation

The incidence of suicide is an example of rare event. A Cox cure model is adopted to examine the suicide risk of a cohort study of a sample of 65,000 Personal Emergency Link users over a 10-year observation period. Our objective is to investigate the effect of personal covariates on the failure time to suicide as well as the long-term survival from suicide. Based on the Cox cure model, a new and efficient estimation approach using retrospective sampling and multiple imputation was used. Compared with the standard Cox proportional hazards model, the Cox cure model provides a new perspective on analyzing the suicide data.     

Organizational Form,Ownership Structure and Corporate Performance: A Contextual Empirical Analysis of UK Companies1

This paper contributes to the literature on organizational form and performance (the performance-conduct paradigm) by examining the impact of two sets of variables that have not been examined previously: measures of environmental uncertainty and alternative forms of controlling separation of ownership from control. The paper first examines the extent to which contextual variables such as perceived environmental uncertainty and age of the organizational form moderate the relationship between organizational form and corporate performance. Next, the paper extends the analysis by examining the possible effects of ownership and control structures on performance. Measures suggested by agency theory, such as conventional ownership proxies (i.e. proportion of shares held by identifiable, homogenous groups), the proportion of non-executive board members and Fama and Jensen's concept of separation of decision management from decision control are used in the analysis. The results indicate that these measures have direct impact on corporate performance in their own right, though the main impact is indirect through interactions with organizational form variables.     

The role of close friends in African American adolescents' dating and sexual behavior

This study examined the role of close friends in the sexual lives of African American adolescents. Fifteen African American adolescents residing in an urban neighborhood participated in individual in-depth qualitative interviews. The findings suggest that close friends play a critical role in the dating and sexual behaviors of inner-city African American adolescents, as they appear to serve as socializing agents that impact how adolescents conceptualize and socially construct dating and sexual roles and behaviors. Close friends also play a significant role in acquiring new dating and sexual partners and in determining the course of dating and sexual relationships. Although females and males expressed similar expectations regarding sexual fidelity and condom use, they differed with regard to their method and process of talking with friends about dating and sex, their shared social constructions about dating and sexual roles and expectations, and their perceptions of the meaning of dating. We discuss the implications of the findings in terms of involving close friends in interventions focused on improving the sexual health of African American adolescents. Future directions for research with African American adolescents and sexuality are also discussed.     

管理信息系统(MIS) :背景、核心课程、学术流派及 主要国际学术会议与刊物评介

管理信息系统(management information system, MIS)是一门新兴的交叉学科.简介了这一学科创立的背景, 国际MIS 学科核心课程, 当今世界MIS学科领域的主要学术流派及主要的国际学术会议及刊物,以期中国MIS领域的专家学者更好地知已知彼,为在国际MIS学术刊物上发表更多的学术论文提供一些参考建议.     

Reinforcement‐based vs. Belief‐based Learning Models in Experimental Asymmetric‐information Games

This paper examines the abilities of learning models to describe subject behavior in experiments. A new experiment involving multistage asymmetric‐information games is conducted, and the experimental data are compared with the predictions of Nash equilibrium and two types of learning model: a reinforcement‐based model similar to that used by Roth and Erev (1995), and belief‐based models similar to the ‘cautious fictitious play’ of Fudenberg and Levine (1995, 1998) These models make predictions that are qualitatively similar cycling around the Nash equilibrium that is much more apparent than movement toward it. While subject behavior is not adequately described by Nash equilibrium, it is consistent with the qualitative predictions of the learning models. We examine several criteria for quantitatively comparing the predictions of alternative models. According to almost all of these criteria, both types of learning model outperform Nash equilibrium. According to some criteria, the reinforcement‐based model performs better than any version of the belief‐based model; according to others, there exist versions of the belief‐based model that outperform the reinforcement‐based model. The abilities of these models are further tested with respect to the results of other published experiments. The relative performance of the two learning models depends on the experiment, and varies according to which criterion of success is used. Again, both models perform better than equilibrium in most cases.     

Standards of Care in Assessment of Lesbian,Gay, Bisexual,Transgender, Gender Expansive,and Queer/Questioning (LGBTGEQ+) Persons

ABSTRACT

A Joint Task Force comprised of members of the Association for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues in Counseling (ALGBTIC) and the Association for Assessment and Research in Counseling (AARC) present standards of care for assessment of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Gender Expansive, and Queer/Questioning (LGBTGEQ+) Persons.     

Consumer awareness and sustainability-focused value orientation as motivating factors of responsible consumer behavior

Consumers are put in the driver seat on the road to a sustainable development. Following a consumer-centric approach, this paper explores the dimensionality and the antecedents of responsible consumption from a psychological perspective. Concerning the dimensionality, the study proposes that responsible consumption should comprise a societal as well as an individual dimension. The data (N = 339) supported this two-dimensional approach, differentiating between societal responsibilities of consumers (doing good) and consumers’ responsibilities for their personal well-being (doing well). Moreover, the results indicate that both consumer awareness and sustainability-focused value orientation have a direct positive influence on responsible consumer behavior. In addition, the hypothesized mediating role of consumer awareness is confirmed, with mediations for societal or personal responsible consumer behavior by the respective consumer awareness dimension. Consequently, it is crucial for organizations to flank their sustainable offers with appropriate communication activities in order to motivate consumers to engage in more responsible consumption.