Unconditional Quantile Regressions

We propose a new regression method to evaluate the impact of changes in the distribution of the explanatory variables on quantiles of the unconditional (marginal) distribution of an outcome variable. The proposed method consists of running a regression of the (recentered) influence function (RIF) of the unconditional quantile on the explanatory variables. The influence function, a widely used tool in robust estimation, is easily computed for quantiles, as well as for other distributional statistics. Our approach, thus, can be readily generalized to other distributional statistics.     

Arriving old: A qualitative study of elder refugee women’s self-perceptions of the first year of resettlement

ABSTRACT

This qualitative study examines eight elder women’s experiences of resettling with their family and the protective factors that enhanced their resiliency. The implications for social work include the need to assess elder refugees’ strengths, resilience, pre-resettlement functioning instead of services that might encourage integration into the dominant culture and community, and that the refugee experience is a lifelong experience that shapes and informs various stages of life.     

Physical activity and patient-reported outcomes: enhancing impact

Physical activity (PA) is beneficial for cancer survivors across the cancer trajectory. Evidence indicates physical and psychosocial benefits, and ultimately, enhanced overall quality of life, for individuals who are more versus less active (Semin Oncol Nurs 23:285–296, 2007; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 14:1672–1680, 2005; J Cancer Surviv 4:87–100, 2010). A number of recent reviews have been conducted that examine different patient or survivor populations and outcomes. In general, the findings across the reviews reveal potential positive associations between exercise (structured activity one engages in for the purposes of enhancing health-related fitness outcomes) and PA (any physical movement, including lifestyle types of activity) with both physical and psychological outcomes. It is important to note, however, that depending on the nature of the review and the types of studies included in the review, the strength of the findings (i.e., effect size) vary. Despite this overwhelmingly positive evidence for the benefits of PA, activity levels are very low among cancer survivors, with one study reporting only 22 % of survivors as active enough to achieve health benefits (Cancer 112(11):2475–2482, 2008). This suggests that we must begin to better understand the factors that impact the uptake and maintenance of PA among cancer survivors. These potential factors are important when considering the patient-reported outcomes to assess and can include timing (i.e., during or after treatment completion), characteristics of the cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatments (i.e., early vs. late stage cancers), and characteristics of the individual (i.e., older vs. younger).     

Case Study: The First Israeli BSW Program for Haredi Women Students

The article summarizes a longitudinal case study of the very first Israeli program in social work targeted to the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox Jewish) population (1997–1999). The program's success played an important role in the last decade's dramatic change of attitude in the Israeli Council for Higher Education toward social work education and higher education for the Haredi population. Aside from describing an interesting case of intercultural educational encounter, exploring the dynamics of the interaction between the social work faculty and the Haredi students, and investigating changes in the participants' perceptions of themselves, the other, and the situation, the findings provide some theoretical and practical clues for the inclusion of culturally peripheral populations in social work and higher education.     

Young Women's Experiences and Perceptions of Cunnilingus during Adolescence

Recent studies indicate that cunnilingus may be as prevalent as fellatio among American adolescents. Despite this approximate equivalence in rates, there is an imbalance in the amount and type of attention paid to fellatio and cunnilingus. Furthermore, there has been little empirical examination of young women's experiences and perceptions of cunnilingus during adolescence. Two studies in response to this gap in knowledge were conducted. In Study 1, regression analyses indicated that a young woman's sexual assertiveness was linked to having more lifetime cunnilingus partners, as well as more cunnilingus experiences in the past three months. Study 2 explored young women's perceptions of cunnilingus and their speculations about their male partners’ perceptions thereof. Linear mixed modeling revealed that participants had highly favorable impressions of cunnilingus, which they believed their male partners shared. These findings are considered in terms of positive adolescent sexual development and cultural norms regarding female sexuality.     

Injecting and Rejecting,Framing and Failing

This paper seeks to examine how female subjectivities are privileged by Canadian human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination discourse and, in turn, how homosexual male subjectivities are displaced. Employing a Critical Discourse Analysis approach, I analyze selected HPV vaccination (HPVV) promotional materials, and depict the discursive strategies which privilege and exclude gendered subjectivities. My critical analysis is influenced by feminist linguistic works that seek to uncover the discursive constructions around sexuality, gender and identity, and the discursive strategies used to communicate ideas about sexual health risks and responsible citizenship. In addition, I adopt feminist theories of knowledge and power to rethink the discursive representations of some bodies and subjectivities as normal, and Others as unintelligible within HPVV discourse in today's neoliberal time.     

Lessons Learned From the Supporting Father Involvement Study: A Cross-Cultural Preventive Intervention for Low-Income Families With Young Children

ABSTRACT

Despite the proliferation of fatherhood programs designed to promote paternal involvement and positive family outcomes, evaluations of these programs are scarce. The Supporting Father Involvement (SFI) study is a randomized clinical trial comprised of 289 low-income Spanish- and English-speaking families living in California. The evaluation design reflects a partnership stance that promotes empowerment of staff and social service agencies. This article examines lessons learned from the program's first 3 years (2002–2004) from the perspectives of both evaluators and program staff. The lessons cover a broad range of areas, including communication procedures, training, staffing, recruitment/retention, clinical needs, intervention content and process, and maintaining cultural sensitivity.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">„Mönche aus Wien,bitte lüftets eure Geheimnisse</Emphasis>.“ Über die Abweichungen der Beratungspraxis von den Idealtypen der Organisationsberatung

A discrepancy between the explicit theories of organizational consulting and consulting in practice has to be assumed. This paper analyzes the difference between front stage and back stage in organizational consulting. Therefore the idealtyps of organizational consulting are reconstructed and put in contrast with actual consulting behaviour (on the basis of 48 interviews with consultants). As a result three thesis can be stated: Based on the clients’ expectations a divergence between the idealtyps and the consulting practice has been identified, which leads to convergence in the consulting practice (convergence thesis). For systemic consulting (in German: Systemische Organisationsberatung) this divergence is as significant and vast (value transfer thesis) that it doesn’t seem justifiable to take it as an independent approach on organizational consulting (three realtyps thesis).     

Exploring the Meanings of the “Heartfelt” Gesture: A Nonverbal Signal of Heartfelt Emotion and Empathy

Journal of Nonverbal Behavior - We conducted two studies to explore the potential meanings associated with the “heartfelt” gesture, which involves placing one’s hand with a flat...