Assimilation or Acculturation Problems of Aboriginal Families

Policies of colonisation and assimilation have had devastating consequences for Aboriginal people. Emphasis must be given to strategies far more diverse than economic development.     

Understanding variation in marital sexual pleasure: an impossible task?

Over the past twenty years, sociologists have begun to explore the social and cultural context within which sexual relationships are constructed and in Western society, given such importance. However, although it is commonly recognised that the contraceptive pill has changed the meaning of sexuality (Giddens, 1992; Ferguson, 1989) comparatively little attention has been paid to locating the level of pleasure married women derive from marital sex within the situational, structural and cultural parameters of their lives. The material in this paper is based on intensive interviews with 60 married women, aged 20–42 years old and randomly selected from the records of general medical practitioners in North London. The paper indicates that methodological squeamishness about the viability of a study of sexual pleasure is unwarranted. It shows that only just over one third of these respondents had a high level of sexual pleasure on the scale devised in the study (weighted kappa=.89). For the most part, such pleasure was not associated with other aspects of the marital relationship. Drawing on illustrative material, it locates such pleasure within the context of their marital and family situation and suggests future lines of enquiry.     

Improving Risk Management: From Lame Excuses to Principled Practice

The three classic pillars of risk analysis are risk assessment (how big is the risk and how sure can we be?), risk management (what shall we do about it?), and risk communication (what shall we say about it, to whom, when, and how?). We propose two complements as important parts of these three bases: risk attribution (who or what addressable conditions actually caused an accident or loss?) and learning from experience about risk reduction (what works, and how well?). Failures in complex systems usually evoke blame, often with insufficient attention to root causes of failure, including some aspects of the situation, design decisions, or social norms and culture. Focusing on blame, however, can inhibit effective learning, instead eliciting excuses to deflect attention and perceived culpability. Productive understanding of what went wrong, and how to do better, thus requires moving past recrimination and excuses. This article identifies common blame‐shifting “lame excuses” for poor risk management. These generally contribute little to effective improvements and may leave real risks and preventable causes unaddressed. We propose principles from risk and decision sciences and organizational design to improve results. These start with organizational leadership. More specifically, they include: deliberate testing and learning—especially from near‐misses and accident precursors; careful causal analysis of accidents; risk quantification; candid expression of uncertainties about costs and benefits of risk‐reduction options; optimization of tradeoffs between gathering additional information and immediate action; promotion of safety culture; and mindful allocation of people, responsibilities, and resources to reduce risks. We propose that these principles provide sound foundations for improving successful risk management.     

Cell Phone Survey Feasibility in The U.S.: Sampling and Calling Cell Numbers Versus Landline Numbers

In 2004, we conducted a nationwide dual frame survey of landlineand cell phone numbers to evaluate the feasibility of includingcell phone numbers in a random digit dial telephone survey.Households with both landline and cell phones were eligiblefor selection in both samples. This article describes our designand data collection methods; compares the results from the twosamples (with an emphasis on operational characteristics); andpresents the outcomes of two experimental manipulations designedto improve the cell phone response rate.     

Levels of analysis,theoretical orientations and degrees of abstraction

This article suggests that what often appear to be fundamental conflicts of opinion among sociologists regarding appropriate levels of analysis and theoretical orientations are much less problematic when considered in terms of differences in degrees of abstraction. The critical factor in the compatibility of various levels of analysis and theoretical orientation is the use of degrees of abstraction by the researcher. The impact of this issue on sociological knowledge and some of its applications are examined. Pat Lauderdale is professor of justice and adjunct professor of law at Arizona State University and is completing a book on social conflict and disputes. Steven D. McLaughlin is the director of Battelle’s Health and Populations Research Center in Seattle and presently is conducting research on adolescent fertility and educational attainment. Annamarie Oliverio has completed graduate work in political science and criminology at Simon Fraser University and currently is working on her doctoral dissertation at Arizona State University.     

Election 2016 Postscript: Blurred Realities and Why Liberals Lost

Two professors of social work debate the dynamics of the 2016 presidential election sharing opposing views of President Obama’s message integrity and the electorate’s search for a candidate more “real.”