Data-based organizational change: the use of administrative data to improve child welfare programs and policy

Administrative databases hold the potential to have a significant impact on the development of effective child welfare programs and policies. This article discusses the strengths and weaknesses of administrative databases, issues with their implementation and data analysis, and effective presentation of their data at different levels in child welfare organizations.     

Abuse, support, and depression among homeless and runaway adolescents

This study examines the effectiveness of social support networks on psychological well-being among 602 homeless and runaway adolescents. The respondents were interviewed in shelters, drop-in centers, and on the streets in cities of four Midwestern states (Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Kansas). The path model was used to test the direct effect of family abuse and precocious independence on adolescent depressive symptoms and indirect effects through social support networks. Results indicate that although abusive family origins contribute directly to depressive symptoms there are indirect effects of family abuse and early independence through social support networks. Family abuse and early independence drive homeless adolescents to rely on peers for social support. While support from friends on the street reduces depression, association with deviant peers increases depression.     

Receiving shadows: governance and liminality in the night-time economy

This paper focuses upon the emergence of the night-time economy both materially and culturally as a powerful manifestation of post-industrial society. This emergence features two key processes: firstly a shift in economic development from the industrial to the post-industrial; secondly a significant orientation of urban governance involving a move away from the traditional managerial functions of local service provision, towards an entrepreneurial stance primarily focused on the facilitation of economic growth. Central to this new economic era is the identification and promotion of liminality. The State's apparent inability to control these new leisure zones constitutes the creation of an urban frontier that is governed by commercial imperatives.     

'Bataille's boys': postmodernity, Fascists and football fans

In his analysis of football hooliganism, Anthony King claims to reveal the historical, conceptual scheme young, male supporters draw upon. This 'masculine vision', he states, is similar to that held by the Freikorps. Both groups are said to adhere to modernist notions of masculinity, sexuality and nationhood, reinforced by rituals which maintain boundaries between these 'proper' males and deviant 'others'. Occasionally, football hooligans breach these boundaries in acts of postmodern transgression. King also claims that fans link sex and violence in their imaginations. In this response I examine King's critique of his fellow theorists; challenge his 'Freikorps-Fans' analogy; demonstrate the problem he has in establishing the sex-violence link and question the relevance of his concept of postmodernity.     

A graph coloring approach for image segmentation

In this paper we develop a segmentation scheme for digital images based upon an iterative binary coloring technique that takes into account changing behavior of adjacent pixels. The output is a hierarchical structure of images which allows a better understanding of complex images. In particular, we propose two algorithms that should be considered as image preprocessing techniques.     

Turnover turned over: an expanded and positive perspective

The negative impact of turnover is well documented in the literature. This paper examines turnover with a unique, positive focus. Turnover is reviewed, not only from the standpoint of the organizational theorist, but with economic, sociological, and psychological/social psychological perspectives. Often ignored benefits of turnover are noted.