Lessons from history: Surviving old age during The Great Depression in the United States

This paper focuses on 30 couples who received a pension and other services from two private trusts in Detroit, Michigan beginning in 1929 or 1930. Results of the qualitative analysis of case files, which contain notes recorded chronologically for 17 of the couples and then surviving spouses, provide a portrait of older couples' lives prior to a partner's death, circumstances surrounding the death, and changes in the social support systems of widows and widowers until their deaths. Close examination of the experiences of these couples is a reminder of how old age and widowhood were experienced prior to the enactment of public pensions and health insurance in the United States.     

The disappearing link between premarital cohabitation and subsequent marital stability, 1970–2001

Previous research has demonstrated that marriages preceded by premarital cohabitation have higher rates of dissolution than those in which the couple marry without first living together. Most of this research relies on data generated by couples who cohabited in the 1970s and early 1980s when premarital cohabitation was relatively uncommon and usually of brief duration. Since then, premarital cohabitation in Australia has become normative and thus less prone to selection effects. The period of premarital cohabitation has also lengthened and is thus more likely to provide opportunities to screen out unviable matches. This paper uses national survey data from Australia to explore whether, in the light of these changes, the previously observed higher level of marital dissolution among those who live together before marrying has persisted. It demonstrates that the higher risk of marital dissolution among those who cohabited before marriage has declined substantially in the 1990s marriage cohort and, after controlling for selection factors, has disappeared altogether.     

The effects of kin on child mortality in rural gambia

We analyzed data that were collected continuously between 1950 and 1974 from a rural area of the Gambia to determine the effects of kin on child mortality. Multilevel event-history models were used to demonstrate that having a living mother, maternal grandmother, or elder sisters had a significant positive effect on the survival probabilities of children, whereas having a living father, paternal grandmother, grandfather, or elder brothers had no effect. The mother's remarriage to a new husband had a detrimental effect on child survival, but there was little difference in the mortality rates of children who were born to monogamous or polygynous fathers. The implications of these results for understanding the evolution of human life-history are discussed.     

Globalization and its impact on global managers' decision processes

Globalization of business can have a profound impact on the decision-making processes of managers responsible for making these complex interrelated decisions. This paper explores the global decision-making processes of global managers. The first element examined is the multiple intelligences that global managers need to be able to address the issues associated with global decisions. These eight IQs are considered critical elements in the decision-making capabilities of global managers. Following this discussion, the composition of global groups and their impact on the decision-making process is explored to determine how the composition of the group inhibits/supports the global manager. The next step in the decision-making process discussed in the paper is that of the nature of the task(s). The type of task can have a direct impact on the effectiveness as well as the efficiency of global manager's decision-making. The crux of the issue is that a global orientation to decision-making is poised as being significantly different from decision processes use by managers in a multinational context.     

The Social Is Political

Feminist political economy has recognized that women's work in global production is a central site for gender analysis and a major issue for re-conceptualizing globalization in a gender equitable manner. But such research has yet to generate appropriate policy proposals that can form the basis for international campaigns to achieve changes in the governance and functioning of the global economy that would contribute to gender equity. This article argues that a more informed and differentiated analysis is necessary to translate feminist economic analysis into effective political action. It does this by demonstrating the relationship between the 'economic' and the 'social' through the analysis of changing state provision of social reproduction. It then outlines some potential feminist policy initiatives that arise from this kind of approach.     

Maternal Disrupted Communication During Face‐to‐Face Interaction at 4 months: Relation to Maternal and Infant Cortisol Among at‐Risk Families

The study evaluated the association between maternal disrupted communication and the reactivity and regulation of the psychobiology of the stress response in infancy. Mothers and infants were recruited via the National Health Service from the 20% most economically impoverished data zones in a suburban region of Scotland. Mothers (N = 63; M age = 25.9) and their 4‐month‐old infants (35 boys, 28 girls) were videotaped interacting for 8 min, including a still‐face procedure as a stress inducer and a 5‐min coded recovery period. Saliva samples were collected from the dyads prior to, during, and after the still‐face procedure and later assayed for cortisol. Level of disruption in maternal communication with the infant was coded from the 5‐min videotaped interaction during the recovery period which followed the still‐face procedure. Severely disrupted maternal communication was associated with lower levels of maternal cortisol and a greater divergence between mothers' and infants' cortisol levels. Results point to low maternal cortisol as a possible mechanism contributing to the mother's difficulty in sensitively attuning to her infant's cues, which in turn has implications for the infant's reactivity to and recovery from a mild stressor in early infancy.     

II. The influence of differences in age,sex, and intelligence in determining the attitudes of siblings toward each other 1

This article explores the relational process in a long-term psychodynamic psychotherapy case of a patient with binge eating disorder and the subsequent impacts on treatment when the therapist also struggles with disordered eating. This in-depth case study seeks to examine the reciprocal influence of the subjectivities experienced by the patient and therapist on the formation, maintenance, and quality of the therapeutic relationship and the course of treatment. Drawing on intersubjective theory, a narrowed focus on transference/countertransference dynamics seeks to examine the complexities of a relational approach in the treatment of binge eating disorder. A review of the literature suggests that an exploration of this dimension of treatment breaks new clinical ground and serves to provide more specified and nuanced perspectives for clinicians treating this population. Several clinical vignettes are provided to illustrate the concepts under examination. The use of case composites and thick disguise of patient information has been used to protect confidentiality in this analysis.     

Single mothers or women in single parenthood (WISP)? A report and reflection on the development of a brief marital metaphor questionnaire (MMQ-10)

Metaphor is embedded with representations of both experience and longing and can go far beyond problem representations in exploring marital experience. This paper reports the development of a marital metaphor questionnaire and its use with 123 Chinese single mothers. Lower marital satisfaction does correlate with their ratings of marital experience, but not with their general attitude toward marriage. The implications are discussed as to how marital metaphors could be used as an effective tool to engage clients on sensitive topics, reveal hopes and strengths, and how empirical studies can be conducted in a stigma-free and strength-based orientation.     

Young female sex offenders: assessment and treatment issues

Research on the characteristics and treatment of juvenile female sex offenders is limited. This article reviews the literature on female offenders and presents the results of a nationwide survey by mail of 250 mental health providers in private settings and residential treatment centers (RTCs), on approaches to diagnosing prior sexual abuse history and/or perpetration among juvenile females. Nineteen of the most experienced practitioners were also interviewed by telephone to provide further insight to the issues highlighted by the surveys. Key findings include the lack of research, tools, and literature on young female sex offenders and perceived differences between male and female offenders including history, treatment, and characteristics. Further study and awareness of this population is encouraged to address clinical needs.     

POVERTY RESEARCH AND SOCIAL POLICY

The present approach to welfare reform, as embodied in the Final Report of the Reference Croup on Welfare Reform (2000), relies heavily on the rhetoric of ‘mutual obligation’ and ‘welfare dependency’ while placing Utile emphasis on original research and relevant data that might inform and support its reform agenda. In marked contrast are the research‐driven policy processes aimed at the alleviation of child poverty that took place during the Hawke‐Keating government in the late 1980s, in this paper we illustrate the value of research in relation to two government strategies, the Family Allowance Supplement (FAS) and the Child Support Scheme (CSS), that were instrumental in bringing a significant number of children out of poverty. We suggest that any commitment to further the reduction of child poverty requires resources for ongoing research programs.