EFFORTS TO INCORPORATE SOCIAL JUSTICE PERSPECTIVES INTO A FAMILY TRAINING PROGRAM

This paper describes the efforts of the faculty of the Family Institute of New Jersey in recent years to develop a collaborative family training program that takes into account issues of gender, race, culture, class, and sexual orientation. We have come to realize how strongly traditional approaches have been skewed in the direction of the dominant culture--white, male, heterosexist, and prioritizing the needs and experience of the middle and upper classes. We have attempted to modify our teaching, supervision, reading lists, and overall training approach to challenge trainees and ourselves to move toward broader, strength-based, and equity-based multicultural perspectives in our training. We describe our vision, how we incorporate it into our program structure, and a few of our training initiatives.     

The triangle <Emphasis Type="Italic">k</Emphasis>-club problem

Graph models have long been used in social network analysis and other social and natural sciences to render the analysis of complex systems easier. In applied studies, to understand the behaviour of social networks and the interactions that command that behaviour, it is often necessary to identify sets of elements which form cohesive groups, i.e., groups of actors that are strongly interrelated. The clique concept is a suitable representation for groups of actors that are all directly related pair-wise. However, many social relationships are established not only face-to-face but also through intermediaries, and the clique concept misses all the latter. To deal with these cases, it is necessary to adopt approaches that relax the clique concept. In this paper we introduce a new clique relaxation—the triangle k-club—and its associated maximization problem—the maximum triangle k-club problem. We propose integer programming formulations for the problem, stated in different variable spaces, and derive valid inequalities to strengthen their linear programming relaxations. Computational results on randomly generated and real-world graphs, with \(k=2\) and \(k=3\), are reported.     

Supervisor Support Buffers Daily Psychological and Physiological Reactivity to Work‐to‐Family Conflict

Using a daily diary design, the current study assessed within‐person associations of work‐to‐family conflict with negative affect and salivary cortisol. Furthermore, the authors investigated whether supervisor support moderated these associations. Over 8 consecutive days, 131 working parents employed by an information technology company answered telephone interviews about stressors and mood that occurred in the previous 24 hours. On Days 2–4 of the study protocol, they also provided 5 saliva samples throughout the day that were assayed for cortisol. Results indicated a high degree of day‐to‐day fluctuation in work‐to‐family conflict, with employed parents having greater negative affect and poorer cortisol regulation on days with higher work‐to‐family conflict compared to days when they experience lower work‐to‐family conflict. These associations were buffered, however, when individuals had supervisors who offered support. Discussion centers on the use of dynamic assessments of work‐to‐family conflict and employee well‐being.     

The Role of the Environment in Sedentary Behavior in Community-Dwelling Older Adults

To compare amounts of sedentary behavior and physical activity in adults residing in planned group residential settings to those residing in private homes, this study recruited 31 older adults who resided in planned group residential settings (n = 13) and in private homes (n = 18). Daily activities were measured using the SenseWear Armband for 7 days. Estimates of the duration of daily activities performed across sedentary, light, and moderate-to-vigorous intensities were captured. It was found that participants in planned group residential settings were older (age 85.9 ± 3.5 vs. 78.3 ± 7.2; p = 0.001) and spent more time in sedentary behaviors (12.7 ± 1.5 vs. 11.3 ± 1.6; p = 0.02) than participants in private homes. The difference was attenuated slightly after controlling for age and wear time (adjusted difference 1.2 ± 0.6 hours, p = 0.06). Thus, adults residing in planned group residential settings, which provide supportive services, were more sedentary than adults residing in private homes. The environment in which older adults live may contribute to sedentary behavior.     

Situated modelling in the drawing workshop for bobbin lace

The current article presents the process of situated modeling in the drawing workshop for bobbin lace developed and implemented in the Núcleo de Produ??o Artesanal Rendeiras da Vila, in Ponta Negra, Natal-Brasil. The workshop aimed to rescue the domain over the product in the production of bobbin lace through capacitation of both experienced and novice craftswomen. The modeling of the drawing workshop was grounded on the sociotechnical construction and in the concepts of anthropotechnology and also social technology. The modelling required an intense process of social construction involving the members of GREPE-UFRN (Group of extension and Research in Ergonomics) and the lacemakers od the community. The domain of drawing the lace has enabled the expression of the craftswomen creativity, increasing the amount of works and the sustainable development,thus reducing the risks of extinction of such art in the Village of Ponta Negra.     

Safety illusion and error trap in a collectively-operated machine accident

Workplace accidents involving machines are relevant for their magnitude and their impacts on worker health. Despite consolidated critical statements, explanation centered on errors of operators remains predominant with industry professionals, hampering preventive measures and the improvement of production-system reliability. Several initiatives were adopted by enforcement agencies in partnership with universities to stimulate production and diffusion of analysis methodologies with a systemic approach. Starting from one accident case that occurred with a worker who operated a brake-clutch type mechanical press, the article explores cognitive aspects and the existence of traps in the operation of this machine. It deals with a large-sized press that, despite being endowed with a light curtain in areas of access to the pressing zone, did not meet legal requirements. The safety devices gave rise to an illusion of safety, permitting activation of the machine when a worker was still found within the operational zone. Preventive interventions must stimulate the tailoring of systems to the characteristics of workers, minimizing the creation of traps and encouraging safety policies and practices that replace judgments of behaviors that participate in accidents by analyses of reasons that lead workers to act in that manner.     

Design of experiment with emphasis on intuitive use

The article presents a step in the design of an experiment that has an emphasis on the following research question: how to assess the user friendliness of products in use? For this purpose, we developed three different approaches involving the use of products in intuitiveness. In this table, were removed some information regarding the positive aspects. These were broken down into procedures to be performed for an experiment with the same scope.     

Analysis of working conditions focusing on biological risk: firefighters in Campo Grande, MS, Brazil

Firefighters are exposed to a wide range of risks, among them, biological risk. The objective was to analyze working conditions of firefighters in the city of Campo Grande, MS, Brazil, focusing on risk conditions of exposure to biological material. Three hundred and seven (307) firefighters were interviewed for data collection and observed for ergonomic job analysis (AET). Results: 63.5% of the firefighters suffered some kind of job related accident with blood or body fluids. Statistically significant association was found between having suffered accidents at work and incomplete use of personal protective equipment (PPE). About AET regarding the biological risks, 57.1% of all patients had blood or secretions, which corresponds in average to 16.0% of the total work time, based on a working day of 24 h. Besides biological risks, other stressing factors were identified: emergency and complexity of decision, high responsibility regarding patients and environment, and conflicts. Health promotion and accident prevention actions must be emphasized as measures to minimize these risks.     

Time use and well-being in older widows: adaptation and resilience

Research on widowhood mostly emphasizes negative outcomes, but some studies suggest widows are resilient. This study evaluated the in-depth daily experiences of older widows compared to married women. Participants included 75 widows and 125 married women from the National Study of Daily Experiences II, who completed daily diaries over 8 days. For long-term widows, there were no differences compared to married women in daily and general well-being, and a few differences in time use. Results add to the literature by using daily diary data to illustrate the general resilience of older women many years after the death of a spouse.     

Expanding the pathway to postsecondary success: how recuperative back-on-track schools are making a difference

Districts and states that have begun to get traction in improving their graduation rates are pursuing a reform agenda that includes both the redesign of failing high schools and the development of multiple alternative pathways that help young people get back on track to graduation and to postsecondary education. Unlike traditional alternative education, new back-on-track models assume that challenge, not remediation, will make the most difference, especially for youth who are over age for grade and far behind in accumulating the credits they need. The goal is for students to make up for lost time by accelerating their learning so that they can complete high school and move successfully to postsecondary education and careers. Although these small schools do not in themselves constitute a replacement or transformation strategy for large low-performing high schools, they are a necessary part of a comprehensive approach to turning such schools around.