Representations of Parent–Child Alliances in Children's Family Drawings

The purpose of this study was to investigate relationships between children's representations of parent–child alliances (PCA) and their peer relationship quality, using a new scale that was developed to rate representations of PCA in children's family drawings. The parent–child alliance pattern is characterized by a relationship between parent and child that is stronger than the marital relationship. We used family drawings to assess children's (at the ages of 4–8 years) representations of alliances because it is often difficult for children to express their perceptions of family dynamics verbally. Children whose drawings were rated higher in PCA were rated lower in prosocial behavior and assertiveness and higher in social problems by their teachers. These relationships were stronger for boys than for girls.     

TANF Participation Rates: Do Community Conditions Matter?*

Abstract A general criticism of the 1996 Welfare Reform Act is that it is primarily the result of an urban political agenda, and it may hurt rather than help the rural poor. Under the new welfare system, the rural poor that are most likely to be affected are those who live in socially, economically, and spatially disadvantaged communities. More residents in these communities are likely to need TANF, clients in these communities are least likely to leave TANF by finding employment, and community organizations are likely to have more limited resources to help TANF recipients. The objective of this study is to examine the extent to which variations in community conditions account for differences in TANF participation rates. Using 1997 TANF data from the Mississippi Department of Human Services, we estimated OLS regression models of local TANF participation rates across 100 communities in nonmetro counties. The results indicate that TANF participation rates tend to be higher in communities with high concentrations of African Americans, less faith‐based activeness, more employment in retail trade, spatial concentration of the poor, and located in the Delta.     

PREDICTING DIVORCE AT MARITAL THERAPY INTAKE: WIVES' DISTRESS AND THE MARITAL STATUS INVENTORY*

The Marital Status Inventory (MSI), a measure of divorce potential was given to couples in six independent samples. Scores from the five clinical sites and one marital enrichment sample (N = 241 couples) were used to provide adequate reliability, discriminant validity and predictive validity data. Compound probability for the five clinical sites supports the contention that, overall, wives' are more distressed than their husbands. The MSI was also able to identify couples who later divorced. However, the Guttman properties of the MSI, previously identified, were not replicated. Clinical implications of the higher wives' scores for prediction of divorce and marital therapy are discussed.     

Business model design–performance relationship under external and internal contingencies: Evidence from SMEs in an emerging economy

We examined Business Model (BM) designs – performance relationship and the moderating effects of firm age and external environment on this relationship. Furthermore, we investigated the impact of simultaneously operating dual BM designs (i.e. novelty and efficiency) on firm performance and contingent effect of firm age on this relationship. Based on data from 241 Indian SMEs, our findings highlighted that BM novelty was of greater benefit to younger SMEs compared to mature SMEs, while BM efficiency was of greater benefit to more mature SMEs. The environmental dynamism positively moderated the relationship between BM novelty and performance but it negatively moderated the relationship between BM efficiency and performance. We also found that BM efficiency is more beneficial in a low, rather than a high, munificent environment but we found environmental munificence did not moderate the BM novelty and SME performance relationship. Finally, we found simultaneous deployment of BM novelty and BM efficiency resulted in an enhancement of performance among mature SMEs compared to younger SMEs. Our study not only adds to the limited literature on BMs in SMEs but also helps practicing managers and entrepreneurs to make informed choices about their BMs.     

Reply to Cameron et al.: Mistakes Were Made. Can They Be Corrected?

Cameron, Cameron, and Proctor (2017 Cameron, P., Cameron, K. M., &; Proctor, K. (2017). Children of homosexuals more apt to become homosexual and experience parental molestation: Surveys over three decades. Marriage &; Family Review, 53, 429–433. doi:10.1080/01494929.2017.1279942[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) have complained that Cameron and Cameron (1996 Cameron, P., &; Cameron, K. (1996). Homosexual parents. Adolescence, 31, 757–776.[PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) were not cited in some articles authored by this journal’s editor. As part of this editor’s policy of welcoming critiques of the editor or articles published in Marriage &; Family Review, we are pleased to respond, as part of an assignment for a graduate course in statistics and research design. Although remarkable for its time in terms of sample design, Cameron and Cameron’s (1996 Cameron, P., &; Cameron, K. (1996). Homosexual parents. Adolescence, 31, 757–776.[PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) research featured substantial limitations or ambiguity in sampling attrition, measurement of parental sexual orientation, and small sample size with respect to the number of children with same-sex parents. Although we cannot recall the exact reasons for which the editor neglected to cite Cameron and Cameron (1996 Cameron, P., &; Cameron, K. (1996). Homosexual parents. Adolescence, 31, 757–776.[PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) in more frequency or detail, there were many scientifically reasonable possibilities. Cameron et al. (2017 Cameron, P., Cameron, K. M., &; Proctor, K. (2017). Children of homosexuals more apt to become homosexual and experience parental molestation: Surveys over three decades. Marriage &; Family Review, 53, 429–433. doi:10.1080/01494929.2017.1279942[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]) are welcome to respond in detail to our concerns.     

MEASURING SUBUNIT EFFECTIVENESS

The literature suggests that a multivariate approach to the measurement of effectiveness is preferred. The present study uses a policy-capturing methodology to examine effectiveness criteria and their importance weightings for various subunits in a manufacturing organization. Effectiveness criteria and their weightings were found to vary across individual subunits. The models developed for major groupings of subunits were found to have reasonable predictive power. Finally, the predictive power of these general models varied with the degree of goal similarity among the subunits in the grouping. Useful applications of the results for managerial decisions are explored.     

Units of Analysis and the Environmental Justice Hypothesis: The Case of Industrial Hog Farms

Objective . In environmental justice research, different-sized units of analysis have generated mixed results, begging the question of what constitutes the most appropriate unit of analysis. Grappling with this question raises both conceptual and methodological issues. In this article, it is argued that, conceptually, community should be the most important unit of analysis and that, methodologically, units should be selected through an appropriate sampling procedure. These issues are addressed through an investigation of the locations of industrial hog farms in Mississippi. Methods . A geographic information system procedure was used to identify community areas and to select the sample of units. The identified community areas were compared to counties, ZIP code areas, census tracts, and census block groups through a bivariate and multivariate logistic regression. Results . Race was the only variable that was consistently not found to be significant across all units. For the remaining variables—income, education, and industry—results were mixed across units. Conclusions . This research confirms that units of different size generate different results. We argue that the decision about the most appropriate unit of analysis should be conceptually rather than statistically determined and that community is the most important unit of analysis because it holds both legal and social authority to raise concern about environmentally controversial facilities.