To test or not to test: do workplace drug testing programs discourage employee drug use?

Workplace drug testing programs are often met with intense criticism. Despite resistance among labor and consumer groups and a lack of rigorous empirical evidence regarding effectiveness, drug testing programs have remained popular with employers throughout the 1990s and into the current century. The present study analyzed nationally representative data on over 15,000 US households to determine whether various types of workplace drug testing programs influenced the probability of drug use by workers. The study estimated several empirical specifications using both univariate and bivariate probit techniques. The specification tests favored the bivariate probit model over the univariate probit model. Estimated marginal effects of drug testing on any drug use were negative, significant, and relatively large, indicating that drug testing programs are achieving one of the desired effects. The results were similar when any drug use was replaced with chronic drug use in the models. These results have important policy implications regarding the effectiveness and economic viability of workplace anti-drug programs.     

早期酋长制群体的聚落形态比较研究——以内蒙古东部、安第斯山北部和美洲中部三个地区为例

对内蒙古东部、安第斯山北部和美洲中部三个地区的早期酋长制群体的聚落形态进 行的比较研究表明,尽管这三个地区的发展过程大致相当,但在这三个地区中,大体类似的转变 却以不同的方式发生,从而导致了三个各具特色的等级社会的出现。最初的、大规模的、以等级 制度原则组织起来的酋长制群体出现后,其发展轨道的早期阶段明显地为后来的、较大的、更复 杂的政治实体即国家的出现创造了条件。通过地域性聚落分析,可以发现这三个地区在不同规模 层次上的人口和社会组织的异同,其中在赤峰和奥哈卡(Oaxaca)地区都存在的小型群体却不见 于马格达雷那高地(AltoMagdalena)的现象,需要进行更深入的研究,才能进一步揭示出在马 格达雷那高地是什么样的社会交流把这些家庭联合成更大的社会团体。     

创业投资:德国和美国的比较研究

在对美国和德国的创业投资的调查研究中,对照美国的研究结果,向德国的创业投资家调查了以下两个问题:1)在评估一项投资的时候创业投资家更看重创业者什么?2)根据一项创业投资计划,他们怎样与创业企业合作。调查结果显示,在创业的早期阶段和扩张阶段,德国创业投资家评估一项商业计划时,比较关注创业企业的发展潜力。他们强调,创业者所表现出的领导才能和对市场的熟悉程度是决定创业投资的必要条件。晚期阶段的创业投资家与早期阶段的创业投资家相比,不太容易和创业者成为亲密伙伴;他们对创业企业所提供的管理帮助也比较少。创业投资公司的规模在很大程度上影响创业投资的某些投资特征。与美国的研究结果相似,大规模的创业投资公司和小规模的创业投资公司运作的差异主要在于平均投资规模。在德国,随着创业投资公司规模的扩大,其投资的地域范围也在扩大。至于投资过程,当创业投资公司是主要投资者时,投资公司的规模与其所花费的评估和沟通时间(从开始与创业者接洽到进行融资之间)负相关。融资的准备时间与创业投资公司的员工数之间的关系,小规模的创业投资公司更有效率。     

Bad news indeed for Ryff’s six-factor model of well-being

Springer and Hauser (An Assessment of the Construct Validity of Ryff’s Scales of Psychological Well-Being: Method, Mode, and Measurement Effects. 2006. Social Science Research 35) tested one key aspect of the validity of Ryff’s six-factor model of psychological well-being (RPWB), namely, whether there is substantial independent variation among the six factors. In several large and heterogeneous samples, under a variety of model specifications, and using various sets of RPWB items, we found very high factor correlations among the dimensions of well-being, especially personal growth, purpose in life, self-acceptance, and environmental mastery. That is, the six-factor model makes theoretical claims that do not yield large or consistent empirical distinctions when standard measures and instrumentation are used. Where Ryff and Singer’s comment (Best News Yet on the Six-Factor Model of Well-Being. 2006. Social Science Research 35) refers directly to that analysis, their methodological discussion is most often irrelevant or incorrect. Their text largely ignores and fails to challenge our strong empirical findings about the factorial structure of well-being. In this response, we reinforce these findings and their implications for the (in)validity of the six-factor well-being model as implemented by Ryff. We also explain why Ryff and Singer’s lengthy review of studies that show differential relationships of RPWB factors with other variables should be interpreted with far greater caution than Ryff and Singer recognize. We offer recommendations for analyzing RPWB items in surveys that have already been conducted, but we also emphasize the need for a thorough rethinking of the measurement and dimensionality of psychological well-being.     

缺少的分享——喜马拉雅东部(中国云南西北部)作为“整体社会事实”的分享的仪式语言

中华人民共和国成立以前,云南西北部怒江、独龙江流域居住的独龙族、怒族等邻近族群之间存在着一种共通的"议式语言".这种仪式语言通过宗教祭祀活动以及分享杀牲后的肉食过程体现出来.在这一地域社会中,各种社会、政治和经济关系都依赖于这种仪式语言展开.虽然目前这种分享的仪式日渐式微,但分享的意识依然体现着族群内部的"社会结合"方式.通过独龙族仪式语言的个案分析,旨在与利奇关于克钦社会的"仪式语言"研究进行对话.     

Racial Disparities in Early Criminal Justice Involvement

Criminologists have long reported the existence of racial disparity in the criminal justice system, but the important question is why. While some argue that observed differences are a consequence of more criminal behavior among minorities, the weight of the evidence indicates that this is but a partial explanation. In this paper, we study data from a sample of juveniles to examine how racial differences in early police contact, and important social environments—family, school, and neighborhoods—affect later contact and arrests, controlling for self-reported delinquency. We find that early (in middle school) contact with police is an important predictor of later (high school) arrests. Also we found that, in addition to being male and living in a low-income family, children who have parents who have a history of arrest, who have experienced school disciplinary actions, who have delinquent peers, and who are in networks with deviant adults are more likely to have problems with law enforcement. These factors help to explain racial differences in police contacts and arrests.