Discursive Arenas: Deliberation and the Constitution of Identity in Public Participation at a Local Level

This article is based on empirical research into public participation in two English cities. It discusses issues related to motivations to take part in public participation initiatives and the way in which individual and collective identities may be constructed through participation. Drawing on social movement theory it emphasises the importance both of networks and values in prompting participation and it illustrates this with examples drawn from participation initiatives based around identities: age, gender, ethnicity, and issues/interests such as health inequalities, community regeneration and social care service provision. The analysis suggests it is important to understand the histories and motivations of officials as well as citizens who take part, and questions the priority given to ‘representation’ in constituting the membership of participation forums.     

An “Unthought Known” of Her Own: The Aesthetics of Interruption

Through a personal account, the author reflects on how we are haunted by what we take from our parents or what, unawares, they transmit to us, and how that haunting pulls us forward and back at the same time.     

Dose Response for Infectivity of Several Strains of Campylobacter jejuni in Chickens

Although some major risk studies have been done for Campylobacter jejuni, its dose response is not well characterized. Only a single human study is available, providing dose-response information for only a single isolate. As substantial heterogeneity in infectivity has been acknowledged for other pathogens, it remains unknown how well this single study represents the dose-response relation for this pathogen. As future human challenge studies with Campylobacter are unlikely, we have to find other means of studying its infectivity. Several dose-response studies have been done using chickens as host organisms. These studies may be used to obtain quantitative information on the variation in infectivity among different isolates of this pathogen. A hierarchical Bayesian model is well suited to describe heterogeneity, and we demonstrate how the beta-Poisson model of microbial infection may be adapted to allow for within- and between-isolate variation. Isolates tested in chickens can be categorized into two distinct groups: lab-adapted and fresh isolates, and we show how the hierarchical dose-response model can be used to quantitatively describe their differences. Fresh isolates show higher colonization potential and less within-isolate variation than lab isolates. The results indicate that Campylobacter jejuni is highly infectious in chickens. Different isolates show great variation in infectivity, especially between lab and fresh isolates, indicating that human clinical (volunteer) studies on infectivity must be interpreted cautiously.     

Adolescents Living in Public Housing: Self-perceptions of Competence and Family Satisfaction

This pilot study was developed to better understand the perceived level of self-competence in African American adolescents living within public housing developments in the mid-South. The study’s goal was to obtain a more in-depth understanding of self-perceptions in strategic areas and begin to determine how their environment may affect dimensions of self-competence. Measurements included Harter’s Self-Perception Profile for Children scale (SPPC) and Hudson’s Family Relationship Problems domain contained in his Multidimensional Adolescent Assessment Scale. A comparative analysis was conducted between the sample means and those obtained from the population on which the SPPC instrument was normed [Harter (1985), The self-perception profile for children: revision of the perceived competence scale for children. Denver: Manual, University of Denver]. All scores were analyzed both within gender and within past scholastic performance. Findings suggested that this sample of public housing youth scored similarly within both gender and past scholastic performance on most domains with a few exceptions. Males scored significantly higher on self-ratings of physical appearance than females, and low-reporting scholastic achievers tended to rank themselves significantly lower in athletic competence. Physical appearance and scholastic competence were associated with global self-worth, and family turmoil was associated with fewer close friendships. Importantly, the sample means were significantly different than the normed population means across several domains of competence. The finding suggesting that scholastic performance is a predictor of self-worth is supported by later research and refuted by earlier research. Perhaps this is a regional effect or perhaps there has been a cultural norm shift that more recent studies are able to identify. Interventions need to be designed for youth at middle-school age because the ability to instill protective factors greatly diminishes at post-puberty development.Article Note Michael Sullivan and Theora Evans are affiliated with College of Social Work, The University of Tennessee, 711 Jefferson Ave. Suite 607 W., Memphis, TN 38163, USA     

A Latent Growth Curve Analysis of the Structure of Aggression,Drug Use,and Delinquent Behaviors and Their Interrelations Over Time in Urban and Rural Adolescents

Latent growth curve analysis was used to examine the structure and interrelations among aggression, drug use, and delinquent behavior during early adolescence. Five waves of data were collected from 667 students at three urban middle schools serving a predominantly African American population, and from a more ethnically diverse sample of 950 students at four rural middle schools. One set of models focused on changes in individual behaviors; the other on changes in a global problem behavior factor. Models with separate growth trajectories for aggression, drug use, and delinquent behavior provided the best fit for both samples and revealed relations between initial levels of aggression and subsequent changes in the other behaviors. Boys and girls differed in their initial levels of these behaviors, but not their patterns of change. Differences in growth curve trajectories were found across samples. These findings have important implications for assessment and prevention of problem behaviors in adolescents.     

Ecological restoration volunteers: the benefits of participation

There is an international volunteer movement to protect and restore sensitive natural landscapes. In Illinois alone, almost 40,000 acres of rare prairie, oak savanna, wetlands and woodland ecosystems in urban and suburban communities are monitored and managed by volunteers. As natural habitats disappear or become degraded worldwide, it is increasingly important to understand how a personal involvement with nature, in the form of restoration, benefits the individual as well as aiding in species and ecosystem survival. This study examined the satisfactions that volunteers derive from prairie restoration in the Chicago metropolitan area. Questionnaire responses from 263 volunteers indicate that volunteers experience high levels of many different satisfactions. Tenure, frequency and extent of involvement in restoration were used to predict restoration satisfactions, life satisfaction and life functioning. Implications for recruiting and sustaining volunteer involvement in restoration efforts are discussed.     

The Articulation of Theory and Practice: critique and resistance in Aotearoa New Zealand

In his latest book, Understanding Disability: from theory to practice (1996), Michael Oliver (p. 111) notes the 'globalisation' of disability related issues and the absence of any satisfactory comparative studies in disability policy across the globe. This paper can be seen as laying the ground work for such a study by reviewing the theorisation of disability and its practical consequence in the articulation, development and implementation of disability policy in Aotearoa New Zealand. It will describe some current examples of policies for disabled people and provides an analysis of current debates. The paper explores the emancipatory potential of current disability theorising by analysing strategies adopted by disabled people as a response to recent policy developments in the health and disability field in Aotearoa New Zealand.     

Physiological and Emotional Reactivity to Learning and Frustration

This study examined the behavioral (arm, facial) and autonomic (heart rate, respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA], and adrenocortical axis) reactivity of 56 4‐month‐old infants in response to contingency learning and extinction‐induced frustration. During learning, infants displayed increases in operant arm response and positive emotional expressions. Changes in average RSA(V_NA) paralleled the observed changes in facial expressions in general and maintained an inverse relation with heart rate throughout most of the session. When frustrated by extinction, infants displayed increases in negative expressions, heart rate, and a brief increase in RSA(V_NA) followed by a significant decrease. No significant changes were observed for Cortisol. These behavioral and facial responses are consistent with earlier work. The physiological changes, along with the facial expressions and instrumental responses, indicate that the autonomic nervous system functions as a coordinated affect system by 4 months of age.     

The power of silence: Ethical dilemmas of informed consent in practice evaluation

This paper critically examines the concepts of minimal risk and informed consent when practitioners use their own case material for practice evaluation and single subject research. Two student research projects conducted as requirements of a second year masters seminar in practice evaluation are used to identify specific ethical dilemmas and practice research implications are discussed.This paper is the product of class discussions in two year long research seminars conducted in 1990–1991 and 1991–1992 as part of the second year masters program at Simmons College School of Social Work. It is important to recognize that the voices of every seminar participant and the discussions generated are represented in this paper. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 39th Annual Program Meeting of the Council on Social Work Education, New York, March 1, 1993.