Dropping out of high school: Effects of close and distant friendships

Prior research highlights the role of friends in influencing whether a student completes high school. Students who drop out tend to have fewer friends, as well as friends who are less oriented toward school success. We distinguish between close and distant friendships by developing a theoretical framework which predicts close and distant friends likely have distinct effects on dropping out. Close friendships provide valuable emotional support, and forging numerous close friendships at school should decrease one’s risk of dropping out. In contrast, the characteristics of distant friends help shape students’ social identities and beliefs about “what’s normative.” Our analyses of the Add Health data set confirm our expectations. Students with more close friendships are less likely to drop out, but close friends’ characteristics are unrelated to dropping out. Distant relationships (as measured by affect and regularity of interaction) with friends who have a high risk of dropping out significantly increase a student’s own risk of dropping out.     

Fatherhood on My Mind

SUMMARY

This essay uses an academic letter format to address the topic of fatherhood through the personal perspective of a single, middle-aged, multi-ethnic, gay man. After providing auto-ethnographic reflections of childhood and family life, a survey of influential popular cultural texts and academic literature on fatherhood and parenting is provided. Finally, the letter ends with an in depth examination of the international film Bear Cub/Cachorro, along with concluding auto-ethnographic reflections and thoughts on the author's readiness and desire to become a father.     

Reallocation of pronouns through contact: In‐the‐moment identity construction amongst Southern California Salvadorans

This study uses natural, everyday social interaction within Salvadoran families living in Southern California to examine the use of the 2nd‐person singular pronouns tú and vos (and their corresponding morphologies) in this contact variety of Spanish. An in‐depth, qualitative analysis reveals that the employment and significance of these forms of address do not conform entirely to Salvadoran norms, nor to those of the surrounding Mexican‐based Spanish koiné. Accommodation to the pronominal repertoire of the region's majority serves as a communicative resource driven by questions of U.S./Los Angeles identity and solidarity with speakers in‐the‐moment interlocutor(s), a process which has caused the original Salvadoran pronouns to also be reallocated and refunctionalized (Britain and Trudgill 1999 ) as resources for accomplishing Salvadoran identity. Members of this community make active use of their pronominal options in real‐time interaction as they navigate the fluid, multifaceted identities that they and their interlocutors now embody in the U.S. context.     

Why Get Involved? Exploring Gay and Bisexual Men's Experience of the Gay Community

Involvement in a gay community is a necessary step in the formation of a positive gay identity. However, how gay individuals think of a gay community and how they participate in these communities remains largely unexplored from a psychological perspective. The current study used an online survey containing several open-ended response items asking participants how they define the gay community, their first experience with it, and the advantages and disadvantages resulting from their involvement. The responses of a nationwide sample of 129 gay and bisexual men were coded in accordance with grounded theory. The results revealed substantial diversity in the perceptions and experiences of the gay community. Implications regarding these findings are discussed.     

Establishing Continuity of Self-Memory Boxes in Dementia Facilities for Older Adults: Their Use and Usefulness

Spatial and detailed design aspects of dementia care centers deserve attention because they contribute to the overall experience of vulnerable individuals who need more support from the designed environment. This study examined the use and usefulness of memory boxes (wall-mounted display cases) at the entrances to resident rooms in dementia care facilities. Environmental walk-throughs, photodocumentation, memory box inventory, and staff interviews in three residential care facilities confirmed that memory boxes were beneficial in creating identity, assisting in orientation and wayfinding, and encouraging reminiscence. An additional use that emerged from this study was their usefulness as a tool for staff.     

Deconstructing place identity? Impacts of a “Racino” on Elora,Ontario, Canada

The heritage-scape is a socially constructed place that provides locally crafted products, cuisine, and experiences to satisfy consumers’ desire for authenticity. In this paper we question if the introduction of a functionally non-conforming structure causes an existing heritage-based place identity to dismantle (i.e. deconstruct). In 2003, a pari-mutuel racetrack and gaming parlour (a “racino”) was introduced to the historic village of Elora, Ontario, Canada. Through content analysis we unravel (i.e. deconstruct) the social processes that lay behind this development. We find that this profit-oriented venue was widely contested by preservation-minded residents, who expressed concern that this structure would compromise Elora’s heritage image. Our survey finds, however, that the majority of visitors believe that the Grand River Raceway and Slots has not impacted Elora’s existing place-based identity. Key informants further reveal that image management, spatial placement and visual coherence are largely responsible for its maintenance. We conclude that a heritage-based place identity may be retained, and even enhanced, in the presence of a hegemonic discourse that is underlain by a long-standing preservationist ideology.     

Toward an understanding of the endogenous nature of group identification in games

It is commonly assumed that identification with a social group is constant throughout the play of a one-shot game in the absence of feedback. Our experiment provides evidence that challenges this assumption. Subjects play one of two versions of the prisoner's dilemma game. These versions are distinguished by the relative attractiveness of the uncooperative action. The version with a relatively attractive uncooperative action is referred to as the Easy Game and the other as the Difficult Game. Subjects who play the Difficult Game, exhibit a change in group identification which is related to their selected action. No such relationship exists within the Easy Game. Additionally, the change primarily occurs after the action is selected rather than upon inspection of the game.     

英语中性别身份在谈话风格上的反映

男女双方不同的谈话风格更是蕴藏着丰富而又深刻的两性意识,这也是男女两性对社会、文化、历史等方面的认识在语言中的反映。     

高校教师组织认同对工作卷入影响的实证研究——基于教师身份属性的调节效应分析

组织认同对工作卷入产生关键作用，不同的教师群体，组织认同对工作卷入的影响不尽相同。文章通过问卷调查，运用逐步回归分析，考察了高校教师组织认同对工作卷入的主效应和交互效应，运用分组回归分析了教师身份属性对组织认同——工作卷入关系的调节作用。