Girls in Foster Care: Risk and Promotive Factors for School Adjustment Across the Transition to Middle School

Girls in foster care may face difficulties across the transition to middle school. Latent growth curve modeling was employed to examine trajectories and predictors of academic competence and aggression from and against peers for 75 girls in foster care from the end of elementary school to the 2nd year of middle school. Across the transition to middle school, academic competence increased. Poor self-regulation was associated with decreased academic competence, and higher caregiver support was associated with increased academic competence. Frequency of aggression from peers decreased across the transition, with perceived school competence predicting smaller decreases. Aggression against peers dropped initially and then increased to pretransition levels by the end of the 2nd year of middle school. Lower caregiver support was associated with higher rates of aggression against peers at the end of the 1st year of middle school. The results are discussed in terms of implications for interventions for girls in foster care.     

Social media in the 2011 Egyptian uprising

This paper uses Gallup poll data to assess two narratives that have crystallized around the 2011 Egyptian uprising: (1) New electronic communications media constituted an important and independent cause of the protests in so far as they enhanced the capacity of demonstrators to extend protest networks, express outrage, organize events, and warn comrades of real‐time threats. (2) Net of other factors, new electronic communications media played a relatively minor role in the uprising because they are low‐cost, low‐risk means of involvement that attract many sympathetic onlookers who are not prepared to engage in high‐risk activism. Examining the independent effects of a host of factors associated with high‐risk movement activism, the paper concludes that using some new electronic communications media was associated with being a demonstrator. However, grievances, structural availability, and network connections were more important than was the use of new electronic communications media in distinguishing demonstrators from sympathetic onlookers. Thus, although both narratives have some validity, they must both be qualified.     

Women's age at first marriage and postmarital agency in Egypt

Early – or child – marriage (before age 18) may diminish women's ability to exercise agency, or their capacity to act upon their goals. Using a propensity score adjustment approach, we analyzed data from 2394 married women ages 35–49 years who participated in the 2006 Egypt Labor Market Panel Survey (ELMPS). We examined whether women's first marriage at age 18 or older was associated with their post-marital agency, measured in terms of their influence in family decisions, freedom of movement in public spaces, and unfavorable views about intimate partner violence against wives. In bivariate analyses, women's age at first marriage was positively associated with their decision-making and more equitable gender attitudes. However, once we controlled for selection into age-at-first-marriage groups, there were no significant differences between the two age-at-first-marriage groups in any dimension of women's agency. We examined the sensitivity of the non-significant age-at-first-marriage effects to possible violations of the strong ignorability assumption and the results did not alter our conclusions. The assumption that women's age at first marriage is a proxy for their post-marital agency, as defined here, warrants further study.     

歌乐山黄桷洞复齿鼯鼠化石研究

重庆歌乐山地区位于中国南方喀斯特地形的北缘,多溶洞和化石的发现。本文通过对歌乐山黄桷洞调查发现的复齿鼯鼠（TrogopterusHeude）标本进行鉴定与研究,并结合我国其他地点发现的复齿鼯鼠化石,探讨复齿鼯鼠在中国的起源与演化。认识到复齿鼯鼠在早、中更新世主要分布在我国西南地区,晚更新世时开始扩散到我国北方。该动物在中更新世时期时已存在有区域间的体型差异,并且在性别差异间也存在体型大小的明显区别。黄桷洞复齿鼯鼠化石还反映出,重庆及周缘地区在中更新世时期,存在有茂密的森林及丰富的野生果实等植被环境。     

美国中东"民主化"改造战略前景探析

出于长期控制中东的目的出发,美国在伊拉克战争后抛出了民主改造中东的方案和措施.但是,美国自身不同时期战略任务的矛盾、美国中东民主化改造方案与中东民主化客观进程的矛盾以及中东有别于其他地区的民众文化心理结构,不仅使得这一战略的前景暗淡渺茫,而且还将使未来中东地区的局势面临更大的动荡与冲突.     

中部地区建立经济协调发展机制探讨

中部地区面临着中部崛起战略带来的难得发展机遇,但中部地区经济结构不合理,分工协作水平比较低,统一的区域大市场尚未建立起来,中部各省的经济发展尚未形成合力,因此,实施中央制定的中部崛起战略的第一步,应该是针对阻碍中部地区共同发展的问题制定相关对策,尽快建立促进中部地区经济协调发展的机制,以提供强有力体制保障.     

新疆阿克苏地区维吾尔族双语教育态度的实证研究-以阿克苏地区第一中学为例

文章通过对阿克苏地区一中维吾尔族师生员工语言态度的考察,发现他们既保持着对母语及本民族文化的高度认同和忠诚,也对汉语及汉文化持积极开放的心态。文化认知与语言态度之间有着很强的互动关系,在强化文化认知和语言态度中应发挥学校教育的主要作用,但家庭教育、广播电视、社区等渠道也有待引起重视。     

论美国的社会结构对美国工人阶级的影响

美国社会结构无论是横向上的阶级构成还是纵向上的等级地位都具有开放性、流动性的特征。二战后 ,其社会结构又发生了深刻的变化 ,变成以中产阶级为主体的菱形结构。美国社会阶级结构的特征及其变化 ,对美国工人阶级具有极大影响 ,使其成为阶级意识淡漠、政治上保守右倾的一个群体 ,并影响着美国政府的内政外交     

论“大规模杀伤性武器”与中东地区安全

本文通过对大规模杀伤性武器的概念及其政治意涵的考察,关注中东地区的军备竞赛,分析了利比亚、以色列、埃及、叙利亚和伊朗等国的核计划和核政策,以及外部大国对中东地区核扩散的基本立场,指出在当前局势下中东地区无核区的提出和建设,不能从本质上改变该地区日趋恶化的安全形势。公正解决历史遗留问题和地区冲突,真正实现阿以和解,在有关国家间确立相互信任,才是解决问题的关键所在。     

关于中国——中东能源关系发展的若干思考

在过去的几年里,随着中国对中东石油依赖的日益增长,中国—中东双边政治、经济、外交和战略关系进入快速发展时期,中东石油在中国能源安全战略中的地位和作用日益凸显,中国的中东政策面临多重挑战,中国需要重新评估和更加突出中东石油在中国对外战略中的战略定位,重视双边能源合作机制建设的重要性,以确保中东石油对中国的长期和稳定供应。此外,中国在中东的能源利益已经引起美国等西方国家的高度关注和忧虑,引起了中国与美国的能源地缘政治冲突,为此中国的中东政策还必须兼顾与美国等西方国家的利益关系平衡,寻求中美在中东石油安全和广泛问题上的共同利益。