“90后”大学生思政课教学新思路探析——以宁夏师范学院为例

＂90后＂大学生群体具有坚定的政治信仰、强烈的爱国热情、明确的价值取向;生活态度总体上积极健康,人生目标明确。但是由于各方面原因,这一群体对未来充满了不确定感,紧张、压抑、焦虑的情绪比较严重,如果不能妥善引导和疏通,情况堪忧。高校思政理论课在解决这些问题上发挥着重要作用。因此,思政课应从构建和谐师生关系和创新教学方法等方面,提高其教学实效性。     

“90后”大学生思政课教学新思路探析——以宁夏师范学院为例

＂90后＂大学生群体具有坚定的政治信仰、强烈的爱国热情、明确的价值取向;生活态度总体上积极健康,人生目标明确。但是由于各方面原因,这一群体对未来充满了不确定感,紧张、压抑、焦虑的情绪比较严重,如果不能妥善引导和疏通,情况堪忧。高校思政理论课在解决这些问题上发挥着重要作用。因此,思政课应从构建和谐师生关系和创新教学方法等方面,提高其教学实效性。     

Baan Mankong participatory slum upgrading in Bangkok, Thailand: Community perceptions of outcomes and security of tenure

A key problem facing slum dwellers is tenure insecurity - as well as the threat of eviction, residents are excluded from many services extended to legal residents, from water connections to public schooling. Thailand’s Baan Mankong slum upgrading program adopts a people-driven approach to resolving problems of insecure housing and poor living conditions, putting slum residents at the core of the process. This paper explores, through interviews, how residents in four Bangkok communities perceive the outcomes of upgrading, particularly their new homes and tenure situation. Participant satisfaction is key to ensuring successful scaling up of Baan Mankong, as this is done through community-driven exchange and learning-by-doing. The results show that while the respondents appreciate their new houses and improved living environment, they are wary of the resulting debt burden. While tenure is regarded as secure in the short term, the long-term situation is not so clear. Homes cannot be sold on outside the community, and therefore Baan Mankong is valued more for improving shelter and strengthening community cohesiveness, rather than as a profit-driven financial investment.     

完善重庆公租房社区管理的思考

公租房社区是在新的住房保障形势下随公租房的大量建设而涌现的新型城市社区,这种社区不能完全套用现有一般城市社区管理方法。本文以大规模建设公租房的典型城市——重庆为样本,在分析其公租房社区管理现状、问题的基础上,通过借鉴国内外经验及分析公租房社区不同于一般城市社区的特点,提出完善公租房社区管理的思考。     

Housing of Seniors in the Czech Republic: Challenges for Social Services

The article focuses on the housing market, the behavior and motivations of senior households to move or to stay in place. Knowing if and why seniors decide to move at retirement is a critical factor for the establishment of social service policies in terms of their structure, location, and provision.

This study uses secondary data based on information about Czech households collected by the Czech Statistical Office (CSO). The data are annually collected via sample surveys of the income and living conditions of households (EU-SILC). The sample covers more than eight thousands of households. Analyzed data cover the period 2007–2012 when the abolishment of rent regulation in the Czech Republic took place. It is hypothesized that an impact like this might increase the willingness to move and reveal the factors which underlie the decisions of particular households.

The results indicated that most Czech households that decided to move during the study period were driven by the increased financial burden of housing. Other factors, including the availability of social services and public utilities within the current location, played only minor roles. It seems that Czech senior households act in a very pragmatic and rational manner when deciding whether to stay in place or move, with the majority of households preferring not to move. Social policies should, therefore, concentrate on providing services for the current locations rather than on the construction of new social housing.     

To stay or to go? Postretirement housing choices of single Baby Boomer women

Single women of the Baby Boomer generation are often financially disadvantaged in the retirement planning process due to their lower accumulated savings compared to male retirees. This disadvantage impacts significant consumption decisions such as postretirement housing choices. This study uses the theory of planned behavior to examine how certainty in intentions influences preparing and planning for postretirement housing. A typology of single Baby Boomer women is developed based on their financial, demographic, and psychological circumstances. Each segment likely requires different informational strategies and financial services to foster proactive planning for retirement. Significant implications exist for social policy and the financial services sector.     

The role of eviction in veterans’ homelessness recidivism*

Eviction is one of the leading causes of homelessness in the U.S.A. Though permanent supportive housing (PSH) helps participants maintain housing, some still leave due to eviction. This study aimed to determine whether eviction is an important predictor of recidivism and time to return to homelessness for participants exiting PSH. The characteristics and post-exit service use of 2802 Veteran PSH participants were analyzed based on exit reason. A Cox proportional hazards survival analysis modeled risk factors for returning to homelessness within 360 days of exit. Compared with other exiters, evicted Veterans remained in the program for less time, were less likely to be receiving service-connected compensation, and used more services – particularly mental health and substance use services – following their exit, and those who returned to homelessness did so more quickly. Identifying participants who might benefit from more intensive services, project-based housing, or income supports may prevent evictions and subsequent returns to homelessness.     

Planning for community: understanding diversity in resident experiences and expectations of social connections in a new urban fringe housing estate,Australia

Master-planned estates are a major source of new housing for growing cities. Much research finds these residential developments lack genuine social connections between residents despite marketing of ‘close-knit’ community. Selandra Rise is a new residential development on the urban fringe of Melbourne, Australia. The estate was planned with a focus on community infrastructure and resident well-being. The resident population was younger and more culturally diverse than most other master-planned community case studies. A longitudinal research design was used to explore resident understanding, experiences and needs relating to place-based community. Interviews were conducted with residents before moving to the estate and 9–18 months after moving. Some residents considered community as an amenity provided by the master-planned environment that did not require their social participation. Others aspired to make social connections with neighbours but had varying levels of success. Past experiences which contributed to aspirations for connecting with local community, and the ways that these aims were realised or hindered, are discussed. Understanding diverse resident expectations of community and insights from their lived experience are used to make recommendations for planning new neighbourhoods and designing community development programmes.     

A varying coefficient approach to estimating hedonic housing price functions and their quantiles

The varying coefficient (VC) model introduced by Hastie and Tibshirani [26 T. Hastie and R. Tibshirani, Varying-coefficient models, J. R. Statist. Soc. (Ser. B) 55 (1993), pp. 757–796.[Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]] is arguably one of the most remarkable recent developments in nonparametric regression theory. The VC model is an extension of the ordinary regression model where the coefficients are allowed to vary as smooth functions of an effect modifier possibly different from the regressors. The VC model reduces the modelling bias with its unique structure while also avoiding the ‘curse of dimensionality’ problem. While the VC model has been applied widely in a variety of disciplines, its application in economics has been minimal. The central goal of this paper is to apply VC modelling to the estimation of a hedonic house price function using data from Hong Kong, one of the world's most buoyant real estate markets. We demonstrate the advantages of the VC approach over traditional parametric and semi-parametric regressions in the face of a large number of regressors. We further combine VC modelling with quantile regression to examine the heterogeneity of the marginal effects of attributes across the distribution of housing prices.