Delivery and funding are provincial matters in Canada

The following article is one of a series that deal with the provision of health care services around the world. Other countries in the series include Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, and the United States. Countries scheduled for coverage in the series include Austria, France, Singapore, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The countries are described using a grid of characteristics so that comparisons may be made more easily. All of the analyses, along with further comparative data, will be gathered into a freestanding book to be published later in the year. Dr. Mendoza serves as editor for the project.     

Unplanned sexual activity as a consequence of alcohol use: a prospective study of risk perceptions and alcohol use among college freshmen

OBJECTIVE: The authors' goal was to show how risk perceptions regarding unplanned sexual activity following alcohol use are prospectively related to subsequent alcohol consumption. PARTICIPANTS: Undergraduate students (N = 380) completed questionnaires at 2 time points during their freshman year. METHODS: In the middle of the academic year (T1), students estimated their risk of engaging in unplanned sex and reported their alcohol use during the previous term. Four months later (T2), they again reported alcohol use and indicated whether they had engaged in unplanned sex since T1. RESULTS: Students who consumed more alcohol at T1 rated their risk of unplanned sex more highly, suggesting relative accuracy. Those with higher risk perceptions consumed more alcohol at T2 (controlling for T1 use), suggesting that they maintained the high-risk behavior. Last, those who were unrealistically optimistic (ie, estimated low risk at T1 yet had unplanned sex by T2) reported greater alcohol use at T2. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight the role that risk perceptions regarding sexual activity may play in college students' alcohol use.     

What shapes plant and animal diversity on urban golf courses?

Recent concern over increasing loss of biodiversity has prompted considerable interest in the role of urban green spaces as reservoirs of local biodiversity. This study assessed the diversity of three indicator taxa - plants, ants and birds - on golf courses spanning a wide range of environmental variation in terms of climate, elevation, course age, size and connectivity to native woodland. Species richness and community composition was further compared between contrasting on-course habitat types that reflect different management intensities. We identified a set of taxon-specific environmental correlates indicating an intricate interplay of landscape- and local-scale variables that affect local species diversity. Our results show that floristic diversity is positively associated with the amount of rainfall, whereas ant and bird diversity are related to local-scale factors, particularly the number of trees and the size of water features on a site. The amount of on-course native habitat was a strong predictor of plant and ant diversity and was also associated with the number of unique species at the site level; this reinforces the value of remnant habitat patches as local biodiversity reservoirs that represent mini hot-spots in an otherwise species-poor urban landscape. Community composition for all three taxa differed markedly between non-playing and playing areas, with boundary and remnant habitats generally having more diverse, species-rich communities. Our results suggest that local floral and faunal biodiversity on urban golf courses can be enhanced by creating woody non-playing areas and, especially, by preserving, restoring or expanding remnant habitats.     

An Experiment in Helping Foster-Carers Manage Challenging Behaviour

A randomized controlled trial was implemented with groups offoster-carers to test the effectiveness of cognitive–behaviouralmethods in the management of difficult behaviour. Contrary toexpectations, no statistically significant differences werefound between the groups with regard to behaviour managementskills, the frequency and/or severity of behavioural problems,and placement stability. In contrast, foster-carers expressedsatisfaction with the overall training programme and increasedconfidence in dealing with difficult behaviour. Discussion ofthe results focuses on a number of competing explanations forsuch findings and concludes with recommendations for futurework.     

An application of catastrophe theory to management science process

Practicing management scientists often complain of the alleged irrational behavior on the part of the managers they are trying to serve, particularly when a manager suddenly and unexpectedly shifts behavior from one of support to one of resistance. The authors feel such behavior is only believed to be irrational because the management scientist is using the wrong mental model when projecting past behavioral patterns into the future. This paper attempts to solve this problem by using the newly developed catastrophe theory to develop a different model where sudden shifts in behavior are considered perfectly rational and explainable. The basic implication that is drawn from this new model is that successful implementation of management science depends on a sequence of interactions with the ultimate model user and that care in the structuring of these interactions can greatly enhance the probability of eventual user acceptance.     

Econometric analysis and managerial decision making

Econometric analysis is concerned with the quantitative relationships between economic variables and it can provide an important input into the decision making process of managers. Typically econometrics differs from other apsects of management science in that it considers problems primarily, though not exclusively, from a background of economics rather than of other disciplines and behaviour is usually dealt with at higher levels of data aggregation than the individual firm.This paper considers some applications of typical econometrics to the general area of managerial decision making, where primarily the techniques have a role to play in assisting the general process of data analysis. Initially discussion is pointed towards the use of the analysis for predictive purposes and the contrast with time series methods. Subsequently examples are presented where the objective is to obtain a better understanding of individual economic relationships that aim to be important inputs into the decision making process, for example cost and revenue analysis. Finally, an example is given of how these ideas contribute more generally to the activity of model building for the firm as a whole both for the purpose of forecasting and policy simulation.