A critical note on Wiendieck's views on attitude measurement

Transkei's Half Loaf: Race Separatism in South Africa by Newell M. Stultz. Cape Town, David Philip, 1980. xv + 183 pp. Bibliography, Index. R9.90 + gst pb.     

Ethnic power mobilised

Mobilizing Ethnic Power: Can South Africa Change? by Heribert Adam and Herman Giliomee New Haven and London, Yale University Press, 1979. Distributed by David Philip: Cape Town.     

Factors Affecting Juvenile Court Decisions in Israel: A Multivariate Approach*

This paper investigates the factors influencing the disposition of cases in juvenile courts. The factors considered are the prior record of the offender, the nature of the offense, the recommendation of the probation officer, and the age of the offender. These four factors are essential components of the juvenile justice system and as such are perceived to be crucial for the understanding of the court's decision. A multivariate analysis of the data is undertaken using the method of log-linear analysis for hierarchical models. In contrast to other studies that have utilized the same method but with fewer variables, the model arrived at in the paper seems to be more accurate and suggests that while the offense and the prior criminal record are quite important factors, their influence on the disposition of cases is greatly bound by the age of the offender and the recommendation of the probation officer.     

在竞争与合作中创建世界城市——以苏格兰中部地区城市为例

本文分析和比较了增长集群不同种类的发展,从集群角度看,重点放在本地的互动和创新方面,并且证明是有益的,因为越来越多的经济活动跨越了传统经济部门和创新的范围.为了能够分析和比较不同集群的不同类别,本文构建了一个提升城市竞争力的分析框架,从空间经济条件、集群的特定条件及集群的组织能力三大要素出发,在城市范围内对集群进行深入分析,同时详细阐述了三大要素在集群发展中的作用.     

The Development of an Instrument to Measure Quality of Life in Mexico City

This study seeks to develop a valid and reliableinstrument to measure Quality of Life among theinhabitants of Mexico City. Quality of Life isconsidered to be a subjective, multi-dimensionalconstruct.In this study, information was gathered regarding howinhabitants of Mexico City defined Quality of Life. Based on an analysis of the content of theirresponses, Quality of Life items were selected for thesample. Then a Likert instrument was applied,containing the items obtained from the openinterview.Factorial analyses and tests for internal consistencywere applied in order to ascertain the factorialcomponents of Quality of Life. This allowedstatistically significant differences to be observedbetween Quality of Life factors and certainsocio-economic variables.     

Age cohort differences in the developmental milestones of gay men

As the social context in which gay men live changes due to greater visibility, greater acceptance, and easier access to gay subculture, gay males may self-identify and take part in gay social activities at earlier ages than in the past. This study examined whether developmental milestones associated with sexual orientation for gay men have changed over the past several decades. A large and diverse sample of 2,402 gay men who responded to a 1994 survey published in a national magazine provided retrospective information on the age at which they reached individual psychological, social, and sexual behavior developmental milestones. We found evidence that individual psychological and sexual behavior milestones (e.g., awareness of attraction to males, having an orgasm with other male) are slowly moving toward earlier chronological ages (by 1 year of age every 8-25 years, p < 0.05), whereas social milestones (e.g., coming out) are moving more rapidly in a similar direction (by 1 year of age every 2-5 years, p < 0.001). The authors perform an innovative sensitivity test to demonstrate the persistence of the finding after correcting for the bias attributable to underrepresentation of those who have not yet self-identified as gay in such samples.     

The interaction of pillars in multi‐pillar pension systems: A comparison of Canada,Denmark, Netherlands and Sweden

Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden have advanced multi‐pillar pension systems. Using micro‐simulations, this article presents a close examination of the interaction of pillars in these countries. The relative importance and the role of the different pension pillars vary from country to country, and according to age, income, gender and socio‐economic dimensions as well as between generations. A further area of investigation is the mitigation capacity of the four pension systems. On the one hand, adverse labour careers lead to lower life‐time earnings and lower private pension accruals. On the other hand, these effects are mitigated through the design of pillars and their interaction. Mitigation is important to income security and stability in retirement and to post‐retirement income distribution. However, mitigation mechanisms come at the cost of incentives. Moreover, in many countries, the generosity of public benefits is set to decrease – increasing the importance of private pensions. This will shift risk and uncertainty from employers and pension institutions to individuals. Thus, risks and uncertainties related to private pensions will become more important, raising questions about the division of responsibilities between public and private pensions, and about the potential of mitigating such risk through pillar interaction. These concerns are further reinforced by labour market changes. Although a pension system free of distortions is inconceivable, this article seeks to contribute to addressing how mitigation should be designed, and how mitigation and risk sharing should be balanced against incentives, challenges which are as much political as technical.     

Determinants of Subjective Well-Being in Adolescent Children of Recipients of the Oportunidades Human Development Program in Mexico

This study was conducted with adolescent children from a probabilistic sample with national representation from both rural and urban areas, in Mexican households eligible for services from the federal social program known as Oportunidades and characterized by conditions of extreme poverty. Participating were 1,093 youth of whom 61 % live in urban localities and 56 % are males, with an average age of 14.92 (±1.29) years and an average number of completed years of schooling of 8.33 (±1.71). The results indicated that the subjective well-being of these adolescents was dependent on a positive self-concept (self-esteem and strength), positive interactions with their parents (respectful, understanding and close) and with their friends (supportive), with importance placed on their studies, and the absence of emotional upset (stress or depression). Among the population studied, males and those younger, as well as those who only study, reported greater subjective well-being.     

Poverty,Psychological Resources And Subjective Well-Being

This study was carried out for the purpose of explaining the mediating effects of a number of psychological variables (strategies for coping with stress, competitiveness, mastery, locus of control, depression and self-esteem) in the relationship between poverty and the well-being of individuals. To carry out the study, a non-probabilistic, stratified sample was used, with the participation of 918 inhabitants of Mexico City from three socioeconomic levels: extremely poor, moderately poor and not poor. A structural model was used for the analysis and treatment of data, and on the basis of that model, it was proven that there are different trajectories (mediations) through which poverty influences subjective well-being. The findings are discussed in light of the literature.