Normalizing Denominational Statistics with Demographic Data: The Case of the United Church of Canada

In the Canadian context, one type of data has been underutilized in the study of contemporary religious trends: church collected statistics. The present article explores the advantages and limitations of such data by analyzing the evolution of key church indicators of the United Church of Canada over the past four decades. Figures regarding church membership, child baptisms, and funerals are examined and compared with demographic data from four Canadian regions. Results show that virtually all United Church statistics are in decline with regard to larger society since the 1970s. However, there are regional variations, most notably in the Atlantic provinces, which show later and lesser rates of decline.     

Filling holes in the safety net? Material hardship and subjective well-being among disability benefit applicants and recipients after the 1996 welfare reform

Some of the rapid recent growth in disability income receipt in the United States is attributable to single mothers post-welfare reform. Yet, we know little about how disability benefit receipt affects the economic well-being of single mother families, or how unsuccessful disability applicants fare. We compare disability recipients to unsuccessful applicants and those who never applied among current and former welfare recipients, and examine how application and receipt affect material hardships and subjective measures of well-being. We then examine whether alternative ways of making ends meet mediate differences in well-being. After controlling for alternative sources of support, no significant differences in overall actual hardships or difficulty living on current income remained between the three groups. However, even after controlling for these strategies, unsuccessful applicants were significantly more likely to report that they expected hardships in the next two months. Our results suggest a pervasive level of economic insecurity among unsuccessful applicants.     

Les acteurs sociaux et la modélisation phénoménologique1

The phenomenological approach has a quasi‐monopoly in the individual and subjectivity analyses in social sciences. However, the conceptual apparatus associated with this approach is very restrictive. The human being has to be understood as rational, conscious, intentional, interested, and autonomous. Because of this, a large dimension of human activity cannot be taken into consideration: all that does not fit into the analytical categories (nonrational, nonconscious, etc.). Moreover, this approach cannot really move toward a relational analysis unless it is between individuals predefined by its conceptual apparatus. This lack of complexity makes difficult the establishment of links between phenomenology and systemic analysis in which relation (and its derivatives such as recursiveness, dialectic, correlation) plays an essential role. This article intends to propose a way for systemic analysis to apprehend the individual with respect to his complexity.     

Ergonomic adequacy of the baby nursery of child development center located in UFSC - Florianópolis

A study in the educators' work station at baby nursery of NDI/UFSC, located in Florianópolis, was conducted using the Work Ergonomic Analysis methodological tool. The demand considered was the educators' physical exhaustion caused by the weight carried when taking care of the babies, the postures assumed during the labor activity and the spatial arrangement of the baby nursery. Thinking ergonomically, the spatial arrangement is directly associated to three factors: the formal aspect of the environment, the esthetic aspect including colors and finish quality and the ease of understanding involved in the baby nursery labor. By the ergonomic adequacy it is possible to assert that if were established better conditions of posture and comfort for the educators, as well as satisfactory technical and operational information to carry out the activities, greater safety and welfare would be provided to the babies, the main focus of the work.     

Risk preferences and the timing of marriage and childbearing

The existing literature on marriage and fertility decisions pays little attention to the roles played by risk preferences and uncertainty. However given uncertainty regarding the availability of suitable marriage partners, the ability to contracept, and the ability to conceive, women's risk preferences might be expected to play an important role in marriage and fertility timing decisions. By using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), I find that measured risk preferences have a significant effect on the timing of both marriage and fertility. Highly risk-tolerant women are more likely to delay marriage, consistent with either a search model of marriage or a risk-pooling explanation. In addition, risk preferences affect fertility timing in a way that differs by marital status and education, and that varies over the life cycle. Greater tolerance for risk leads to earlier births at young ages, consistent with these women being less likely to contracept effectively. In addition, as the subgroup of college-educated, unmarried women nears the end of their fertile periods, highly risk-tolerant women are likely to delay childbearing relative to their more risk-averse counterparts and are therefore less likely to become mothers. These findings may have broader implications for both individual and societal well-being.     

Orphanhood and Completion of Compulsory School Education Among Young People in South Africa: Findings From a National Representative Survey

We examined the association of orphanhood and completion of compulsory school education among young people in South Africa. In South Africa, school attendance is compulsory through grade 9, which should be completed before age 16. However, family and social factors such as orphanhood and poverty can hinder educational attainment. Participants were 10,452 16–24‐year‐olds who completed a South African national representative household survey. Overall, 23% had not completed compulsory school levels. In univariate analyses, school completion was lower among those who had experienced orphanhood during school‐age years, males, and those who reported household poverty. In multivariate analyses controlling for household poverty, females who had experienced maternal or paternal orphanhood were less likely to have completed school; orphanhood was not independently associated with males' school completion. Findings highlight the need for evidence‐informed policies to address the education and social welfare needs of orphans and vulnerable youth, particularly females, in South Africa.     

Implementing the ecological approach in tobacco control programs: results of a case study

The ‘new public health’ has stimulated calls to adopt an ecological approach for action aimed at improving population health. However, the implementation of ecological programs has often remained a challenge. The objective of this study was to identify factors facilitating the implementation of ecological tobacco control programming in two Public Health Departments in Québec (Canada) using Scheirer's model of program implementation as a conceptual framework and an exemplary case study design. Analysis revealed two distinct configurations of environmental, organizational and professional characteristics that were related to equally successful implementations of the framework. Key roles for factors such as provincial ministerial guidelines and financial resources, human resources, and relationships and alliances with other organizations, were highlighted. These results replicate findings from quantitative surveys and allow better understanding of the conditions required for planning ecological programming.     

Determination of a Tolerable Daily Intake of DDT for Consumers of DDT Contaminated Fish from the Lower Yakima River, Washington*

DDT, DDE, and DDD have been detected at elevated concentrations in sediments and fish of the Yakima River, its tributaries and drainages. An assessment was conducted to evaluate the public health significance of eating fish from the river. This was accomplished by establishing a daily intake level of DDT for the population of greatest concern, and comparing this level to a tolerable daily intake. The most sensitive and highly exposed group was determined to be breastfeeding infants. Infant daily intakes of DDT, based on estimated mother's DDT-breast milk levels, were compared to a recommended tolerable daily intake. Results indicate that mothers who frequently consume Yakima River bottom-feeding fish could have breast milk DDT concentrations sufficiently high to expose their infants to levels above the tolerable daily intake.     

What are the Risk Factors for Antisocial Behavior Among Low‐income Youth in CapeTown?

Research in high‐income countries has identified an array of risk factors for youth antisocial behavior. However, in low‐ and middle‐income countries, despite higher prevalence of offending and antisocial behavior, there is a paucity of prospective, longitudinal evidence examining predictors. South Africa is a middle‐income country with high rates of violence and crime, and a unique social context, characterized by striking income and gender inequality, and increasing number of children orphaned by AIDS. We tested predictors of antisocial behavior at community, family, and individual levels over four years. One thousand and twenty five adolescents from poor, urban South African settlements were assessed in 2005 (50 percent female; M = 13.4 years) and followed up in 2009. The sample analyzed consisted of the 723 youth (71 percent) assessed at both time points. We employed sociodemographic questionnaires and standardized scales. Validity of our antisocial behavior measure was supported by cross‐sectional associations with well‐evidenced concomitants of youth antisocial behavior, including drug taking and truancy. Regression analysis indicated that male gender and experience of community violence, but not poverty or abuse, predicted antisocial behavior. Despite many South African youth experiencing abuse and poverty at the family level, our findings suggest that high levels of violence in communities may be a more important factor contributing to the development of antisocial behavior, particularly among males.