Large scale communication networks—Design and analysis

The paper discusses the problem of design and analysis of large scale communication systems. An iterative process, composed of a minimum cost network design algorithm and a network performance algorithm, is presented for the solution of these problems. Computational considerations, using these algorithms, are discussed.     

An exploratory study of the influence of the IS function and organizational context on business process reengineering project initiatives

To help evaluate the risk of process reengineering failure and enhance the prospect of its success, three potential sources of influence on BPR initiatives and success are examined in this study. These include the innovative capacity of the organization, IS maturity and strategy-IS interface. It was found that while factors related to IT maturity and influence such as experience in mainframe and client/server computing may facilitate the decision to reengineer, they are not critical in the later stages of the initiative. On the other hand, factors having significant relationships beyond the initial decision include variables pertaining to innovative capacity of the organization and strategy-IS interface. These findings suggest that technical IT competence as a critical enabler is necessary but not sufficient for reengineering success. Based on study findings regarding the innovative capacity of the organization, guidelines for reengineering risk assessment are proposed. In addition, implications of the findings, limitations of the study and opportunities for further research are also discussed.     

Religiosity as a Moderator of Family Conflict and Depressive Symptoms among African American and White Young Grandmothers

ABSTRACT

This study examined the association between religiosity, conflict in the mother-daughter relationship, and depressive symptoms among 83 African American and white grandmothers. Interviews were conducted during the early stages of adaptation to grandparenthood due to the birth of a baby to a teenage daughter. The results of this study suggest that religiosity is associated with less depressive symptoms. In addition, religiosity moderates the relationship between conflict and depressive symptoms for African American grandmothers. Specifically, highly religious African American grandmothers experiencing low conflict with their daughters reported lower depressive symptoms than those who were less religious. These findings were not evident for white grandmothers. The implications of these findings for grandmothers in families with teenage mothers are discussed within the context of race, religiosity, family relationships, and psychological well-being.     

Intergenerational Relations: Theory, Research, and Policy

The dramatic increase in life expectancy and lowered fertility, especially in more advantaged countries, has resulted in people living longer and in more complex family structures. Other important changes affecting the family include greater geographical mobility, increased racial and ethnic diversity, new patterns of immigration and identity reformulation, as well as changing work and family roles. With reduced governmental resources available, it is especially important to understand the changing nature of multigenerational family structures, functioning, and roles in individual well-being in order to maximize the effectiveness of informal and formal supports available to those in need. This special issue addresses basic factors related to multigeneration support systems that will be needed to anticipate, understand, and design support programs to cope with the challenges facing individuals in all generation positions, families, and communities in the United States and around the world.     

Dementia Caregiving in the Context of Late‐Life Remarriage: Support Networks,Relationship Quality,and Well‐being

Caregiving research has not accounted for increasingly diverse and complex marital and family histories of older Americans. The authors examined social relations and care‐specific positive and negative support networks among late‐life remarried wife dementia caregivers (N = 61) to determine associations among network structure, relationship quality with and support received from network members, and global assessments of family and stepfamily disagreement on caregiver well‐being. Own family and friends predominated in the social relations and positive networks. Although over half (54%) of respondents included a stepfamily member in their positive networks, stepchildren comprised the largest group (35%) in the negative networks. Larger negative networks and actively negative interactions were related to greater caregiver burden, and more global disagreement with stepfamily was associated with greater depression and burden. The findings illustrate the complex nature of support and the value of targeted examinations of caregiving support dynamics among late‐life remarried older adults and stepfamilies facing health demands.     

The Effect of Question Framing and Response Options on the Relationship between Racial Attitudes and Beliefs about Genes as Causes of Behavior

Prior research suggests that the attribution of individual and group differences to genetic causes is correlated with prejudiced attitudes toward minority groups. Our study suggests that these findings may be due to the wording of the questions and to the choice of response options. Using a series of vignettes in an online survey, we find a relationship between racial attitudes and genetic attributions when respondents are asked to make causal attributions of differences between racial groups. However, when they are asked to make causal attributions for characteristics shown by individuals, no such relationship is found. The response scale used appears to make less, if any, difference in the results. These findings indicate that the way questions about genetic causation of behavior are framed makes a significant contribution to the answers obtained because it significantly changes the meaning of the questions. We argue that such framing needs to be carefully attended to, not only in posing research questions but also in discourse about genetics more generally.     

Differences Between Men and Women in Social Relations, Resource Deficits, and Depressive Symptomatology During Later Life in Four Nations

This article examines gender differences in social relations and resource deficits in France ( N = 553), Germany ( N = 516), Japan ( N = 491), and the United States ( N = 514). These data, from regionally representative samples, indicate few gender differences in quantity or quality of social relations, but that women are more likely than men to experience widowhood, illness, and financial strain. In all countries, more deficits and more negative social interactions are associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms. Interestingly, among women in France and Japan but not among men in any country, quality of social relations offsets the negative consequences of resource deficits. Findings suggest that quality of social relations may have important implications for helping people, particularly women, cope with resource deficits common in late life.     

Attitudes toward genetic testing and fetal diagnosis, 1990-1996

With few exceptions, existing research on attitudes toward genetic testing and prenatal diagnosis is based on small studies using nonprobability samples of specialized populations. In this paper, we use a nationally representative sample from the General Social Survey to report on attitudinal change between 1990 and 1996, and to explore socio-demographic predictors of public views on genetic technology and reproduction in the context of changing mass media coverage between 1988 and 1995. During that period, media coverage of prenatal testing became both less frequent and less favorable, despite increasing use of this technology, whereas media reports about other types of genetic testing increased in frequency and became more favorable. Between 1990 and 1996, attitudes toward genetic testing remained stable, although the attitudes of specific demographic subgroups may be changing in different directions. Attitudes toward abortion in case of genetic defect became more negative over the period studied. We explore some of the implications of these findings.     

Extending the Intergenerational Stake Hypothesis: Evidence of an Intra‐individual Stake and Implications for Well‐being

The intergenerational stake hypothesis suggests that parents are more invested in their children and experience better quality parent–child ties than do their children. In this study the authors examined variation in reports of relationship quality regarding parents and children intra‐individually (do people report better quality ties with their children than with their parents?) and whether within‐person variations have implications for well‐being. Participants age 40–60 (N = 633) reported on their relationship quality (importance, positive quality, and negative quality) with their parents and adult children. Individuals reported their relationships with children were more important and more negative than relationships with parents. Individuals with feelings that were in the opposite direction of the intergenerational stake hypothesis (i.e., greater investment in parents than children) reported poorer well‐being. The findings provide support for the intergenerational stake hypothesis with regard to within‐person variations in investment and show that negative relationship quality may coincide with greater feelings of investment.