The Development of Anticipatory Smiling

When do infants begin to communicate positive affect about physical objects to their social partners? We examined developmental changes in the timing of smiles during episodes of initiating joint attention that involved an infant gazing between an object and a social partner. Twenty‐six typically developing infants were observed at 8, 10, and 12 months during the Early Social‐Communication Scales, a semistructured assessment for eliciting initiating joint attention and related behaviors. The proportion of infant smiling during initiating joint attention episodes did not change with age, but there was a change in the timing of the smiles. The likelihood of infants smiling at an object and then gazing at the experimenter while smiling (anticipatory smiling) increased between 8 and 10 months and remained stable between 10 and 12 months. The increase in the number of infants who smiled at an object and then made eye contact suggests a developing ability to communicate positive affect about an object.     

Social issues in contemporary native America: reflections from Turtle Island

The purpose of this study was to explore how the death and dying-related beliefs of caregivers influence their actual caregiving behavior, and to explore factors that may prevent them from translating these beliefs into functional behavior. Using a biopsychosocial-spiritual- environmental framework, semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with three primary caregivers of patients diagnosed with terminal illness. Caregiving behavior was found to be associated with the biopsychosocial-spiritual-environmental beliefs of the caregivers. These beliefs could have been influenced by the caregivers' past experiences with death and dying. Financial difficulty might also be a main obstacle hindering caregivers from providing the kind of care they believed was best for the patients.     

The covariance structure of sequential forecasts obtained by regression analysis

A method is presented for evaluating the covariance matrix of a set of sequential forecasts obtained by regression analysis. The matrix can be used to derive the relation between the variance of the forecasts on the one hand, and the lead times between the forecasting time and the time at which the forecasted variables are realized, on the other hand. The determination of this relation is important whenever the optimal frequency of forecasting must be determined.     

Peer Support Groups for Child Welfare–Involved Families

Studies on risk factors and circumstances related to child maltreatment have continuously emphasized the important role of social support. As a result, peer support groups have been gaining attention and recognition in recent years in the field of child maltreatment prevention. However, little is known about the benefits that child welfare–involved parents receive in peer support groups, as well as the distinctive service elements that make these groups successful. By examining child welfare–involved parents’ experiences participating in peer support groups, this study provided a better understanding of the perceived beneficial aspects of peer support groups, specific types of supports offered to and by peers, and unique characteristics of these groups.     

Optimal aggregation of input-output coefficients - a decision theoretic approach

We oresent a criterion fnr the optimal aggreation of industries in input-output analysis, when the aggregation is wade prior to data collection. This criterion is based on a model assuming -hat the input-output coefficients are used in. some decision process, and that they are unknown (or random) prior to data collection. We show that our criterion, based on decision theoretic considerations, differs considerably from traditional criteria for good aggregation. Our model is also applide as an example, to the Netherlands economy.     

Resilience and the creative economy in Kingston,Jamaica

ABSTRACT

Creative industries are understood as key to Jamaica’s resilience. Development initiatives encourage Jamaicans to recall historical resilience in the face of slavery and colonization in order to construct contemporary neoliberal-led development goals focused on creative practice. This paper asks what tensions, contradictions and erasures are made visible when grounding resilience in context specific sites? What are the implications of framing historical forms of resilience grounded in slavery and colonialism as commensurable with those traits that define the resilient subject of neoliberal development? And, what meanings of resilience are evident when local communities are confronted with a state apparatus that contributes to insecurity and attempts to discipline the celebratory and creative livelihoods made available through creative practice?     

More than Visiting Hours: Maintaining Ties Between Incarcerated Mothers and Their Children

The majority of people in America’s prisons are the parents of minor children. Incarcerated mothers, in particular, were likely to have been a part of their children’s lives before their imprisonment, and most will soon be returning to the community and to their children. Research has shown that it is in the best interests of the mothers and the children to maintain a relationship across the prison bars. In this article, we use the example of New York State to show how institutional policies and structures can impede or encourage efforts to maintain ties between women and their children and why demonstrating support for family ties must extend well beyond having visiting hours.