Small Area Indices of Multiple Deprivation in South Africa

This paper presents the Provincial Indices of Multiple Deprivation that were constructed by the authors at ward level using 2001 Census data for each of South Africa’s nine provinces. The principles adopted in conceptualising the indices are described and multiple deprivation is defined as a weighted combination of discrete dimensions of deprivation. The methodological approach used is outlined and key findings are presented for one province—the Eastern Cape. The paper summarises the ways in which the research is being developed further and the potential uses of these tools for policy and research.     

On Being a Strength Coach: Child Welfare and the Strengths Model

Strength coaches help athletes assess their strengths and build on them. Likewise, social workers dealing with children and families in the child welfare system, rather than looking for pathology, can learn to help clients discover and develop their strengths, even while dealing with a child welfare bureaucracy. This article gives examples of the strength coach approach.     

The Spread of Disability Living Allowance

This article examines the spread of Disability Living Allowance across a group of low income households in an industrial town in North West England from the introduction of the new benefits in 1992 until the Spring of 1996. We focus on the changes over time of the incidence of Disability Living Allowance in the low income population and look at the relative spread of different elements of the benefit. We speculate on whether the new benefits have provided the most effective way of fulfilling the aims of the White Paper, The Way Ahead , and discuss the implications for social and medical models of disability.     

Brain tumor-associated dementia

In this case study, we describe a patient with a dementia due to a brain tumor. This unusual cause of dementia illustrates the importance of a thorough evaluation of anyone who experiences relatively sudden changes in cognitive functions. The disorder had features common to other dementias but also had some unusual attributes that made a diagnosis of neurodegenerative disease less likely. Common features included intellectual decline involving difficulties in word-finding, the occurrence of paraphasia, poor concentration, disorientation in familiar environments, problems performing routine complex tasks, and elements of social withdrawal. Unlike more common degenerative dementias, however, there was no marked memory involvement. In addition, the onset of illness was rapid and associated with headaches, incontinence, and some gait and motor dysfunction.     

Exploring the role of supervisor trust in the associations between multiple sources of relationship conflict and organizational citizenship behavior

We develop and test a model that builds directly on social exchange theory to predict different roles for supervisor trust in the relationships between organizational citizenship behavior and relationship conflict occurring between supervisors and subordinates and between peers. Specifically, we posit that the association between citizenship behavior and relationship conflict between employees and supervisors is mediated by supervisor trust, while the association between citizenship behaviors and relationship conflict occurring between peers is moderated by supervisor trust. We test our dual role for supervisor trust in a field study of 160 supervisor–employee dyads. Results support the different roles played by supervisor trust. We close by discussing the implications of our results for theory and practice in the relationship conflict and citizenship domains.     

The peculiar convergence of Jeffrey Alexander and Erik Olin Wright

Jeffrey Alexander and Erik Olin Wright are among the leading sociologists of their generation. Each has published his magnum opus in the past several years: The Civil Sphere (Alexander) and Envisioning Real Utopias (Wright). This paper—a dual review essay—lays out the core arguments of each work; situates each within the personal and intellectual contexts of its production; and critically assesses each in terms of its contributions to sociological theory and research. It also argues that the works converge (unexpectedly, given Alexander’s intellectual origins in neo-functionalism and Wright’s in neo-Marxism) upon a common intellectual position, that of Deweyan pragmatism. It tries to make sense of Alexander’s and Wright’s peculiar dual voyage in a Deweyan direction and offers some reflections as to what that journey might tell us about social theory and political thought today.     

Rural Disadvantage and Malaria in Less‐Developed Nations: A Cross‐National Investigation of a Neglected Disease

Although often forgotten among people in affluent nations, malaria represents a leading global health concern in poor, rural countries. Malaria is traditionally thought of as a rural disease, given the close proximity of rural households to mosquito disease vectors. However, more insight is needed to investigate the larger social, economic, and environmental conditions that perhaps interact with rurality to explain why some nations continue to have high levels of prevalence of this preventable and eradicable parasitic infection. We employ structural equation modeling to efficiently test for both direct and indirect effects of rurality. The results demonstrate that rurality works in important indirect ways; although rurality has indirect links to malaria through export agriculture, health spending, and sociohealth resources, careful decomposition of the indirect effects illustrates that the indirect effects through heath spending and sociohealth resources are most important. Overall, the findings suggest that rural vulnerabilities to malaria are not inherent and can be largely addressed by increasing public health provisions among rural populations.