REVIEWS

Bailey, C. E. (Ed.) (2000). Children in therapy: Using the family as a resource. Doherty, W. J. (2001). Take back your marriage: Sticking together in a world that pulls us apart. New York: Guilford. Larson, J. H. (2000). Should we stay together? A scientically proven method for evaluating your relationship and improving its chances for long‐term success. Weiner‐Davis, M. (2001). The divorce remedy: The proven 7‐step program for saving your marriage.     

Use of Technology in Delivering Career Services Worldwide

The authors review the trends in the use of computers in the delivery and support of career guidance and counseling identified at the symposium International Perspectives on Career Development. The papers presented emphasized that 20th‐century computer‐based systems continue to be used, mainly delivered via the World Wide Web. These systems are enhanced through audio, video, graphics, strategies to provide needs assessment, and support by cybercounselors or expert system design. The papers also revealed a new trend: the use of elegant Web sites to store and search immense libraries of resources needed by professionals and clients and to facilitate communication and collaboration among professionals in cyberspace. Concerns, issues, and resources related to many areas, including the readiness of clients to use computer‐based systems, were also raised; existing sources of guidelines are noted.     

Who am I? Concepts of disability and their implications for people with learning difficulties

The relationship between concepts of disability, group membership and self-concept was examined. It was argued that people with learning difficulties have been categorised, by non-disabled people, as 'belonging' to a devalued social group with a rigid boundary based on IQ level. Findings from studies of self-concept have shown little evidence of a sense of belonging. It was suggested that people with learning difficulties may prefer not to identify with this social group because of the negative effect it may have on their self-esteem. The analysis based on intergroup and social identity theories proposed that people with learning difficulties may be encouraged in creating a positive self-concept by abandoning the IQ criterion for social categorisation; softening the boundaries between disabled and non-disabled people; and adopting collective rather than individual strategies for social change.     

Improving performance? The adoption and implementation of quality systems in U.K. nonprofits

There are increasing and multiple pressures on nonprofit organizations to demonstrate excellence in performance. Although there is a growing literature on the various approaches to performance improvement taken by nonprofits, little is known about the processes involved in the adoption and implementation of specific approaches. This article is about the adoption and use of one approach to performance improvement, “quality systems,” in the U.K. nonprofit sector. We report findings about factors that encourage nonprofits to adopt quality systems. We also analyze the distinctive challenges of implementing quality approaches in a nonprofit sector context and suggest critical success factors. The article concludes with a discussion of the organizational and policy implications of applying the management concepts of quality and performance to the nonprofit sector.     

Dealing with Toxicity in the Risk Society: The Case of the Hamilton,Ontario Plastics Recycling Fire*

Une perspective de la construction sociale sert de cadre a l'analyse des controverses sur la gestion des risques qui ont été provoquées à la suite d'un incendie majeur dans une usine de recyclage de matières plastiques à Hamilton, en Ontario. En mettant l'accent sur les processus de réclamation au c?ur de l'interaction entre les représen‐tants du gouvernement, les acteurs environnementaux, les experts techniques et les résidants, il a été révélé qu'un accent trop limité aux questions d'ordre technique avait mené a l'exclusion des préoccupations fondées sur la rationalité culturelle ayant ainsi entraine un cadre d'interaction très litigieux divisant profondément. Les conséquences des conclusions empiriques de la thése de la société des risques ainsi que de la théorie sur la communication des risques sont explorées. A social construction perspective is applied in the analysis of the risk management controversies that arose in response to a large toxic fire that occurred at a Hamilton, Ontario plastics recycling facility. By focussing on the claimsmaking processes involved in the interaction of government officials, environmental movement actors, technical experts, and residents, it was found that an overly narrow focus on technical matters led to the exclusion of lay concerns based on cultural rationality, thereby resulting in a very contentious and divisive setting for interaction. Implications of the empirical findings for the risk society thesis and risk communication theory are explored.     

The power of boards in service providing agencies: three models

Tensions in the relationship between boards and staff are a common feature of voluntary and nonprofit agencies which deliver services. Many of the difficulties reflect lack of clarity about the power of boards. The author describes three models of governance: traditional, membership, and entrepreneurial. Each model has different implications for the power of a board in relation to staff. Practitioners in nonprofit service delivering agencies in the UK have found the models to be a useful tool for explaining the practical difficulties they experience.     

Micromomentary movement and the deconding of face and body cues

A new version of the Profile of Nonverbal Sensitivity Test (PONS)—a standardized test of sensitivity to nonverbal cues—was developed to determine the effects of five levels or sequences of micromomentary movement on accuracy in decoding nonverbal face and body cues, presented for 125 microseconds (msecs). The five sequences were: backward movement, partially backward movement, no movement, partially forward movement, and fully forward movement. Two versions of this test—the Test of Micromomentary Movement Effects (TOMME)—were administered to two samples of female high school and college students. The results, averaged over face and body cues, showed that as the movement sequences more closely approximated the fully forward sequence, decoding accuracy increased. These results, showing the benefits of adding properly sequenced information at split second (42 msec) exposures, not only support the findings of previous researchers that micromomentary facial affect displays may be helpful in decoding nonverbal facial cues, but also suggest that micromomentary movements may be important for decoding body cues as well.