Urban greening and mobility justice in Dhaka’s informal settlements

ABSTRACT

Urban greening in Dhaka, Bangladesh is fraught with injustice for slum dwellers. Access to the commons for the enactment of gardening, farming and foraging by the urban poor, many recent internal migrants from rural areas, is contested by wealthier citizens, developers and political elites. Through qualitative research with households within the informal settlement of Korail in Dhaka’s urban core, and a range of stakeholders in governmental and non-governmental organizations, this study critiques competing policy visions that involve urban greening and urban green infrastructure. Repurposing the conceptual lense of ‘mobility justice’ to analyse environmental and ecological issues in the global South, the findings highlight the importance of mobility concerns to just futures for urban planning.     

Styling the periphery: Linguistic and cultural takeup in Bangladesh and Mongolia

Focusing on online interactions among young adults in Bangladesh and Mongolia – two countries located politically, culturally and economically on the Asian periphery – this paper looks at how young adults use linguistic and cultural resources in their online interactions as part of a complex and emergent stylization of place. On the one hand, they appropriate the cultural and linguistic flows according to their locations and engage in a playful stylization and reconfiguration of what the local means. On the other hand, they engage in stylization and reflexive language use, often involving exaggerated linguistic variation, mixing, and other semiotic resources in order to produce and perform a range of social and cultural identities. The paper hence shows how the circulation and takeup of popular cultural flows around Asia can involve diverse processes of linguistic and cultural stylization.     

The attributable estimand: A new approach to account for intercurrent events

The term “intercurrent events” has recently been used to describe events in clinical trials that may complicate the definition and calculation of the treatment effect estimand. This paper focuses on the use of an attributable estimand to address intercurrent events. Those events that are considered to be adversely related to randomized treatment (eg, discontinuation due to adverse events or lack of efficacy) are considered attributable and handled with a composite estimand strategy, while a hypothetical estimand strategy is used for intercurrent events not considered to be related to randomized treatment (eg, unrelated adverse events). We explore several options for how to implement this approach and compare them to hypothetical “efficacy” and treatment policy estimand strategies through a series of simulation studies whose design is inspired by recent trials in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and we illustrate through an analysis of a recently completed COPD trial.     

Additive regression model for stationary and ergodic continuous time processes

The main purpose of the present work is to introduce and investigate a simple kernel procedure based on marginal integration that estimates the regression function for stationary and ergodic continuous time processes in the setting of the additive model introduced by Stone (1985 Stone, C.J. (1985). Additive regression and other nonparametric models. Ann. Stat. 13(2):689–705.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). We obtain the uniform almost sure consistency with exact rate and the asymptotic normality of the kernel-type estimators of the components of the additive model. Asymptotic properties of these estimators are obtained, under mild conditions, by means of martingale approaches. Finally, a general notion of the bootstrapped additive components, constructed by exchangeably weighting sample, is presented.     

CharacteriStics and utilization of midwives in a selected rural area of East Pakistan

The purpose of this study was to obtain information about the utilization of midwives (dais) by village women and to learn more about the characteristics and practices of those dais. Two interview schedules were prepared. The first was used to interview 632 village women to determine who performed or assisted with their last two deliveries. The second was used to obtain information from 21 dais.The results of the first phase may be summarized as follows: (a) 38 per cent of the women were delivered by relatives; (b) 33 per cent of the women delivered their own children; (c) 14 per cent were delivered by neighbors; (d) 6 per cent were delivered by dais; (e) 2 percent were delivered in hospitals; and (f) the remaining 7 per cent were accounted for by several minor categories.The results of the interviews with dais are summarized as follows: (a) they are mainly widows and older women; (b) they have no formal training; (c) they work for friends, neighbors, and relatives and receive a sari as compensation; (d) they cannot handle complicated deliveries; (e) they deliver 3-4 children a year; (f) their sterilizing procedures depend upon soap, water, and folk beliefs; (g) most think midwifery is a worthwhile service; (h) about one-half have a general understanding of the reproduction process; (i) most do not know how to prevent conception; and (j) about half think that it is a good idea to participate actively in a family planning program.     

Differential Effects of Perceived Maternal and Paternal Acceptance on Male and Female Adult Offspring’s Psychological Adjustment

The purpose of this study was to measure and compare differential effects of perceived maternal and paternal acceptance of adult sons and adult daughters during childhood on their current psychological adjustment. The sample consisted of 200 young adults (100 males and 100 females) from Bangladesh. Measures used were Adult versions of the Parental Acceptance and Rejection Questionnaire for Mothers and Fathers (Adult PARQ: Mothers and Fathers), and Adult version of the Personality Assessment Questionnaire (Adult PAQ). Results showed that both maternal and paternal acceptance have significant independent effects on adult sons’ psychological adjustment, and only paternal (not maternal) acceptance has significant independent effect on adult daughters’ psychological adjustment. Paternal acceptance accounts for greater variability in adult sons’ and adult daughters’ psychological adjustment than maternal acceptance. Results also showed that parental gender has significant interaction effect on the adult daughters’ (not adult sons’) psychological adjustment. Results further showed that adult daughters reported significantly greater maternal and paternal acceptance and higher psychological adjustment than adult sons.     

Cash-Flow and Savings Practices of Low-Income Households: Evidence From a Follow-Up Study of IDA Participants

ABSTRACT

Understanding how low-income households manage their finances is critical to designing effective antipoverty interventions. This study used data from a 2008 follow-up survey of 326 low-income households in Hawaii who participated in an Individual Development Account (IDA) intervention from 1999 to 2005. Self-reported cash flow (five items) and savings (four items) practices were explored using latent class analysis. Three latent classes were produced: Class 3 managed cash flows and saved (n = 166; 51%); Class 2 managed cash flows but did not save (n = 73; 22%); and Class 1 struggled to manage cash flows and save (n = 89; 27%). Using ordinal regression, psychological sense of mastery was positively and significantly (p < .01) related to being in a higher class membership (b = .14; OR = 1.15). IDA participation had no association with latent classification. The key finding is the heterogeneity among low-income financial management practices and the importance of providing individualized services. Future longitudinal research is needed to understand how IDA participation affects financial practices in the short term and long term.     

Diversity‐related employee attitudes and perceptions in Bangladesh: A case study on the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee

Bangladesh is perceived as homogenous, often resulting in hidden discrimination for those considered to belong to minority groups. Little research has been conducted on the characteristics of diversity as predictors of work attitude and behavior in relation to organizational commitment and job performance in Bangladesh. This study examines conditions in a leading international, non‐governmental development organization, the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC). The purpose of this study is to explore employees' perceptions and work attitudes and how these relate to organizational commitment and job performance. A phenomenological research strategy was used to understand the unique culture of Bangladesh and workplace diversity at BRAC. Data was collected through in‐depth interviews with BRAC employees currently working in the head office, using a purposive, convenient sampling method. Both positive and negative feelings and perceptions were revealed: positive factors include gender sensitivity in the workplace, positive organizational support, organizational goodwill, organizational culture, and longer tenure and seniority; negative factors include job insecurity, dissatisfaction with salary grades and gaps, promotions, and issues pertaining to disabilities, ethnicity, and supervisors' evaluations. These results have implications for organizational and governmental policy.