bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Managing Social Welfare Policy
Authors: Meier Kenneth J. , McCrea Austin M.
Published: May 2023

The management of public programs is often considered a key factor in service delivery, the performance of public organizations, and good governance. Indeed, managerial actions have a substantial impact on organizations and often help account for why one organization outperforms another organization, despite both operating in the same policy area and under similar contexts. Drawing upon the “management matters” literature, we highlight seven generalizable management variables that can be applied across the social welfare domain—top management, mid-level management, human resources management, stability, organizational capacity, managerial strategy, and context. With most existing research focusing on the American public school context, we hope that these insights from the “management matters” agenda can be more broadly applied and theoretically developed given the ubiquity of social welfare organizations in the United States and elsewhere.
Canada’s Jagged Record on Social Policy Collaboration between Government and the Voluntary Sector
Authors: Levasseur Karine
Published: May 2023

In the aftermath of New Public Management reforms, many governments are now adopting collaborative governance approaches to address complex policy problems. This chapter explores why co-producing social policy has been unevenly adopted in Canada and offers three explanations: Public sector reform has limited the ability of voluntary sector organizations to engage in policy collaboration; voluntary sector organizations have limited policy capacity to engage as partners in collaboration; and governments themselves also have limited policy capacity to foster strong and effective collaborative governance relationships. New Public Management (NPM) plays a role in all three explanations, as the legacy of NPM reforms has been to undermine the development of policy capacity both within the voluntary sector and within governments in order to foster cross-sectoral collaboration. Nevertheless, the chapter identifies some areas where co-production has worked well.
Street-Level Organizational Theory
Authors: Spitzmueller Matthew C.
Published: May 2023

Street-level organizational (SLO) theory argues that when public policy is ambiguous and workers use discretion to interpret it, a full account of policy practice must begin with an analysis of how policy is experienced and enacted by those who are charged with executing it. This article builds upon the conceptual foundation of SLO theory to examine how workers reproduce power in their everyday encounters with clients. It contends that power is located in the structural conditions of work and multidimensional in its effects. It concludes by pointing to the path ahead. SLO theory has evolved to engage critically with the New Public Management, making visible its perverse effects on public services. In the absence of meaningfully addressing the imbalance of resources and demands in public services, SLO theory cautions that new managerial reforms are bound to recapitulate familiar dilemmas that have long bedeviled policy practice.
Contracting for Social Programs
Authors: Johnston Jocelyn M. , Romzek Barbara S.
Published: May 2023

Government contracting for social programs typically entails complex multiparty networks of providers, subcontractors, and shared clientele. The fundamental challenges for government contracting in this area include identifying (1) social programs as appropriate candidates for contracting, (2) competitive markets of providers, and (3) accurate transaction costs. Once the decision to contract is made, the government principal’s challenge is to develop the capacity to fashion and manage the contract, by identifying performance measures and procedures to collect performance data, and establishing strategies for accountability. Social service contracts are prone to incomplete or relational contracts because of the difficulty of specifying performance measures in advance. As a result, multi-provider contracts typically emphasize relationship building among a contract principal and multiple agents. Incomplete contracts typically rely as much on trust and informal accountability relationships among actors as they do on formal, structured accountability mechanisms.
The Financialization of the Welfare State and Co-creating Value for Public Services
Authors: Laforest Rachel
Published: May 2023

In response to fiscal pressures, significant reforms in social services are currently underway in Canada. This chapter looks at the changes in financial instruments to support nonprofit organizations that have resulted from a move away from grants and contributions toward market-oriented instruments. The scope and pace of transformation is remarkable, presenting valuable opportunities for innovation but also placing new demands on the behavior of nonprofit organizations, with important implications for the quality of social services. This chapter also examines the financialization of the welfare state as a phenomenon and the ongoing implications for how we understand the role of the public, private, and nonprofit sectors in the delivery of social services.
European Welfare States’ Detour(s) to Social Investment
Authors: Hemerijck Anton , Ronchi Stefano
Published: May 2023

Since the end of the twentieth century, European welfare states have been reconfiguring the basic policy mixes upon which they were built after 1945. In the process, the overarching social policy objective has shifted from fighting unemployment in the 1990s to promoting employment participation through social investment. This chapter introduces the concept of social investment as a key to understanding recent welfare state change in Europe, in an attempt to move the debate beyond the well-established regime approach. The social investment turn has been variable and truncated, with major detours, often cutting across regime-specific legacies. This chapter spells out five European social (and non-social) investment reform trajectories: “vanguard” countries in Northern Europe, “bandwagoners” (for example, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom), “latecomers” such as Germany and Spain, “newcomers” from the Eastern EU periphery, and slow or “non-movers” like France and Italy. The chapter elaborates on the prospects for social investment in the EU after the Great Recession, divided between the fiscal limits imposed by austerity and the silver linings implicit in generous welfare provision, which may act as a “beneficial constraint” for ratcheting employment in sync with social inclusion.
Toward a Framework for Comparing Accountability Regimes in Healthcare
Authors: Vrangbæk Karsten , Byrkjeflot Haldor
Published: May 2023

The debate on accountability within the public sector has been especially lively over the past decade. Significant progress has been made in developing conceptual frameworks and typologies for characterizing different features and functions of accountability. At the same time, however, there has been a lack of sector-specific adjustment of such frameworks. In this chapter we present a framework for analyzing accountability within healthcare. The chapter makes use of the concept of “accountability regime” to signify the combination of different accountability forms, directions, and functions in operation at any given point in time. We show that reforms can introduce new forms of accountability, change existing accountability relations, or change the relative importance of different accountability forms. They may also change the dominant direction and shift the balance between different functions of accountability. We further suggest that developments in accountability regimes are best analyzed with a combination of top-down and bottom-up perspectives and that there is a need to develop research strategies to support this aim.
Reform Pathways for Integrating Employment Assistance to Marginalized Groups
Authors: Rønningstad Chris , Andreassen Tone Alm , Breit Eric , Minas Renate
Published: May 2023

Service integration—understood as cooperation and collaboration between sectors and organizations—is commonly employed in European countries as a response to internal fragmentation of social security systems. In this chapter, drawing on research from Europe, we show how countries differ on central dimensions regarding service integration aimed at the unemployed. Further, we discuss how service integration depends on countries’ historical and institutional conditions as they follow different reform pathways. We also show how service integration is not a “once and for all” decision but may change over time. We illustrate these points by comparing recent reforms in Norway and Sweden, which, despite being relatively similar welfare states, have developed very different levels of service integration. We conclude the chapter with some broader remarks about service integration and reform pathways.
Section Overview
Authors: Filgueira Fernando , Arza Camila , Blofield Merike
Published: May 2023

This chapter presents the Latin American section and provides an overview of its main findings. It discusses the governance and management for social policy in a region with high levels of inequality, informal employment, low fiscal efforts, and major weaknesses in terms of social risks and state capacity. Besides these similarities, wide variations also exist in social policy regimes across countries in terms of governance, administrative arrangements, levels of decentralization, and mixes of public services and private services. Innovations in social policy over the 21st century have produced a range of mixed systems that are not always consistent, distributionally sound, or sustainable. The chapters in this section contribute to understanding these trends and their implications for the governance and management of social policy in Latin America.
The Slow and Reluctant Development of Social Citizenship in Latin America
Authors: Filgueira Fernando , Arza Camila , Blofield Merike
Published: May 2023

This chapter puts the region’s social protection policy models into historical, political, and social context. It distinguishes four major stages in Latin American welfare state models, clearly associated with four stages in Latin American state-building: the minimalist “welfare” state of the primary export period; the contribution-based welfare state under the import substitution model; the turn to the reluctant welfare state and the introduction of the market into social affairs that characterized the Washington Consensus era; and finally, the expansionary stage of post-Washington Consensus until the mid-2010s. In the initial stages, the state role was minimal, focusing on primary education and boosting urban sanitation infrastructure. In the import substitution period, there was a strong push for modern social protection, tied firmly to protection for formal workers. However, informal labor markets and incomplete protection against a variety of risks produced a stratified model of social security with incomplete coverages. The liberal turn led to a focus on extreme poverty along with an increased reliance on market mechanisms in healthcare, education, and pensions. As the 20th century came to an end, pressures for more inclusive social policies promoted the expansion of coverage and benefits. The return and resilience of democracy, an export-oriented external stance, and the substantial economic growth of the first decade and a half of the 21st century were all factors that contributed to this new and still unstable social citizenship contract.
Social Policy and State Capacity from a Sub-National Perspective
Authors: Niedzwiecki Sara , Pribble Jennifer
Published: May 2023

Cross-national research on Latin American social policy has taken state capacity for granted. We argue that this omission has important consequences, especially in decentralized countries where there are large capacity differences across the territory. State capacity matters for the development of the welfare state at every stage of the policymaking process, including program design, implementation, and outcomes. Capable states are able to design social policies that cover a broad segment of the population and enjoy financial viability. Moreover, policy implementation is more successful in strong states, as they are able to reach all corners of the territory and provide higher-quality services. These high-quality services, in turn, can promote well-being. In this chapter, we focus on the ability of the state to successfully administer the provision of basic health services in Argentina and Chile. We selected the cases because they are examples of capable states at the national level, but exhibit important sub-national variation.While we would expect territorial gaps in a federal, decentralized country such as Argentina, the results in Chile are the more surprising, given its unitary and centralized character.
Taxation and State Capacity
Authors: Mahon James E.
Published: May 2023

Although Latin American tax systems have historically reflected a lack of state capacity, reforms of taxation and administration in the past few decades have strengthened states in several ways. Governments in the region still do not tax as progressively as most others in the world, but the “neoliberal” tax and administrative reforms, enacted with the help of international financial institutions from 1967 to about 2000, did raise revenue more effectively. They also laid the groundwork for greater confidence in the impartiality of tax enforcement and the control of spending. In addition, many of the same technological advances that have facilitated the evasion of taxes on capital assets and income have also aided tax innovations that enhance both equity and efficiency. Independently of these trends, the commodity boom of the 2000s helped fund an expansion of social spending. And along with a few mildly progressive tax reforms, this has brought Latin American patterns closer to the expectations of two major theories of fiscal politics, the median voter model and the idea of the fiscal contract.
Time-Use Data, Unpaid Work, and Social Well-Being
Authors: Scuro Lucía , Vaca Iliana
Published: May 2023

Time is a finite resource that people use in different ways depending on multiple sociocultural factors that reflect social structure, power relationships, and the prevailing gender order, among other things. The sexual division of labor in the region restricts some in using this time freely and autonomously, resulting in a lack of own time. As occurs with income, the lack of own time and of the ability to manage it freely is a significant contributor to inequality. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the production structure, gender roles, and family make-up have reinforced stark differences between men and women with respect to time distribution. This has led to inequalities in opportunities and outcomes for personal and professional development. The region must take advantage of the progress made in the past few years in the production of statistics with a gender perspective. In order to increase well-being and sustainable development, it is important that countries in the region continue promoting satellite accounts that allow the value of unpaid domestic and care work to be included in national accounts. In order to guarantee better harmonization and balance between time spent on domestic, employment, and personal activities, public policies and administrative arrangements should recognize and seek to redistribute unpaid work and its impacts in the realms of labor market opportunities, social security access, poverty alleviation, health, education, and transport, among other areas.
Australia’s National Disability Insurance
Authors: Carey Gemma , Dickinson Helen , Fletcher Michael , Reeders Daniel
Published: May 2023

The National Disability Insurance Scheme is one of the most significant welfare reforms Australia has seen in a century. The reform incorporates several themes that have been gaining traction in other countries, including individual budgets and actuarial (or social investment) approaches. This chapter provides an overview of NDIS’s emergence and first phase of development from 2013-2017 and an analysis of the program’s more unusual attributes within the broader personalization agenda. In particular, we assess the use of actuarial approaches and their implications for the administration of the scheme. At the heart of the scheme sits a tension between the unusually prominent role given to actuarial methods (which are typically used for monitoring and forecasting costs) and the fundamental objective of achieving the best possible outcomes for people with a disability (taking account of value-for-money constraints).
The Four Nuclear Security Summits
Authors: Gill Amandeep
Published: May 2023

This chapter explores how former president Barack Obama’s vision of a global effort to secure all vulnerable nuclear material within four years took the shape of the Nuclear Security Summits. The summits held at Washington, DC (2010, 2016), Seoul (2012), and The Hague (2014) were an innovative leaders-led multilateral platform that succeeded in promoting a concerted international response to the threat of nuclear terrorism. The summits’ Communiqué, Work Plan, and voluntary commitments in the form of ‘gift baskets’ accelerated progress on the physical protection of nuclear material and facilities, the minimization of high-risk materials such as highly enriched uranium (HEU), and the renewed commitment to international nuclear security instruments such as the Amended Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (A/CPPNM). The brassage of different domains of expertise in the preparatory process and the time pressure of recurrent summits resulted in higher-quality outcomes than would have been possible in traditional multilateral forums. However, the process was self-limiting since the attention of leaders cannot normally be sustained for long on technical issues. It was also constrained by the interconnectedness of nuclear issues. Progress on nuclear security could not be delinked forever from the politics of nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament. While further summits on nuclear security are not planned, leaders-led initiatives to combat global threats, including the threat of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) terrorism, remain a possibility. The Nuclear Security Summit process offers valuable lessons for such initiatives in the future.
The United Kingdom’s Transition from Prescriptive to Outcome-Focused Nuclear Security Regulation
Authors: Hobbs Christopher , Parkhouse Tom
Published: May 2023

The chapter examines nuclear security regulation in the United Kingdom and focuses on the transition over the past few decades from a prescriptive to an outcome-focused regime. It explores what drove this change and how it was achieved and details some of the challenges encountered at different stages and how these were overcome. Key findings include the need for considerable and sustained effort to alter a regulatory approach, which goes beyond revising related guidance and processes to also encompass significant changes in understanding and assessing risk, organizational culture, and professionalism within both the regulator and nuclear operators. As such, if a similar transition was to be attempted in other contexts, it is unlikely to be achieved rapidly and instead will require considerable effort over a long period of time, involving a series of smaller steps towards this goal.
Nuclear Security in China
Authors: Guo Xiaobing
Published: May 2023

As a country with an ambitious nuclear energy plan, China has sought to make significant progress in enhancing domestic and international nuclear security. First, China has improved its own national nuclear security architecture including its legal framework, technical standards, and guidance. Second, China has strengthened its practices in terms of physical protection, accounting, transportation of nuclear materials, and nuclear emergency responses. Third, China has further solidified its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other countries. This chapter explores the motivation behind China’s nuclear security efforts, the progress made, and the challenges that China faces in this area.
The Interface between Nuclear Safety and Nuclear Security
Authors: Harris Jason T. , Rane Shraddha
Published: May 2023

The nexus of nuclear safety and security is protecting human life and health and the environment from the harmful effects of ionizing radiation. Stakeholders continually strive to enhance nuclear safety and security with a view to avoiding trade-offs between the two elements. Nuclear safety and security interfaces are examined in the chapter through emphasizing common linkages that promote synergies and highlighting specific areas where conditions may conflict. In the goal to achieve effective integration, the role of organizational culture is emphasized in strengthening safety and security. It provides some recommendations for developing a healthy nuclear safety and security regime, followed by a discussion on the benefits of a risk-informed approach. Finally, it presents an overview of recent research in the interface between nuclear safety and security.
Case Studies of a Nuclear Forensic Examination
Authors: Smith David K.
Published: May 2023

States are increasingly using nuclear forensics as both a preventive and responsive measure for countering the threat of nuclear and other radioactive material falling outside of regulatory control. The chapter examines published nuclear forensics case studies through the lens of a ‘nuclear forensics model action plan’, drawing insights from recommended international guidance on the conduct of an examination and relating these to actual practice in the field. The diverse case studies contained in the chapter demonstrate that nuclear forensics can be successfully applied to mitigate risks from diverted materials, prosecute those responsible for malicious acts, and inform and improve the implementation of nuclear security measures.
Socialist Realism, Kitsch, and the Middlebrow Symphony
Authors: Fairclough Pauline
Published: May 2023

It seems unlikely that the label of socialist realism will ever break free from its taint of artistic compromise and mediocrity. Yet the enduring popularity of Soviet music from the Stalin era seems to challenge these long-held associations. While some have been quick to draw links between these “socialist realist” symphonies and the Europe-wide shift away from 1920s modernism, it would be disingenuous to pretend that compulsion played no role in shaping the Soviet symphony under Stalin. But equally, this epoch in Soviet musical history produced works of lasting global popularity, making it difficult to insist that they must be somehow compromised. In this chapter I argue that we need to both acknowledge the pressures composers and critics were under and admit that socialist realism, as a literary concept, was implied rather than fulfilled by even the most successful Stalin-era symphonic works. Here, I contend that “middlebrow” is a more useful umbrella term for this repertoire, acknowledging both the element of compulsion and the potential for artistic success within its confines.
Borges and the Creative Economy of the Apocryphal
Authors: Alonso Estenoz Alfredo
Published: May 2023

Borges’s use and creation of apocryphal texts, authors, and stories is central to his creative and critical mind. He conceived the apocryphal as a challenge to literary authority and the notion of original authorship. Furthermore, as Iván Almeida has argued, the apocryphal allowed Borges to exert a condensation and refinement of his sources, whether they are real of fictional. The example Almeida quotes comes from “Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius” where the modified phrase “copulation and mirrors are abominable,” recalled by one of the characters, is from a literary point of view superior to the original. This essay illustrates this and other uses of the apocryphal in Borges’s work and life––his tendency to alter or misquote, but also to construct a narrative of his own life that is rich in uncertain events.
Stairway to Heaven
Authors: Blasco-Fontecilla Hilario
Published: May 2023

This chapter describes a model for nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) as an addictive behavior, and its implications. The framing of self-injury as an “addiction” is controversial. Some authors argue that the repetition of NSSI is better explained by emotional processes rather than by addictive mechanisms. These authors stress the works that argued that whereas both positive and negative reinforcement sustain substance use, NSSI is only perpetuated thanks to negative reinforcement. However, some authors do not fully agree with the assumption that self-harm is not inherently pleasurable for some patients. Many describe it as such, and indeed, self-harm serves homeostatic functions as well as sensation-seeking functions. In any case, emotional dysregulation appears to characterize those patients who display NSSI with addictive characteristics. The chapter then considers the pathophysiology of NSSI before looking at the increasing number of solid empirical studies demonstrating the addictive properties of NSSI. A clear consequence of considering repetitive NSSI as an addiction is that treatments traditionally used in drug addictions may also be implemented in this field. A recent systematic review focused on the treatment of NSSI concluded that both brief psychotherapies and pharmacological interventions can be effective for treating NSSI.
Bridging Brain and Behavior
Authors: Westlund Schreiner Mindy , Frandsen Summer B. , Molina Nicolette C. , Dillahunt Alina K.
Published: May 2023

Although research is increasingly considering neurobiological processes underlying psychopathology, there is a lack of a comprehensive bridge to clinical practice. One way to bridge this gap is through personalized or precision medicine. This involves using an individual’s unique biological characteristics to inform treatment rather than a traditional one-size-fits-all approach to intervention. This goal can be furthered by the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) initiative, which aims to use multiple units of analyses (e.g., circuits, physiology, and self-report) to study discrete maladaptive behaviors that are separated into domains (e.g., negative and positive valence systems and systems for social processes). One important but understudied focus is nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), the overall prevalence of which has shown no reduction using conventional therapeutic and pharmaceutical interventions. The current treatments for NSSI show some modest success with a top-down approach of using existing interventions to target neurobiology but would also benefit from a bottom-up approach of creating interventions to specifically target neurobiological targets. Likewise, the field would benefit from an integration of biological and clinical trials to translate findings and move more quickly toward precision medicine. This chapter discusses prior findings of the association between NSSI and neurocircuitry, heart rate variability, and other psychophysiological markers and suggests future directions to integrate treatment targets and intervention innovations to move toward alleviating distress associated with NSSI.
NSSI Among Military Service Members and Veterans
Authors: Gromatsky Molly , Mann Adam J. , Kimbrel Nathan A. , Dillon Kirsten H.
Published: May 2023

This chapter discusses nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) among military service members and veterans. Though NSSI typically emerges and is most prevalent during adolescence and young adulthood, research examining NSSI in service members—who represent a younger demographic of military personnel—is limited in quantity. Existing literature reporting NSSI prevalence rates among service members varies, and initial lifetime estimates among nonclinical samples are low. As with rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviors, NSSI prevalence rates tend to be higher among veterans or combined military personnel samples compared to service members alone. The chapter then looks at demographic differences in NSSI rates among military service members and veterans, considering gender, sexual and gender minority status, age and military service era, and race and ethnicity. It studies the relationship between NSSI and affect-related conditions, suicide risk, trauma exposure, substance use, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The chapter also assesses the forms and functions of NSSI in service members and veterans before exploring future directions for assessment and treatment of NSSI in military personnel.
NSSI and Self-Harm Behavior and the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Brausch Amy , Clapham Rebekah
Published: May 2023

This chapter reviews the effects of previous pandemics on mental health and self-harm, as well as the current research available about the effects of COVID-19 on nonsuicidal self-injury and suicide risk. Initial evidence on the effects of COVID-19 on deliberate self-harm behavior suggests that in general, individuals are experiencing a significant amount of collective stress and trauma, regardless of their views about or access to masks or vaccines. Some researchers have suggested that factors such as social distancing, less access to social supports, barriers to mental health treatments, fear of and experience with physical illness, and increased feelings of responsibility and guilt may be reducing general resilience of the population and increasing deliberate self-harm risk. However, it is also possible that the COVID-19 pandemic has created situations that serve as protective factors against deliberate self-harm. With opportunities to work from home, the closures of schools, and increased interaction with family members, individuals may be experiencing less work-related stress, more distance from negative or harmful peers, and an increased sense of family connection. The chapter then considers identity-related factors in the context of COVID-19 and self-harm. In addition to adolescents and the LGBTQ community potentially being disproportionally influenced by COVID-19, there have been reports of deliberate self-harm behaviors increasing among other minoritized individuals as well.
Lofexidine
Authors: Gorodetzky Charles W. , Gullo Kristen L. , Fishman Marc
Published: May 2023

Lofexidine is an agonist at the central alpha-2 adrenergic receptor and is indicated for relief of the symptoms of opioid withdrawal. Lofexidine has been marketed in the United Kingdom for opioid withdrawal management since 1992 and in the United States since 2018. This chapter outlines the pharmacodynamics and mechanisms of action of lofexidine with regard to its role in opioid withdrawal management, as well as its pharmacokinetic characteristics before outlining in detail the clinical use of lofexidine. This includes a discussion of safety considerations, drug interactions, and use in impaired populations. The authors conclude with a review of the evidence supporting lofexidine, spanning clinical trials to open label examinations, and a clinical vignette of a prototypical lofexidine experience.
Contingency Management Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder
Authors: Holtyn August F. , Toegel Forrest , Novak Matthew D.
Published: May 2023

Contingency Management (CM) is an effective, evidence-based approach for the treatment of substance use disorder, including opioid use disorder (OUD). CM interventions derive from the operant behavior perspective of psychology and have an extensive theoretical, laboratory, and clinical foundation that laid the foundation for development of CM interventions to treat substance use disorder. Hundreds of studies, including controlled trials, systematic reviews,5,8 and meta-analyses have shown CM interventions to be a highly effective treatment for substance use disorder, particularly when used for OUD. This chapter reviews the underlying foundation for CM and a brief history of its use for the treatment of OUD. We then review the use of CM in opioid agonist treatment for promoting abstinence from opioids, cocaine, cigarettes, and other substances in persons who are using opioids, as well as its use in withdrawal settings and to promote behaviors other than abstinence, such as treatment engagement or retention and vocational training.
Differences Between Those Engaged in Heroin Use and Non-Prescribed Opioid Use
Authors: Schepis Ty S. , Duncan Bowie , Vrotsos Katherine
Published: May 2023

Despite similarities in activity at the opioid receptors, there are significant differences in the profiles of individuals engaged in heroin use as compared to those engaged in non-prescribed opioid use (NPOU). This chapter first reviews the epidemiological trends evident in NPOU and heroin use, before discussing sociodemographic characteristics of persons who engage in NPOU and heroin use, personality correlates, delinquency and criminal justice involvement, familial and environmental influences, physical and mental health, and other substance use. We also review studies examining results of neuropsychological and neuroimaging comparisons, motives and sources, and the impact of heroin or NPOU on treatment outcomes. When available, we outline results of direct comparisons. We conclude with a review of the similarities and differences between persons with primary NPOU and heroin use, and outline limitations in the knowledge base and specific directions for future research.
Naltrexone
Authors: Tsoy-Podosenin Marina , Krupitsky Evgeny
Published: May 2023

Use of opioid antagonists, particularly when delivered as an extended-release formulation, is a meaningful treatment option for individuals with opioid use disorder who are highly motivated to remain opioid abstinent or do not have access to agonist treatment. Current evidence suggests that use of injectable and implantable depot formulations of naltrexone is safe and well-tolerated. Initiation of an extended-release naltrexone remains a challenge for patients using opioid agonists and requires further development of rapid and effective methods of induction. When initiated, the extended-release naltrexone is effective for relapse prevention and is comparable to buprenorphine-naloxone. An extended-release naltrexone effectively prevented relapse among persons under criminal justice supervision and improved treatment outcomes in patients with comorbid HIV. Further strategies to improve retention in treatment and expand use of antagonists in other target populations need to be implemented.
The History and Scope of Parasocial Research
Authors: Liebers Nicole , Schramm Holger
Published: May 2023

This chapter provides an overview of the evolution of parasocial research. To begin, the origin of parasocial research in the 1950s is described, followed by milestones in the development of theoretical perspectives on parasocial experiences. In the next step, the growing interest in empirical research concerning parasocial experiences is explained. After explaining the development and milestones of parasocial research, the chapter takes a look at today’s scope of parasocial research by addressing its diversification and current research trends. In doing so, this chapter offers meaningful insights into parasocial research from a meta-perspective and, in turn, can be seen as a kind of foundation for the following chapters of this handbook.
The Social Context of PSRs
Authors: Greenwood Dara , Aldoukhov Alice
Published: May 2023

Despite being initially defined as a complementary extension of social life, parasocial relationships (PSRs)—imagined intimacies that audiences develop with media figures—have also been hypothesized to serve as a “functional alternative” to social life. The latter compensatory use of PSRs ostensibly addresses insufficient or unsatisfying social and emotional needs and is sometimes labeled the social surrogacy hypothesis. The present chapter reviews research on parasocial experiences (PSEs) in the context of media users’ social and emotional life. The chapter focuses on the complex and sometimes contradictory relationships that PSEs have to loneliness, attachment anxiety, and belonging needs, and the small body of work that examines whether PSEs might actually gratify such needs is highlighted. Also considered are particular kinds of parasocial targets (i.e., romantic, identity relevant) and their implications for social and emotional well-being.
How Parasocial Relationships Affect Our Self-Concepts
Authors: Gabriel Shira , Young Ariana F. , Naidu Esha , Schneider Veronica
Published: May 2023

The chapter surveys the effects of parasocial relationships (PSRs; one-sided relationships with media figures, including celebrities and fictional characters) on individuals’ self-concept, self-esteem, and self-discrepancies. The chapter begins by examining the effects of PSRs on self-esteem and body esteem. After reviewing the literature in these areas, the chapter explores how people use self-expanding properties of PSRs to regulate affect and other unpleasant states. Finally, it explores some potential areas for future research. Special attention is given to the effects of PSRs on body image. The chapter reviews evidence of both problematic and protective consequences of PSRs for media users’ mental health and psychological well-being.
Effects of Parasocial Experiences on Intergroup Relationships
Authors: Cohen Elizabeth L. , Atwell Seate Anita
Published: May 2023

This chapter reviews existing research on how mediated contact with media figures (e.g., celebrities, fictional characters, public figures, and others) can affect intergroup relations. The review is organized around two parasocial experiences through which mediated intergroup encounters with media figures are theorized to affect audience prejudice: parasocial contact and vicarious contact. The chapter concludes with several recommendations for advancing theory and research on media figure intergroup contact effects and understanding how intergroup media figure involvement can be most advantageous for members of marginalized social groups. Moving forward, any theorizing of media figure contact effects should be not only comprehensive enough to explain how diverse groups of people respond to different media figures, but also just enough to inform and promote social change that is beneficial to the groups that have been most victimized by the prejudices that intergroup contact theory has always sought to remedy.
Parasocial Experiences in the Political Arena
Authors: Demetriades Stefanie Z. , Walter Nathan , Cohen Jonathan
Published: May 2023

As politics becomes increasingly personalized, research in parasocial relationships (PSRs) has begun to explore the effects of the public’s imagined relationships with political figures. This chapter provides an overview of this emerging area of study, beginning with a discussion of three primary strands of research on politically relevant PSRs. The first focuses on PSRs with politicians (e.g., Donald Trump) and examines how media and social media foster these parasocial experiences. The second looks at PSRs with media personae, including newscasters, pundits, and celebrities, who may shape audiences’ political perceptions and engagement. The third line of research turns to PSRs with characters in political TV shows (e.g., The West Wing), exploring how fictional politicians can have real-world influence. The chapter then discusses overlaps and distinctions between PSRs and other related predictors of political support, as well as current methods utilized to measure PSRs with politicians, and concludes with some recommendations for the future of study and theorization of the political impact of PSRs.
Beyond Friendship
Authors: Tukachinsky Forster Rebecca , Click Melissa A.
Published: May 2023

Past research and anecdotal evidence suggests that many audience members are exposed to media figures they dislike. However, their relationships with these media figures are not well understood in parasocial research. Building on scholarly media and fan studies on anti-fandom, we argue that these seemingly negative experiences are diverse, complex, and nuanced—they are more than merely the opposite of positive parasocial relationships (PSRs). The chapter theorizes several nonamicable parasocial experiences: pervasive negative PSRs (NPSRs) (formed with ubiquitous media figures one cannot escape); competitive NPSRs (involving a real or symbolic rivalry with the media user’s PSR partner); loyal NPSRs (inability to break up with a disappointing PSR partner); and ludic/ironic PSRs (wherein individuals derive pleasure from disparaging an inferior media figure). The chapter concludes with a review of specific media and audience variables that can be instrumental in examining these different types of nonamicable PSRs.
Cultural Perspective
Authors: Tukachinsky Forster Rebecca , Hu Mu
Published: May 2023

Although parasocial relationships (PSRs) and parasocial interactions (PSIs) have been studied around the globe, there is a paucity of research that directly compares the characteristics and consequences of these experiences in different cultures. While there is a scarcity of research directly comparing samples from different cultures, research conducted in non-Western cultures uncovered patterns that diverge from findings of studies performed in Western cultures. This indirect evidence of cultural differences gave raise to abundant theorization of the influence of culture on PSEs. This chapter makes the case for why parasocial experiences can vary across cultures and outlines a research agenda for further examination of these questions.
PSRs in Adults and Older Adults
Authors: Stever Gayle
Published: May 2023

Parasocial relationships (PSRs) are a part of a lifelong range of experiences that begin in early childhood and extend well into old age. Parasocial is defined as any social connection that is nonreciprocated. This chapter considers the functions and characteristics of parasocial experiences (PSEs) in adulthood and discusses the unique roles of PSEs in different life stages from a developmental psychology perspective. It reviews research in adults and the function of these experiences at different critical places in development and among older adults. Finally, the chapter discusses celebrity worship and pathological perspectives on PSEs. The chapter concludes by considering whether the term parasocial implies some kind of pathology or unhealthy behavior and considers possible objections to this term.
Kambaata
Authors: Treis Yvonne
Published: May 2023

Kambaata is a Highland East Cushitic language spoken in southwestern Ethiopia. It has a phonemic length contrast both in its vowel and consonant systems. Kambaata is agglutinating-fusional and suffixing, with many portmanteau morphemes. Five open word classes are defined morphosyntactically: verbs, nouns, adjectives, ideophone, and interjections. Stress is phonemic and has a grammatical function; it serves, either alone or in combination with a segmental suffix, to distinguish between grammatical forms of one lexeme. Kambaata is a nominative-accusative language with an elaborate system of nine nominal cases. Nouns fall into two genders; number is rather derivational than inflectional in nature. Adjectives agree with their head nouns in case and gender. Verbs index the subject and are marked for aspect, mood, and dependency status. Past tense marking is periphrastic and optional. Subordinate verbs encompass different types of converbs and purposive verbs, some of which are sensitive to switch-reference marking, as well as relative verbs and verbal nouns. Negative relative verbs are almost perfect verb-adjective hybrids. Kambaata’s constituent order is consistently head-final. The present chapter gives an overview of salient aspects of Kambaata’s phonology, derivational and inflectional morphology, and syntax. The data is written in the official, Roman-based orthography.
Konso
Authors: Orkaydo Ongaye Oda , Mous Maarten
Published: May 2023

This chapter examines the Lowland East Cushitic language of the Afroasiatic phylum spoken in southwest Ethiopia: Konso. It emphasizes that the Konso call themselves Xonsitta and their language Afaa Xonso. The chapter also displays the four dialects of Konso: Faashe, Karatte, Tuuro, and Xolme. The Konso are organized in nine exogamous clans, each with their own chief. They are predominantly farmers who are known for their indigenous terracing system. This chapter also stresses that the majority of the Konso people are monolingual. It then investigates the rate of bilingualism in Konso and Amharic, and argues that monolingualism in Amharic in the Konso zonal town of Karatte is beginning to show up among children born of native Konso. Ultimately, this chapter details the early studies of Konso phonology and morphology. It also looks at the Konso syntax, grammar, and ideophones.
Oromo
Authors: Banti Giorgio , Mazengia Shimelis
Published: May 2023

This chapter is devoted to Oromo, the Cushitic language with the highest number of speakers, which is also used as a second language in several areas of Ethiopia. After an introductory section on its history, sociolinguistics, dialectology and a brief survey of previous research, several aspects of its phonetics and phonology are discussed, also taking into account dialect variation. After a discussion of the official orthography of Oromo, and segmental and tonal sandhi, verbal and nominal morphology are analyzed, and other word classes such as adjectives, interrogatives and quantifiers are discussed. Then derivational morphology and compounds are surveyed. Furthermore, the structure of declarative and interrogative simple sentences, as well as coordination, co-subordination, and subordination are surveyed. After the discussion of focus phenomena and definiteness, agreement and phrasal case marking are surveyed in the final section.
Xamtanga
Authors: Darmon Chloé
Published: May 2023

This chapter examines the Central Cushitic (or Agaw) language spoken in the Wag Hemra Zone of the Amhara Region of Ethiopia: Xamtanga. Xamtanga is a working and educational language in the Wag Hemra Zone. The chapter argues that Xamtanga is employed as the primary medium of communication by all ages and in all domains in Ziqwala and Abergelle. Bilingualism in Amharic and/or in Tigrinya is extremely frequent. This chapter then explores the five dialects of Xamtanga: Soqota (South East), S’agibji (East), Ziqwala (Central), Semen/Sihalla (West), and Abergelle (North). Ultimately, the chapter analyzes the Xamtanga phonology, verbal morphology, nominal morphology, pronominal morphology, and pragmatics.
Geez (Old Ethiopic)
Authors: Tefera Amsalu , Bulakh Maria
Published: May 2023

This chapter introduces Old Ethiopic, which is also known as Geez. Geez was a spoken and a literary language amidst the Aksumite period and continued as the religious language of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church until the present time and the literary language of Christian Ethiopia until the 19th century. The chapter lists the phonological changes that took place in the Aksumite period in the consonant and vowel systems of Geez, the main phonological alternations, the basic facts on morphology, syntax, and pragmatics.
Mesqan
Authors: Shafi Ousman , Meyer Ronny
Published: May 2023

This chapter describes the Mesqan language. It is not used for writing and in official domains. Moreover, most Mesqan speakers are bilingual in Amharic. The chapter outlines the structure of verbs and nominals as the major word classes, and also deals with ideophones and interjections, which have a limited distribution. The verb derivation encompasses the prefixation for valency adjustment and reduplication to express the iterative, while nouns are derived from other nominals through suffixation. Additionally, the chapter looks into subject and object marking in Mesqan being differentiated through flagging and word order.