bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Training Students to Functionally Assess Elderly Clients in a Home Health Setting
Authors: Wilson Cindy C. , Netting F. Ellen
Published: March 2007

This article describes the use of the Functional Assessment Inventory (FAI) with elderly clients receiving in-home services from a private, nonprofit agency in Tennessee. As part of an interdisciplinary research study, BSW students were trained to use the FAI. Following training, students conducted 118 in-home assessments. Problems and benefits of using student interviewers to examine functional health status are examined in addition to the role of the student interviewers on a multidisciplinary team. Implications for training, incorporation of learning principles, experiential exercises and screening of interviewers are discussed.
Plush Animals and the Elderly
Authors: Francis Gloria , Munjas Barbara
Published: March 2007

We used an experimental design to test the hypotheses that the introduction of self-selected, plush animals to male residents of an intermediate-skill nursing home care unit will improve health self-concept, life satisfaction, psychologic well-being, psychosocial and mental function, and will decrease depression. The Roy adaptation model provided the theoretical basis; the plush animals were viewed as focal stimuli to improve environmental adaptation. We tested 62 subjects (mean age 75) from a Veterans Administration medical center. There were significant positive changes for the experimental group in all six variables from pretest to first posttest eight weeks later. The improvement was maintained to second posttest at 16 weeks except for mental function. The six variables are viewed as indicators of quality of psychosocial life.
Health Practices and Perceptions of Social Support in Persons Over Age Sixty
Authors: Hawley Peggy J. , Klauber Melville R.
Published: March 2007

This exploratory study investigated associations between health practices and perceptions of social support for 64 persons ages 60 to 75 years in San Diego, California. In general, elders who were satisfied with their relationships with other people engaged in more healthful practices than those who were not satisfied. Health practices had a stronger association with satisfaction with social support than with the number of supporters. The strongest linkages to health behaviors were variables concerned with communication with other people. Surprisingly, men showed significantly higher correlations between health habits and satisfaction with social support through sharing than women. Significant differences were found, however, between active and inactive elders. Frail, homebound elders had lower correlations between health practices and social support than the other two more active groups.
Suicide Among the Elderly: Hong Kong
Authors: Kwan Alex Yui-Huen
Published: March 2007

Hong Kong's present population is estimated at about 5.5 million; the number of people aged 60 and over is estimated to be 640,000 in mid-1986 (11.5% of the population). Industrialization and urbanization have been increasing rapidly over the past 30 years. Although responsible for Hong Kong's prosperity, they also have their negative effects such as the rapid increase of suicide among older persons. The results of a study examining the sociodemographic aspects of elderly suicide in Hong Kong from 1983 to 1986 are presented here. I used a secondary data analysis approach to trace back all reported elderly suicide cases within those years. After analysis, seven major recommendations are suggested to intervene and prevent future suicides of the elderly in Hong Kong.
Who are the Elderly Users of Public Transportation? A Case Study in Toledo, Ohio
Authors: Smith Bruce W. , Hiltner John
Published: March 2007

The lack of suitable transportation is a major problem of the elderly. Our purpose is to identify socioeconomic characteristics that differentiate between riders and nonriders of public and agency transportation in Toledo. A 1982 sample of 150 noninstitutionalized elderly provides the data base. Results of logistic regression analysis of the data indicate that the probability of ridingpublic transportation was highest for nondrivers, particularly those who live alone.
Primer on Private Philanthropy and Aging
Authors: Schreter Carol A. , Brummel Steven W.
Published: March 2007

Private foundations and corporate contributions programs have been directing less than 3% of their limited charitable funds to services for our elders. This literature review provides an overview perspective on foundations and corporate philanthropy, including current funding patterns, history and current scope, and pertinent developments to help community-based service providers understand and overcome barriers to developing modest local private sector funding sources.
Predictors of Social Isolation in Older Southern Adults: A Cross-Racial Analysis
Authors: Adams James P. , Kaufman Allan V. , Dressler William W.
Published: March 2007

Using data collected from a sample of older Mississippians, we examine whether race has a modifying effect on the predictors of three underlying dimensions of social isolation: interaction with relatives, feelings of loneliness, and interaction with friends and neighbors. The study shows similarities and differences between black and white respondents regarding those factors predictive of social isolation within each subgroup. These findings are helpful in developing profiles to describe those older blacks and whites who may be at greatest risk of experiencing social isolation.
Guided Autobiography with the Elderly
Authors: Wacks V. Quinton
Published: March 2007

Inspired by my experiences as a leader and instructor of various forms of life review groups and classes, this article provides the reader with a conceptual and experiential introduction to the uses of guided autobiography with the elderly. Functions and forms of and guidelines and methods for guided autobiography are examined. Seen as a historical and psychological process, guided autobiography is considered from a gerontological perspective. Specific topics and techniques for the facilitation of the life review process are recommended.
The Relationship Between Different Survey Measures of Health in an Elderly Population
Authors: Thorslund Mats , Norström Thor
Published: March 2007

Health surveys directed to the oldest old are becoming more and more common. There are many ways to measure health status but they have not always been adequately tested on the oldest old. This study analyzes interrelations among various health measures obtained through interviews and assessments. The analysis is based on a Swedish sample of 421 noninstitutionalized persons aged 75 years and older. First, a list of symptoms and complaints was analyzed, which yielded five factors: pains in the limbs, mental problems, stomach problems, heart problems, and respiratory problems. Next, two measures of global health—one self-rated and one nurse-rated—were regressed on these five illness factors. The self-rating seems the more global of the measures in that it was affected by a larger range of illness factors. Some research implications of the results are discussed.
State Regulation of the Supply of Long Term Care Providers
Authors: Harrington Charlene A. , Curtis Michael , Carrillo Helen , Bedney Barbara , Swan James H. , Nyman John A.
Published: March 2007

After the removal of the federal reguirements for certificate of need (CON) in 1986, the majority of states (40) and the District of Columbia retained their CON and/or added a moratorium on new nursing facilities and beds. Some states were also regulating the growth of other types of long term care (LTC) facilities and home health agencies. States with a CON and/or moratoria were more likely to have a greater non- White population, to have liberal politicians, and to have a lower capacity to raise taxes. When state financial budgets are limited, policymakers are likely to continue to regulate the supply of LTC providers.
Views of Elderly People Concerning End-of-Life Decisions
Authors: Cicirelli Victor G.
Published: March 2007

The aim of this study was to determine elders' views regarding the acceptability of seven end-of-life decision options; existing research provides only partial information. A total of 447 Black and White elders ages 60 to 100 years responded to 17 decision situations depicting conditions with a low quality of life, rating acceptability of each decision option. Mean percentage (over 17 decision situations) of participants finding each decision option acceptable were: striving to live, 52%; refusing or withdrawing treatment, 47%; letting someone close decide, 36%; suicide, 7%; assisted suicide, 12%; voluntary euthanasia, 12%; and allowing the physician to decide to end life, 19%. Views were related to age, ethnicity, education, occupation, and religious affiliation using MANOVA analyses.
Targets, Messages, and Channels for Educational Interventions on Urinary Incontinence
Authors: McFall Stephanie L. , Yerkes Adeline M.
Published: March 2007

This article documents a collaborative health agency-university community demonstration project on urinary incontinence in older women. The basic program-research division of respon sibility was blurred substantially in this collaboration. The article focuses on a telephone survey of 321 elderly women conducted as part of a needs assessment, which also served as baseline data in the evaluation of a public education initiative. The survey provided information for defin ing target populations, shaping educational messages, and selecting communication channels. The prevalence of involuntary urine loss was 34%, with 20% of all women reporting weekly in continence. There were few differences by continence status in health, sociodemographic char acteristics, orbeliefs about incontinence. Women used many communication channels for health information and had a preference for information from health professionals. Factors that con tributed to the collaborative relationship included technical expertise, diversity of expertise and perspectives, and the enhancement of capacity in collaborators.
On the Measurement of Social Roles Adaptations in the Prison Community
Authors: Thomas Charles W. , Foster Samuel C.
Published: March 2007

Research involving the social roles adopted by inmates is important. This article discusses the means of acquiring information on the type of position that an inmate has assumed and how this might aid those who are interested or involved in attempts to alter the attitudes and behavior of those inmates. The article's purpose is to examine both the extent to which this approach can discriminate between types of inmates and its potential as a predictor of other important aspects of adaptation to confinement.
Procedure and Politics in Program Evaluation
Authors: Stowell Gerald F.
Published: March 2007

The use of many evaluative techniques in criminal justice today are based on administrators' commitments, in advance, to the efficacy of specific programs. Two techniques that may be of particular value for these administrators that cannot afford honest evaluation are discussed. Program evaluation in its proper form is distinguished from program audits, and seven minimal methodological standards for good program evaluation are outlined. The hesitancy of many criminal justice administrators to embrace available research methods is attributed, in part, to their past experiences with research which has lacked methodological rigor, and/or has, in the minds of practitioners, been of questionable utility because of its abstract or theoretical nature. An additional factor bearing upon administrator acceptance of research is the use of independent vs. in-house researchers. Arguments for each approach are given, but it is suggested that a combination of the two approaches might be most efficacious. Finally, it is noted that program evaluation should be included in the initial planning stages of any program. Where this is not possible, one may attempt to ameliorate the tendency of entrenched programs to resist evaluative research by using non-threatening approaches to evaluation.
Social Definitions of Police Corruption: The Case of South City
Authors: Barker Thomas
Published: March 2007

The recent literature on the police has alluded to a "clean "and "dirty" money distinction among the various patterns of police corruption, and has suggested that police peer groups use this distinction to arrive at various social definitions of accepted and tolerated forms of police corrupt behavior. This study examines the existence of various social definitions of police corruption in one Southern police organization. The findings indicate that members of this police organization do draw such a distinction, and the perceived extent of ten patterns of corruption varies inversely with the perceived deviance or "wrongness" of the corrupt behavior in question.
The Logic of Court Reform: Is Frederick Taylor Gloating?
Authors: Hays Steven W.
Published: March 2007

Court reformers for the past 70 years have been advocating court unification. This reform has, within recent years, enjoyed amazing popularity. Dozens of states are presently considering and/or implementing structural and administrative consolidation of their judicial systems. Despite the significance of these reforms, little attention has been paid to the consequences and implications of judicial unification. The present undertaking represents an attempt to fill this void.

After discussing the underlying logic of court reform, the author assesses the utility of this "theory " relative to contemporary management thought. Because court unification was developed as a "cure-all," it suffers from overgeneralizations regarding the nature of state and local justice. Indeed, it is characterized as being in direct conflict with many of the most cherished aspects of local justice. A number of alternative reform strategies are offered as potential means of reconciling the need for competent judicial administration with a concern for local autonomy and other components of American judicial tradition.
Police Unions, the Judicial System, and the Development of Police Department Policy
Authors: Schachter Hindy Lauer
Published: March 2007

This research note reports on an exploratory case study to identify hypotheses concerning when and how police unions use the judicial system to influence the development and implementation of police department policy. The focus of the case study is on identifying conditions that facilitate police union recourse to the courts rather than to administrative or legislative channels to influence departmental policy and the effect of police union use of the courts.
Detective Work: The Criminal Investigation Process in a Medium-Size Police Department
Authors: Willman Mark T. , Snortum John R.
Published: March 2007

This research examined the criminal investigation process in a suburban police department through case-tracking of 5,536 crime reports. In addition, 3,243 hours of investigative activity were monitored through "detective logs"to provide a broader perspective on the criminal investigator's working day. Finally, 132 solved cases were closely examined in order to identify the procedures leading to success. The pattern offindings was similar to that obtained in the landmark study be' the Rand Corporation, i.e., that cases are "solved" largely through routine processing of information that is provided at the crime scene. Nevertheless, the study points to the importance of interrogation skills as a part of routine processing.
The Ideology of Victim Precipitation
Authors: Timmer Doug A. , Norman William H.
Published: March 2007

A review of the explicit and the implicit uses of the concept "victim precipitation" in criminology and the criminaljustice system is presented. The pervasiveness of the "ideology of victim precipitation" indicates that it is much more fundamental to the official American justice system and its crime prevention programs and strategies than is generally recognized or suspected. An analysis of the various contexts in which the concept is utilized or implied suggests that it is preceded, either directly or indirectly, by a particular political judgment about the nature of crime and its control or prevention. Specifically, criminological and justice system uses of "victim precipitation" assume consistently that crime is individually generated and, therefore, can only be individually prevented. At least two repressive ideological effectsflowfrom these assumptions of "victim precipitation": (1) an extreme form of victim-blame where the victims of crime are said to be a primary cause of their own victimization, and (2) underlying supportfor ineffective official crime prevention strategies and programs (in reality, "victim prevention" strategies and programs) that instruct citizens to take responsibility for their own criminal victimization ("dress less seductively," "leave your lights on," "lock or bar your window," etc.). The "ideology of victim precipitation" by blaming the individual crime victim only serves to divert attention and resources away from the structural causes of crime and the structural changes required by a less criminogenic society, and renders the existing social, political and economic orders more legitimate. In this way, the social relations required by capitalist society are reproduced by this ideology. It is concluded that the ideology of victim precipitation has no place in a progressive criminology or progressive criminal justice system that attempts to identify how crime is generated and prevented structurally. This criminology and criminal justice practice attempts to spot those social, political, and economic, institutional sources of crime in American society that must be transformed if crime is to be significantly controlled or prevented.
Criminality among Second-Generation Immigrants in Western Europe: A Review of the Evidence
Authors: Killias Martin
Published: March 2007

Since World War II, and particularly since the 1960s, there has been considerable migration from southern to northern Europe. As a result, a substantial second generation of young immigrants has emerged that has received considerable attention from criminologists in many countries over the last ten years. In this paper, the available literature is reviewed under three aspects: 1) Are immigrant youths subject to differential treatment by the police, prosecutors, or courts? 2) Are they disproportionately involved in crime and delinquency, compared to the native-born youths? 3) What are the factors that favor delinquent involvement among young immigrants? The evidence reviewed does not allow a satisfactory answer to these questions in light of existing methodological problems and inadequacy of data. It does suggest two things, however. The overrepresentation of young immigrants in the police statistics of many countries is not the result of discrimination against them; rather, some segments among the immigrant youths may be disproportionately involved in delinquent activities. The school system's ability to provide young immigrants with adequate educational opportunities and, concomitantly, success in the labor market seems to be most crucial in preventing delinquency among them.
The Uses of Research: Politics, Academics, and the Police in the United States of America and the Federal Republic of Germany
Authors: Fairchild Erika S.
Published: March 2007

This paper compares research that has been published within the past 20 years on police organization and operations in two countries, the United States of America and the Federal Republic of Germany. The research in the two countries is compared in terms of the influence of political and organizational forces on its quality and nature. After a period in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when academics in both countries, responding to the dramatic events of the 1960s, were engaging in similar kinds of research, the paths diverged because of the organizational forces that were at work on them. In Germany, disillusionment with the results of research, as well as other forces that existed in the German police organization, helped to bring about the end of field studies of police. Increasingly, research on policing has become informed by an abstract critical legal studies perspective. In the United States, under the influence of various forces including availability of federal government funds, research on policing has become pragmatic, geared toward better methods of crime control and fear reduction, and, compared to the earlier period, neglectful of basic questions about the police role and performance in American society.
Correctional Case Law: 1990
Authors: Maddex James L.
Published: March 2007

The following summaries of selected reported decisions of federal courts are intended to alert the reader to developments that might warrant further research with respect to the rapidly expanding corpus of corrections and detentions case law. The cases included in this survey were decided from the latter part of 1989 through 1990. This time frame was determined by the publication schedules of the Review and of the federal reporters in which the cases appear. As in the previous annual surveys, the reader is reminded that the cases summarized here do not serve as binding precedent beyond their respective jurisdictions, and that some of the decisions are being appealed and are therefore subject to possible modification or reversal.
The Adoption of Pre-Release Centers in the States
Authors: McGarrell Edmund F. , Duffee David E.
Published: March 2007

Although there is high concern among politicians, professionals, and the general public with the outcomes of correctional policies, there has been little systematic study of the factors that affect policy adoption. As the federal government steps up its initiatives to influence state and local policy directions, knowledge of policy uptake is increasingly important. Policy diffusion research provides some guidelines for the study of correctional policy adoption, although there are competing theories about the variation in policy adoption. This study explores the adoption of pre-release centers by the states in the 1970s, under a previous federal impetus to promote state policy change. The findings suggest greater support for institutional factors than for economic development factors in the implementation of pre-release centers, but they also suggest that caution is necessary in distinguishing symbolic from programmatic policy initiatives.
Dustiness of Compostable Waste: a Methodological Approach To Quantify the Potential of Waste To Generate Airborne Micro-Organisms and Endotoxin
Authors: Breum Niels O. , Nielsen Birgitte H. , Nielsen Eva M. , Midtgaard Uffe , Poulsen Otto M.
Published: March 2007

The objective of the present study was to assess the effect of different waste storage systems on the potential of the waste to emit airborne dust, micro-organisms and endotoxin. Batches of 8.8 kg of compostable waste were mcubated at 20°C for periods of 1-2 weeks in three different storage systems: a system with relatively free access of air (FA) to the waste (paper bags in the kitchen, paper sacks outside the house), a system with low access (LA) of air (plastic bags in the kitchen, a container outside the house), and an intermediate (IA) system (trash can in the kitchen, a container outside the house). The compostable waste was prepared in the laboratory using a standard recipe simulating average kitchen waste in Denmark Weight loss and temperature of the waste were recorded during the storage period. After incubation, the volume of percolate was determined and the dustiness of the waste was measured in terms of the potential of the waste to emit bio-aerosols in a rotating drum.

Storage in the FA system resulted in high weight loss of the waste (15-25% per week), a maximum temperature of 45°C and no percolate was observed. The LA system resulted in low weight loss (<3% per week), a temperature at ambient level and a volume of percolate less than 0.1 litre. Waste stored in the IA system was intermediate with a weight loss of 5-8% per week, a maximum temperature of 36°C and a volume of percolate less than 1 litre. Dustiness in terms of dust, endotoxin and micro-organisms was highly correlated to weight loss of the waste. Storage of the waste in the FA system resulted in extremely high concentrations of airborne micro-organisms in the rotating drum compared to that seen after storage in the LA system. The dustiness with respect to airborne Aspergillus fumigatus was at least a factor of 400 000 higher for FA waste compared to LA waste. The present method of testing dustiness of waste is considered important for the design of waste collection equipment and may therefore, over time, contribute to an improved air quality for the workers engaged in waste handling. © 1997 ISWA
Monitoring Gas Emissions From Landfill Sites
Authors: Boltze Uta , de Freitas Michael H.
Published: March 2007

Gas emission from landfill is related to both site conditions and environmental changes, yet almost no data are being gathered in the field to describe this linkage adequately. In this paper the results of a review of selected sites in the UK and Germany are presented: they illustrate how even continuous recording proves insufficient for the purpose of explaining gas emissions from site. Site stratigraphy must be known in some detail if either continuous or frequent recording is to be used meaningfully, because site stratigraphy largely governs the pathways available for gas migration. As shown in the example presented here, it is also necessary to add a record of site history to that of site stratigraphy and environmental change if records of gas emission with time are to be properly interpreted. © 1997 ISWA
Health risks of air pollution from incinerators: a perspective
Authors: Rabl A. , Spadaro J.V. , McGavran P.D.
Published: March 2007

This paper offers a perspective on the health impacts of air pollution from incinerators by making a number of compari sons in terms of emissions, concentrations, damages and dam age costs. The latter are estimated by an impact pathway anal ysis, tracing the fate of a pollutant from source to receptors. Linearity is assumed for the increase of damages with incre mental exposure. The monetary valuation is based on a valu ation of mortality in terms of years of life lost, rather than sim ply the number of premature deaths. The method is applied to the incineration of municipal solid waste (MSW) with emissions equal to the regulations proposed by the European Commission in 1994 for typical per capita MSW production. Even if all MSW is incinerated (in accordance with these reg ulations), the total health damage costs are relatively minor. Also, the impacts of dioxins and carcinogenic metals are small compared to those of particles, NOx and SOx.
Cultural approach to the perception of risk: analysing concern about the siting of a high-level nuclear waste facility in Finland
Authors: Litmanen Tapio
Published: March 2007

A study of local residents' attitudes toward the siting of a high-level nuclear waste facility in Finland was undertaken in three municipalities (Eurajoki, Kuhmo and Aänekoski) that are being considered possible host communities for the facility. The results of the survey show that opposition to the facility is quite strong in two of the three municipalities, while in the third a polarization of opinions into two opposing camps is evident. The size, social structure and substance of the local opposition and support are analysed. The thesis of the paper is that in order to understand different opinions about the facility, one must understand the cultural logic of risk perception. People evaluate the risk as individuals, but also as members of different reference groups and in the context of local, national and international circumstances.
Bottom ash from sludge cake as a barrier material to pollutant migration in landfills
Authors: Okoli Remigius Egwuonwu , Balafoutas George
Published: March 2007

Treated urban sewage sludge, which had been dewatered and dried in an open bed, was locally burnt in an open drum and bottom ashes were formed. This work investigated whether these bottom ashes of dried sludge cakes (SCbash)' produced by local labour and equipment, could be used as landfill covers or liners, a function normally served by clay. Laboratory tests were performed to determine the particle size distribution, Atterberg limits, compaction characteristics, hydraulic conductivity and shear strength parameters of the sludge cake. The effects of desiccation and freeze-thaw processes on the hydraulic conductivity of SCbash were also examined. It was found that properly compacted and stabilized SCbash has the requisite properties for use as landfill covers or liners. The SCbash can be compacted into a dense mass with a low hydraulic conductivity of the order of 1.15 X 10 -7 m s-1 (as a comparison, the hydraulic conductivity of compacted clay is around 10-9 m s-1). The compacted SCbash also showed good defence against the increases in hydraulic conductivity caused by desiccation and freeze-thaw processes compared with the data reported for compacted clays. The compacted SCbash also has a greater shear strength than is typically expected of compacted clay and therefore is likely to remain stable on a typical landfill slope design based on the shear strength of clay.
Airborne particulates in refuse-derived fuel plants
Authors: Mahar Seán
Published: March 2007

This study was intended to characterize commonly identified constituents of concern regarding airborne organic dust exposures in refuse-derived fuel (RDF) production facilities. Measurements were made of total and respirable particulates, total and respirable endotoxin, and total (viable plus non- viable) bioaerosols. Evaluation of particle size distribution was also made through sampling with an eight-stage personal cascade impactor. Sampling locations randomly chosen from a pool of locations frequented by plant personnel were rotated daily. The nature of the particulate at different stages of the RDF process was described through statistical comparisons. Electron microscopic examination of collected dust was conducted to observe particle morphology.
Effects of waste quality and landfill technology on the long-term behaviour of municipal landfills
Authors: Andreas Lale , Bilitewski Bernd
Published: March 2007

The pollution potential of old municipal landfills of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR) is not as bad as expected, even taking into consideration that most lack environmental protection systems. Compared with specific conditions in the former GDR (such as production and consumption), the disposal of waste and the long-term behaviour of landfills clearly differs from that in the old German federal states. Low quantities of deposited waste created slowly growing landfills, and therefore led to rapid degradation processes still in the aerobic milieu. As a result of the increasing similarity of waste quantities and composition in the new and old federal states after 1990, waste deposited today can be expected to have similar long- term behaviour and emissions as existing old Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) landfills which were operating during the 1970s and 1980s.
New Jersey Interest Arbitration Reform Act
Authors: Roberts Gary E. , Mcgill John R.
Published: March 2007

In 1996 the Arbitration Reform Act (ARA) made significant changes to New Jersey's system of binding interest arbitration for public safety employees A survey of management labor relations officials and an analysis of arbitration awards was conducted The survey results offered mixed support for meeting the legislative goals, including increasing arbitrator consideration of organizational fiscal capacity and reducing the rate ofgrowth in public safety compensation The analysis of awards indicated that the mean number of monetary and non-monetary issues submitted to arbitration increased, while in contrast to the survey results the average arbitrated wage increase decreased from its peak in the early nineties The strong economy with its high levels of economic growth, moderate inflation and low unemployment, in conjunction with enhanced arbitrator focus on fiscal capacity, are favorable factors for continued future moderate wage increases Recommendations for improving the arbitration process are provided
Dress Standards in Government: A National Survey of State Administrators
Authors: Bowman James S. , Lavater With Ronald
Published: March 2007

Clothing can be a potent symbol of social standing and professional position. Indeed, written and unwritten dress standards are common in organizations. This exploratory study presents the results of a national survey of state human resource managers. Five topic areas are examined: the general importance of attire in society and government; the role of personal appearance in organizations; sources of apparel standards; prevalence of codes in agencies; and respondent advice and questions about dress regulations.
Aids Related Attitudesamong Government Employees
Authors: Keeton Kato B.
Published: March 2007

A literature-based questionnaire containing measures of fear and knowledge of AIDS, respondent views of workplace consequences of AIDS, and AIDS as a public policy issue was administered to a random sample of government employees at the county, city, state, and federal levels in non-health services agencies located in one county in northwest Florida. Survey results and findings are presented along with recommendations to organizations for developing an AIDS training program.
Achieving Credibility
Authors: Rusaw A. Carol
Published: March 2007

Credibility, the essence of trust, is critical to the development of leadership skills among women managers in male-dominant organizations. This article describes credibility as an emergent theme in the accounts of fourteen women managers in five federal agencies. Women who established follower credibility exhibited three key behavioral patterns. (a) building a track record of success; (b) displaying technical competence; and (c) demonstrating a service ethic. The article discusses organizational obstacles encountered by women, effective strategies used, and derives implications for public personnel management.
Underground Merit Systems and the Balance Between Service and Compliance
Authors: Jorgensen Lorna , Fairless Kelli , Patton W. David
Published: March 2007

Current advocates of "reinvented" government call for more responsiveness to the needs of customers. This is true for internal as well as external customers, including government agencies seeking services from central personnel offices. Most states have adopted merit systems as a way to ensure open and competitive hiring for governmental service. The numerous rules and regulations that accompany these merit systems make the process of hiring qualified individuals slow and cumbersome and do not always ensure that the most qualified individuals are hired. This study of the state personnel system in Idaho reflects many of the problems that have been discussed by scholars and practitioners alike since the inception of the merit system. Agency officials are resolving these problems in an effort to be responsive to their customers by finding ways to circumvent many merit system rules in what has been referred to as an "underground" merit system.
The Reluctance of Federal Managers to Utilize Formal Procedures for Poorly-Performing Employees
Authors: Robisch Thomas G.
Published: March 2007

Since the enactment in 1978 of a new procedure to improve the administration of poor performers in the federal work force, the Crane Division of the Naval Surface Warfare Center has not removed or demoted anyone for poor performance. The reasons behind this failure include both conditions present throughout the federal government, and unique Crane Division cultural influences which combine to result in an organizational inability to execute performance-based actions
Mediating Employment Disputes
Authors: Bingham Lisa B.
Published: March 2007

This study examines employee and supervisor evaluations of their experience with mediation of Equal Employment Opportunity complaints. Using the procedural justice and social account theories, it finds that participants' satisfaction with the outcome of mediation is a function of control over the mediation process, opportunitves to present their views and participate in mediation, mediator fairness, and the fact that the mediator treated them with respect. In addition, satisfaction with outcome was sagnificantly related to whether the participant perceived the dispute to be resolved, the speed of mediation, the outcome relative to what they expected, and their perception that the mediation would have a long-term effect
Working for America
Authors: Naff Katherine C. , Crum John
Published: March 2007

Considerable research has asked whether public sector employees have different values and respond to different incen tives than private sector employees Recently, Jim Perry developed a scale designed to measure this construct, which he calls "public service motivation " We examine the relationship between public service motivation and federal employ ees' attitudes and behavior by examining responses of nearly 10, 000 federal employees to a recent survey Even though the survey only contained a subset of Perry's scale, we found significant relationships between public service motivation and federal employees' job satisfaction, performance, intention to remain with the government, and support for the government's reinvention efforts
Planning for Metropolitan Sustainability
Authors: Wheeler Stephen M.
Published: March 2007

This article establishes a framework for thinking about sustainable development in the metropolitan context by investigating the origins of the sustainability concept and its meanings when applied to urban development, surveying historical approaches to planning the urban region, and analyzing ways in which a context can be created for regional sustainability planning. Sustainability is seen as requiring a holistic, long-term planning approach, as well as certain general policy directions such as compact urban form, reductions in automobile use, protection of ecosystems, and improved equity. Based on the experience of three sample regions, the article suggests a long-term strategic approach in which vision statements, coalition building, institutional development, intergovernmental incentive frameworks, indicators, public involvement, and social learning help create a regional context in which sustainable development is increasingly possible.
Being Roughly Right Rather Than Precisely Wrong: Teaching Quick Analysis in Planning Curricula
Authors: Patton Carl V.
Published: March 2007

Many public policy decisions are made quickly and are based on cursory analyses Often there is little time for research Planners and policy analysts on the front lines need to have a grasp of methods that can produce roughly right results which will be available in time to have an impact on policy This article presents an overview of quickly-applied methods and discusses how they might be incorporated into planning curricula
The Yonkers Case and Its Implications for the Teaching and Practice of Planning
Authors: Feld Marcia Marker
Published: March 2007

This article explores the policy deci sions made in Yonkers, New York on the siting of low-income public housing projects during the past forty years and the effects of these decisions on the community. The consistent siting of these projects in one area, southwest Yonkers, has re sulted in a segregated city, where most of the minority population lives in one neighborhood. This situ ation was in part responsible for the segregation of the public school sys tem. The practice of unethical deci sion making by the planners in Yon kers suggests a need for more planners focusing on issues of professional ethical decision making in potentially hostile practice envi ronments.
Racial Discrimination in Housing Markets during the 1980s: A Review of the Audit Evidence
Authors: Galster George
Published: March 2007

Seventy-one fair housing audits em ploying interracial teams of matched investigators who posed as home seekers are reviewed. The audits re veal that racial discrimination con tinues to be a dominant feature of metropolitan housing markets in the 1980s. Black auditors seeking homes for sale faced a one-in-five chance, blacks seeking rental dwellings faced a one-in-two chance, and Hispanics seeking rental dwellings faced a one- in-three chance, on average, of being discriminated against.
Microeconomics and Planning: Using Simple Diagrams to Illustrate the Economics of Traffic Congestion
Authors: Heikkila Eric J.
Published: March 2007

This instructional piece, designed for planning students at the graduate or undergraduate level, uses a sequence of diagrams to illustrate fundamental economic concepts related to traffic congestion. The level of congestion that arises in a transportation system in the absence of policy intervention is contrasted with the optimum planner's-solution. Four alternative policies are evaluated: do nothing, expand supply, restrict demand, and implement tolls. The presentation offered here differs from that found in traditional urban textbooks in three ways. First, eleven diagrams are used instead of the usual two or three. Second, the entire analysis is encapsulated within this article so prior training in economics is not required. Third, a persistent reference is made to the planner's point of view.
Enhancing the Capacity of Community-Based Organizations in East St. Louis
Authors: Reardon Kenneth M.
Published: March 2007

This article describes the efforts of students and faculty from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to strengthen the organizing, planning, and development capacity of community-based organizations seeking to enhance the quality of life in East St. Louis's poorest residential neighborhoods. The article demonstrates the effectiveness of the university's empowerment planning approach to capacity-building that integrates the concepts and methods of participatory action research, direct action organizing, and critical theory into a new paradigm for community planning. The article concludes with a preliminary assessment of the empowerment planning approach's effectiveness in capacity-building in East St. Louis.
Who Are the Suburban Homeless and What Do They Want? An Empirical Study of the Demand for Public Services
Authors: Crane Randall , Takahashi Lois M.
Published: March 2007

Homelessness became a focus for planners and scholars over the past decade, but our understanding of the nature and extent of its associated problems remains unclear in many critical respects. We know homelessness affects a diverse population. We also know that, in addition to needing shelter, homeless persons draw on a variety of social services. For various reasons, however, the matching of services and shelter problems to individual characteristics is often ad hoc. This is a mounting concern as the pool of homeless persons diversifies even further. Based on a unique survey of the homeless population in Orange County, California, we employ a carefully constructed behavioral framework to link individual and structural circumstances to preferences for aid. We find that though the sample is diverse, financial problems dominate while medical problems, substance abuse, and financial needs are often unrelated. Further, these patterns do not generally vary by race and only rarely by gender. The results inform not only the targeting strategy of the community planning process, but also our broader understanding of poverty-related housing and public service demands outside the inner-city.
Identifying Gainers and Losers from Transit Service Change: A Method Applied to Sacramento
Authors: Thompson Gregory L..
Published: March 2007

This paper proposes a method for determining one part of an equity analysis of transit service change: who benefits from the change. The method defines census tract accessibility indices that measure how well residents can reach desired destinations by transit. By measuring transit door-to-door travel time before and after a major transit investment or service change, a planner may estimate the change in benefit accruing to each census tract. Changed benefits then may be compared to the income of each tract and the cost incidence borne by each tract. The method is illustrated by applying it to a controversial light rail system introduced in Sacramento, California, and a subsequent bus restructuring that included eliminating many express bus routes that linked distant neighborhoods with the central business district. Conventional equity analyses comparing travel time of suburb-to-CBD riders before and after the change, or comparing the income of rail and bus riders, likely would have concluded that the change made transit riders worse off, or benefitted primarily wealthier riders. This analysis, based on accessibility change experience by all transit riders, came to opposite conclusions.
Variations in the Economic Integration of Immigrant and U.S.-Born Mexicans
Authors: Padilla Yolanda C. , Glick Jennifer E.
Published: March 2007

This article analyzes the factors that explain the lower earnings of Mexican immigrants relative to natives and explores whether some of the discrepancies in immigrant-native earnings reflect different patterns of income attainment between the two groups. Using data from the 1990 Panel Study of Income Dynamics/Latino National Political Survey, a series of incremental regression models are conducted. Separate models for immigrants and natives reveal that education, occupation, and metropolitan location have a large positive effect on the earnings of native-born Mexican men but no significant effect on immigrants. For immigrants, work experience in the United States increases earnings. Working in manufacturing and living in the South significantly decrease the earnings of immigrants. However, both benefit substantially from union membership. The findings suggest that policy interventions to improve the socioeconomic status of Mexican Americans need to be responsive to different patterns of economic integration.
Change Processes in Family Therapy with Hispanic Adolescents
Authors: Robbins Michael S. , Mitrani Victoria B. , Zarate Monica , Pérez Gonzalo A. , Coatsworth J. Douglas , Szapocznik José
Published: March 2007

Changes in within-session family interaction patterns were examined over the course of Brief Strategic Family Therapy with Hispanic adolescents referred for treatment of behavior problems. Family structure and conflict resolution style were examined at four points in therapy. Participants were 4 Hispanic adolescents and their families that received a full dose of family therapy. Families were selected from a large sample of families that participated in a randomized study. Two cases that showed significant improvement and two cases that showed deterioration on measures ofconduct disorder completed at pre-and post-treatment were randomly selected from the larger pool of cases. In-session results demonstrated a linear trend ofimprovement in family interaction in successful outcome cases, although in unsuccessful outcomes family interactions did not improve or worsened throughout therapy. Findings support the importance of examining in-session therapy processes to shed light on how family therapy is efficacious with behavior problem Hispanic youth.
Attitudes Toward Suicide Among Mexican American and Anglo Youth
Authors: Domino George
Published: March 2007

A suicide opinion questionnaire (SOQ) was administered to 76 Mexican Americans and 76 Anglos, equated on several demo graphic dimensions. An item analysis yielded statistically signifi cant differences on 35 of the 100 SOQ items. These items centered on the following themes: religion, psychopathology, aggression-impulsivity, acceptability of suicide, the "cry for help" dimension, and emotional impact. The implications of these findings are discussed briefly.