bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Acculturation Attitudes of Kharwar and Agaria Tribal Groups of Sonebhadra
Authors: Mishra R.C. , Chaubey A.C.
Published: March 2007

Social and cultural change is a phenomenon witnessed by almost all the societies in today's world. Some of these changes take place due to the internal dynamics of the concerned societies, but many seem to be governed by dynamics external to them. Characterising the situation of acculturation, changes of the latter kind have generated significant research in many parts of the world, with the main focus on immigrant groups. In the present study the accul turation attitudes of the Kharwar and Agaria tribal groups living in Sonebhadra region of Uttar Pradesh were analysed, using Berry's model of acculturation. Findings revealed that the level of contact-acculturation of these groups did not differ significantly in spite of the fact that the Kharwar had been in contact with the outside world for a relatively longer period of time than the Agaria. No evidence of significant differences was found in their integration, assimilation and marginalisation attitudes towards acculturation. On the other hand, Agaria displayed a significantly stronger separation attitude than the Kharwar. Step wise MRA revealed that in both the groups, contact-acculturation was a significant predictor of integration and separation attitudes.
Self-efficacy and Wellbeing in Working and Non-working Women: The Moderating Role of Involvement
Authors: Sahu F.M. , Rath Sangeeta
Published: March 2007

The primary purpose of the present investigation was to examine the perceived self-efficacy of working and non-working women in the context of involvement. An attempt was also made to examine the association between self-efficacy and wellbeing. The study adopted a two (working and non-working) × two (involved and less-involved) factorial design. A total of 240 women (120 working and 120 non-working) participated in the study. The non-working women were categorised into involved and less-involved subgroups on the basis of the median split of their scores on family involvement. However, working women were categorised into similar subgroups on the basis of combined scores of their family and work involvements. The participants of all fourgroups were compared with respect to their perceived self-efficacy. The result indicated working women's higher self-efficacy compared with non-working women. Similarly involved women showed more self-efficacy than non-involved women. The result also revealed a strong association between self-efficacy and wellbeing.
Understanding and Managing Multiculturalism: Some Possible Implica tions of Research in Canada
Authors: Berry J.W.
Published: March 2007

This paper outlines the nature of multiculturalism in Canada and examines such psychological constructs as security, contact, similarity and prejudice that have been used to study it. It reviews empirical findings involving the dominant and acculturating groups and weighs the problems and prospects for the policy of multiculturalism in Canada. The implications of this work for developing societies are pointed out.
The Chinese Single-Child Family Programme and Population Psychology1
Authors: Jing Qicheng
Published: March 2007

Following the Chinese population explosion in the early 1950s and late 1960s, the implementation of the single-child family planning programme in the 1970s caused a drastic decline in the natural growth rate of population in China. In this paper demographic data are presented to show population growth at various periods in Chinese history. The socio-psychological effects and problems encountered in the administration of the Chinese single-child family policy in recent decades are discussed. A population cycle caused by the abrupt change in population may last for 60 to 80 years until the mid-21st century. Around A.D. 2010 when there will be about equal number of children and old people in the Chinese society, a dilemma betweenparental investment and successor's investment may occur. The long-term consequence of the single-child family policy would be an aged society with more elders than children in society. A support system must therefore be designed as a mechanism to keep the Chinese three generation family system intact to care for the old. Grandparenting is suggested as a means to maintain inter-dependence in the family to cope with the dynamics of the changing inter-generation patterns. Classical Confucian ideology is considered important to maintain the traditional Chinese social institutions and ethical values.
Gender, Family and Property Rights
Authors: Kodoth Praveena
Published: March 2007

The structures and practices of families are crucial in determining gender-differentiated patterns of access to land and other forms of property/productive resources. However, major redistributional or reform programmes such as that of land have failed to take this into account. This paper addresses, conceptually, women's and men's claims to land/property in terms of via more recent land reforms experience to discuss the importance to property reform of a gendered understanding of the family. Besides, it attempts to probe the direction of change in property-related practices, including inheritance, dowry and residence, in contemporary Kerala to understand the implications of the emerging practices for women's property rights.
Women's Decision to Undergo Abortion: A Study Based on Delhi Clinics
Authors: Rabindranathan Sunanda
Published: March 2007

Despite being a serious reproductive health issue for women, the sensitivity of the topic coupled with the difficulty of obtaining any information has resulted in very few qualitative studies on 'induced abortion'. This paper is based on a study conducted by interviewing abortion seekers in Delhi. The various reasons for a woman's decision to undergo abortion; the association of these reasons with socio-economic charac teristics, gestation and decision making; incidence of repeated abortions; and level of knowledge of contraception and contraceptive history of the abortion seeker have been investigated. The paper emphasises the importance of correct knowledge about contraceptive methods to avert unintended pregnancies and, consequently, abortions.
The Uruguayan Basic Scientists' Migrations and Their Academic Articulation around the PEDECIBA
Authors: Barreiro Adriana , Velho Léa
Published: March 2007

The so-called 'Programa de Desarrollo de las Ciencias Basicas-PEDECIBA' (Basic Science Development Programme) was launched in Uruguay at the end of the 1980s in order to make possible the rearticulation of the local basic scientists' academic community. The whole system of science and technology was highly affected by thirteen years of military dictatorship. One of the main objectives of the basic science community, during the redemocratisation process, was to create the conditions for the consolidation of a permanent infrastructure for the development of basic sciences, namely, Biology, Chemistry, Information and Computer Science, Mathematics and Physics.

One of the basic conditions in order to attain that goal was the repatriation of a great number of the Uruguayan scientists who had left the country during the 1970s. It is important to point out that Uruguayan scientists who lived abroad had expressed a desire to return to their country, and to collaborate with their peers who had remained in Uruguay to develop a collective and self-managed effort.

In this paper migration waves observed within the Latin American scientific community and those related to the exodus and return of Uruguayan basic scientists are discussed; exploring the reasons, motives and assumptions underlying the return of scientists. Furthermore, some data are presented to help understand PEDECIBA's significance both in terms of the rearticulation of the knowledge generation system and in the reconstruction of the basic sciences' environment.
Comparative History of Modern Science and the Context of Dependency
Authors: Paty Michel
Published: March 2007

Historical studies on the place of science in the development of nations and in the relation ships between the more wealthy powers and dependent countries have succeeded in broad ening the field of history of science to embrace situations and problems not previously appreciated. Such investigations help broaden the notion of science in keeping with what is really experienced in practice by taking several factors into account: the actors in science and technology, the content of knowledge, the context, and the social and cultural im plications. If the 'different' research approaches are confronted (involving studies of spa tially and temporally well-defined subjects according to discipline, etc.), they provide essen tial elements for comparative analysis which can trace the structural features of the diffusion, conjunction and integration of different sciences. These elements allow us to identify some significant epistemological problems posed by this rich chapter in the history of science.
Tax-Farming in the Early Ottoman State
Authors: Fleet Kate
Published: March 2007

While tax-farming is often thought of in negative terms, its application in the early Ottoman state may well have been beneficial for economic development. Tax-farming seems to have been in operation from at least the later fourteenth century and may simply have been taken over by the early Ottoman rulers as a system already in operation in Byzantine territory. It is possible to argue that tax-farming also existed in the Turkish states of Aydin and Mentese from the beginning of the century.
The Quantity Theory and Mughal Monetary History
Authors: Haider Najaf
Published: March 2007

Until now, the study of Mughal money was dictated either by the concerns of numismatic analyses or by the need to define its position in a given economic structure. While the former was confined to the technical aspects of specie- money, the latter was preoccupied mostly with the theoretical implications of monetary movements on an aggregate scale. In both cases, the historical conditions responsible for shaping the monetisation of the Mughal economy remained understudied. This essay examines the concepts and framework derived from the quantity theory of money and deployed in recent approaches to the study of the Mughal monetary economy. By offering a critique of the methodology adopted to evaluate money supply and price movements, it stresses the need for an inductive study of historical material in order to refine the current picture and to extend existing knowledge of the subject beyond macro-economic modelling.
Family Planning and the Scheduled Tribes of Rajasthan: Taking Stock and Moving Forward
Authors: Singh L.P. , Srinivasan K.
Published: March 2007

In this paper an attempt has been made to document the reasons for low acceptance of family planning methods among the scheduled tribes of Rajasthan, India. Three tribal groups-the Bhils, Garassias and Meenas-were selected for detailed investigations. The study was conducted using in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. The respondents included, among others, community members, community leaders, eligi ble couples and the service providers of the area. The results of the study show that resistance to family planning is due to sociocultural and socioeconomic factors, the user's knowledge of and access to contraceptive methods and the attitude of the service providers towards the beneficiaries. The sociocultural factors include, among otbers, polygamy, the felt need for a large number of sons to defend and preserve family hon our, prevalence of nata system and the excessive use of alcohol among men. One socio economic factor is the huge amount of compensation to be paid to one's wife's parents in case of her sterilisation. One of the salient findings of the study is an almost non- existent client-provider relationship. Based on the findings of the study a plan has been suggested to address this weakness. This plan advocates basic changes in the state policy in order to make family planning acceptable to tribal groups.
Budgetary Subsidies in the Health Sector: The Case of Gujarat
Authors: Dholakia Archana R. , Dholakia Ravindra H.
Published: March 2007

In this article, budgetary subsidies in the health sector in Gujarat are estimated by following the methodology of the discussion paper on subsidies (Government of India [GOI (1997)] after duly recognising several problems with it. The 1997 methodology includes both the explicit and implicit subsidies for the merit and non-merit sub-sectors in the state. These subsidies are estimated for the years 1995-96 to 1999-2000. The cost recovery rates in the health sector are also esti mated and compared to the major states in the country. Gujarat's case is compa rable to other major states in the health sector. Implicit subsidies are more dominant than the explicit subsidies in this sector. Very low-cost recovery rates in the sector are associated with serious problems in the public provision of health care services in the state. After briefly discussing some of these problems, required reforms to reduce the subsidies in this sector are suggested.
The East Asian Crisis of 1997-98: Implications for India
Authors: Bhanoji Rao V.V.
Published: March 2007

The erstwhile East/Southeast Asian miracle economies were hit by a sudden crisis in 1997. What started as a currency depreciation in Thailand in July of that year developed into an all-out financial and economic crisis enveloping all the major economies in the region. They were adversely affected in the second half of 1997 and the whole of 1998. This article traces the evolution of the East Asian crisis and, based on the overall review, draws a few lessons for the Indian economy and society.
Orissa Finances and Fiscal Impact of PSUs
Authors: Chaudhuri Swapan Kanti
Published: March 2007

This article has examined the fiscal indicators of Orissa, and the findings suggest a persistent deterioration in fiscal balances. The states' own revenue collection falls far short of expenditure on salaries/pension and the interest payments. The revenue deficit is now the major component of fiscal deficit which has resulted in crowding out of capital outlay in physical and social infrastructure. With overwhelming borrowings, the state has also entered into a debt trap, and nothing less than a comprehensive package for fiscal reforms can pull it out. The article has also analyzed the fiscal impact of providing continuous budgetary support to the inefficient and loss making PSUs. It is estimated that the state government has so far committed resources, including hidden subsidies and guarantees, to the tune of half a billion rupees or I million US dollar per day, which have gone mainly to meet the losses of the PS Us. The state's borrowings on this account is responsible for nearly a 1 per cent point of fiscal deficit, measured as a percentage of nominal GSDP. In the final section, some concluding remarks are offered.
Strategic Human Resource Management Approaches to Workforce Diversity in Japan—Harnessing Corporate Culture for Organizational Competitiveness1
Authors: McDonald Darren
Published: March 2007

Japanese human resource management (HRM) is currently faced with challenges that have emerged from the increasing diversity among employees. This study surveyed five companies (in the food, chemical, trade, and education sectors), focusing on three types of diversity—employment structures, values held by different generations, and gender. Drawing from the survey results, this paper attempts to provide guidelines for formulating contingent proactive HRM approaches in managing diversity and to harness corporate culture in achieving organizational competitiveness.
GLOBALIZATION, NATURALIZATION AND IDENTITY
Authors: Chiba Naoki , Ebihara Osamu , Morino Shinji
Published: March 2007

This article seeks to draw attention to the phenomenon of the so-called `borderless athletes' who transcend ethnicity or national borders in the sporting world. This approach applies Fukuoka's (1993) conceptual framework to clarify how the identities of these `global' athletes are defined and accepted within Japan. In general, the article focuses on the naturalization of `sports stars' in Japan in terms of governing bodies and sports associations. In particular the study examines the case of Canadian-born players in Japanese ice hockey, the strengthening of nationalism in the case of soccer star Waguner Lopes and the role of the media. Overall, the article addresses the assimilation of particular foreign athletes as a result of globalization into the Japanese sporting world and their subsequent transformation within local Japanese culture.
MAKING SOCCER A `KICK IN THE GRASS'
Authors: Satterlee Thom
Published: March 2007

Soccer's popularity in the United States surged during the mid-1970s when Pelé played in this country. Although the Brazilian star certainly deserves credit for the interest he brought to both professional and youth soccer, acknowledgment is also owed to the writers of mainstream periodicals who presented the sport to a largely ignorant and apathetic audience. An analysis of several print sources published during Pelé's three seasons with the New York Cosmos reveals that the media was chiefly concerned with simultaneously entertaining and educating their assumed audience of largely new or unconverted soccer fans. Moreover, the rhetorical strategies employed by these writers effectively undercut decades-old stereotypes and presented the sport in a way that was more appealing to the `average American'.
The Paradox of Social Class and Sports Involvement
Authors: Wilson Thomas C.
Published: March 2007

Studies in the sociology of sport have found that the higher one's social class, the greater is one's overall involvement in sports, but the less likely is one's involvement in what have come to be called `prole' sports. Using data from the 1993 General Social Survey, this study tests two explanations for this paradox, one stressing class-based differences in cultural capital and the other emphasizing class-based differences in economic capital. Findings show that those who are richest in cultural capital and those richest in economic capital are most likely to be involved in sports generally, and that these tendencies are independent of one another. However, those richest in cultural capital are least likely to be involved in `prole' sports, and economic capital has no bearing on `prole' sports involvement. In all, cultural capital explains the paradox of social class and sports involvement better than economic capital does. Inferences are drawn for the role of sports involvement in the reproduction of social inequality, and for the `cultural omnivore' thesis.
Social Sports Stratification in Flanders 1969-1999
Authors: Scheerder Jeroen , Vanreusel Bart , Taks Marijke , Renson Roland
Published: March 2007

This article provides substantial empirical evidence that significant social differences exist in sports involvement in Flanders. A 30-year follow-up study of social stratification in sports was carried out to find out (i) if sports participation in Flanders is still socially stratified, and (ii) if social changes occurred in the status sports pyramid over the years of investigation. Based upon the educational status, the professional status and the geographical status of male and female adults in Flanders, social stratification pyramids in sport were set up for 1969, 1979, 1989 and 1999. Although the amount of sports participation from 1969 until 1999 has increased for each socioprofessional status, a significant difference persists between the high and the low professional levels ( X² test for trend = 85.90; p<0.0001; df=1). The 1999 social sports pyramid continues to be socially stratified, and therefore confirms that sports participation still depends on socioprofessional status.
Olympic Arts
Authors: Stevenson Deborah
Published: March 2007

The charter of the International Olympic Committee prescribes that a `fine arts' event be held in conjunction with the sporting programme as an equally important aspect of the official Olympic Games calendar. As part of the staging of the 2000 Olympic Games, the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games is responsible for organizing and staging a `cultural' programme. Despite its centrality to the charter and ideals of the Olympic movement, the Cultural Olympiad has been greatly overshadowed by the frenetic nationalism, spectacle and media hype which surrounds the sporting events. This article sets out to explore the Sydney 2000 Cultural Olympiad in the context of the contending political agendas which are shaping the proposed programme. Also considered briefly are the discourses of identity — local, national and global — that will be mobilized, contested and defined through this festival of Olympic arts.
LOCAL HEROES
Authors: Renson Roland , De Cramer Eddy , De Vroede Erik
Published: March 2007

Compared to modern sport, that is to say the highly standardized Olympic disciplines that are practised in many parts of the world, traditional sports and games tend to be confined to a limited geographical area and are often referred to as `national' or `local'. They are often regarded as symbols of ethnic or regional identity and are therefore called `folk games'. Although these traditional sports and games are at the origin of almost all modern sports, they are too often treated as the Cinderellas of modern sports. Their participants may be local heroes, but the cultural stereotype of these `folk-gamesters' is that of an elderly rustic working-class male. To test this popular belief, the social profile was studied of the participants in 30 different traditional games in Flanders, Belgium. The data available in the Flemish Folk Games File in Leuven were analysed according to age, sex, socioprofessional status and degree of urbanization of the dwelling area. The results show a variegated picture, the profiles varying strongly from one traditional game to another. They show nevertheless that the above mentioned stereotype is confirmed for three out of the four assumptions. These participants are indeed elderly, lower-class males, but they stem from an urban environment rather than from the rural milieu.
LOCAL/GLOBAL FLOWS AND ALTERED PRODUCTION PRACTICES
Authors: Silk Michael
Published: March 2007

This article argues that empirical considerations of production processes have been largely neglected in discussions of the global/local flows associated with telecasting mass-mediated sport. An ethnographically oriented analysis of the labor processes involved in televising the 1995 Canada Cup of Soccer (CCS) was conducted in order to establish the contexts, pressures, and discourses that operate at the level of production. The article focuses on how conditions created by global capitalism altered the labor processes involved in the production of the event. As a result, the crew's interpretations of the CCS operated both within and through a consumer-oriented global logic.
Changing Perspectives on International Higher Education
Authors: de Wit Hans
Published: March 2007

Forty years ago, Title VI of the National Defense Education Act was an important instrument used by the American government to provide aid for foreign languages and area studies development. In April 1998, Indiana University organized a conference in Washington, D.C., to celebrate this 40th anniversary titled “International Education in American Colleges and Universities: Prospect and Retrospect.” Two publications (Indiana University Press) were the result of the conference. The first, Globalization and the Challenge of a New Century: A Reader, edited by Patrick O’Meara, Howard D. Mehlinger, and Matthew Krain, was published in 2000 and is intended for university classroom use. A second publication, Changing Perspectives on International Education, was published in 2001 and edited by O’Meara and Mehlinger together with Roxana Ma Newman. The editors intended to provide university administrators, policy makers, and educational planners with a historical perspective on the accomplishments of Title VI programs and new insights into the directions currently affecting international studies.
Trade Talk: An Analysis of the Impact of Trade Liberalization and the General Agreement on Trade in Services on Higher Education
Authors: Knight Jane
Published: March 2007

The international dimension of higher education is now becoming a major issue of discussion in trade talks and negotiations around the world. Why? Because education is one of 12 service sectors covered bythe General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). The current debate on the impact of GATS is rather polarized. Critics focus on the threat to the role of government, public good, and qualityaspects of higher education. Supporters highlight the benefits that more trade can bring in terms of innovation through new deliverysystems and providers and greater student access and economic value. This article aims to take a balanced approach and examines both the risks and opportunities that GATS can bring to the higher education sector and tries to identifyimplications and directions for higher education policy.
Bringing in the Strategy
Authors: Ollikainen Aaro
Published: March 2007

Since 1996 the European Union's Socrates/Erasmus programme has employed a new administrative system based on the Institutional Contract (IC). The application of the IC includes a three-page European Policy Statement, the purpose of which is to make the actual application of the IC intelligible and to serve as a "brochure", that sketches out the strengths and areas of special expertise of the higher education institution.

In this article, the European Policy Statements of the 93 Finnish Socrates IC applications on the first application round based on the Institutional Contract (deadline 1st July 1996) are examined. Answers to the following research questions are sought: What are the underlying rationales for the internationalisation of higher education institutions within the framework of their Socrates strategies? What combination of international activities do these institutions wish to exercise? Do they advance internationalism on all fields of study, or are there certain prioritisations? How much institutional support is given to internationalisation? How much emphasis is given to certain topical and potentially sensitive issues (gender equality and disabled students)? How is internationalisation monitored and evaluated?

Most of the higher education institutions had succeeded in compiling a coherent European Policy Statement - although they had employed different strategies of self-profiling. The universities operating in the metropolitan area underlined their national significance for Finnish science, culture and industry and for their recognition abroad. Universities, polytechnics and vocational colleges operating in peripheral regions underlined their importance for the local export industry, local economy and the community in general.

Throughout the field of Finnish higher education institutions, the most important rationale for internationalisation was the enhancement of the quality of education. The second most prominent rationale was economic: improving the professional abilities and the labour market prospects of the students and thus supporting the regional or national economy. The third most prominent rationale made reference to developing the cultural communication capabilities and the personal profile of students. The political rationale of supporting peaceful international relations and a deeper integration of Finland into the European Union was mentioned only occasionally.

There was also a clear order of priorities among the measures to be developed. Student exchange is the cornerstone of international cooperation and is pursued by practically all institutions. Teacher exchange is also very popular and seems to benefit from contacts initially established for student exchange. Implementation of the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) forms a natural and necessary supplement to exchanges. Curriculum development and intensive programmes, on the other hand, were present in fewer strategies.
Literacy of Professionals in Transnational Contexts of Practice: The Case of the Regulated Clobalized Profesions in the USA
Authors: Miller Bradley D.
Published: March 2007

Over the last fifty years, literacy and its study have moved considerably beyond the ability solely to read and write; it may be now viewed as a centrally mediating factor to interpret the signs engraved into the texts of our experiences and the fulcrum to participate more fully in our public and our private worlds. Addressing the professional domains of literacy practices, this is a descriptive study designed to investigate bow professionals experience and use literacy skills and literate behaviors in transnational contexts practice.

Using an ethnographic methodology and multi-method strategies, data gathering and analysis of this study are focused on providing a deeper understanding of the patterns of cross-border professional literacy engagements of the regulated U.S. professions in construction and design, business and finance, allied health, and technology and engineering.

The results of the study indicate that across the affinity groupings mentioned above, professionals in transnational contexts of practice operate within at least five categories of literacy engagement: resources, people, information, systems, technology, with literacy skills and literate behaviors being directed principally toward working with people and systems overseas. 7he study alsoyieldeda series of professional practice literacy insights drawn from thematic congruencies across the data sets.
`What an Ugly Baby!'
Authors: Sally David
Published: March 2007

The understanding of coordination games has increased greatly over the last thirty years through advances in game theory and tests in experimental economics laboratories. A given utterance, of necessity, is a puzzle and creates a coordination game of meaning. The solution principles used in this game should be consistent with those found in all coordination games, and can explain certain elements of pragmatics: in particular, when a speaker can successfully employ irony, metaphor, humor, hints, indirectness, and implication.
Subjective Rationality and the Explanation of Social Behavior
Authors: BOUDON RAYMOND
Published: March 2007

This article discusses the central role of subjective rationality in the social sciences, particularly sociology. Actions need not produce good outcomes to be subjectively rational, but need only be carried out for reasons seen as good by the actor. The article examines a class of reasons that are both good (that is, subjectively rational) and invalid, that is, not objectively rational. An imaginary dialogue between David Hume and Anthony Downs is used to illustrate the way in which the apparent irrationality of ideology can be incorporated into subjective rationality. The social use of magic and the case of false beliefs are examined as further examples in the same class. Finally, the way in which good mental procedures can lead to false beliefs is examined.
The Relative Efficiency of Approval and Condorcet Voting Procedures
Authors: MERRILL SAMUEL , TIDEMAN NICOLAUS
Published: March 2007

This article compares empirically the average utility for the electorate of the candidates selected by approval voting and by ranking-based voting with a search for a Condorcet winner (a Condorcet-completion procedure). “Feeling thermometer” scores from the presidential election surveys for 1972 through 1984 of the Institute for Survey Research are used for distributions of utilities of candidates for voters. Several hypotheses about voting behavior under approval voting are explored, while voters using a Condorcet completion procedure are assumed to rank the candidates according to the utility they offer. The average social utilities of the candidates chosen by these voting systems are remarkably similar, while that for single-vote plurality (under sincere voting) is significantly lower.
Egoism, Parochialism, and Universalism
Authors: SCHWARTZ-SHEA PEREGRINE , SIMMONS RANDY T.
Published: March 2007

In the standard n-Prisoners' Dilemma (nPD), defection is generally interpreted as evidence of egoistic or self-interested motives. Cooperation, however, is compatible with (at least) two motives: universalism, a generalized norm that one should restrain one's selfish impulses to benefit humanity, and parochialism, the norm that one owes cooperation to one's “solidarity group.” In contrast to research supporting the parochial explanation of cooperation, this article presents experimental evidence in support of what is called here “discriminating universalism.” Groups of interacting individuals will restrain their parochial tendencies if they perceive the outgroup affected by their choices as worthy of their help. The findings suggest that, for a group of interacting individuals, neither general normative appeals nor individually based material incentives will mitigate parochial choices. Instead, strategies to limit parochialism must directly confront the comparative worthiness of specific groups.
The Consequences of Religious Market Structure
Authors: IANNACCONE LAURENCE R.
Published: March 2007

In a largely ignored chapter of The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith laid the foundation for an economic theory of religious institutions. Smith emphasized the importance of market structure, describing in detail the differences between state-sponsored religious monopolies and competitive religious markets. This article builds on Smith's discussion both theoretically and empirically. The author formalizes the concept of a religious market, defends its relevance, and derives predictions concerning the observable effects of religious market structure. Data on the religious characteristics of 17 developed, Western nations confirm Smith's claim that monopoly and government regulation impede religious markets just as they do secular ones. Across Protestant nations, rates of church attendance and religious belief are substantially higher in highly competitive markets than in markets monopolized by established churches.
COLLECTIVE DECISION-MAKING MODELS APPLIED TO LABOR NEGOTIATIONS IN THE NETHERLANDS: A COMPARISON BETWEEN AN EXCHANGE MODEL AND A CONFLICT MODEL
Authors: Rojer Maurice
Published: March 2007

In this article two models of collective decision making, i.e. the Exchange of Voting Positions Model of Stokman and van Oosten and the Expected Utility Model of Bueno de Mesquita, are applied to the practice of labor negotiations in the Netherlands. The purpose of the study is to test the explanatory power of both models with regard to actual labor negotiation processes. Based on data regarding three variables, preferred outcomes, salience, and potential power, the models can simulate a process of collective decision making in a multilateral setting and with respect to a multi-issue agenda. The simulated process leads to predicted outcomes which will be compared with the actual outcomes after the actual negotiations have taken place. With the help of statistical tests regarding the predictive accuracy of the models, an answer will be given to the question of whether one or both of the models can give an adequate explanation of the outcomes of labor negotiation processes.
SOCIAL ROLES AS AN EFFECTIVE LEARNING MECHANISM
Authors: Schlag Karl H. , Pollock Gregory B.
Published: March 2007

Using the `Buyer-Seller' game as an idealized form of social interaction across complementary roles, we examine two forms of `myopic learning', where individuals try to improve their response to their immediately past (social) environment. In role sampling, individuals examine a (random) sample of role equivalents, `updating' strategy play by evaluating the success of self and sampled others. In opponent sampling, individuals examine a (random) sample of potential future `game opponents' from the population employing the complementary role. Learning through role sampling can always increase or preserve best response play (to the immediate past), given an appropriate learning rule, while opponent sampling never does; it is thus better to ignore the world of opponents completely, choosing strategies based on observed outcomes of role equivalents. Under role learning, play either cycles about or spirals away from the Nash equilibrium of the game, with no one actually playing Nash in either case. With moderate rates of learning, the cycle is sufficiently distant from the equilibrium that Nash is of little value in predicting actual strategy play; here, the greater the uncertainty of the social world (e.g. variable game payoffs, preserving the buyer-seller structure), the less useful Nash play as a predictor of actual play. Under moderate, myopic (role) learning, game-theoretic emphasis on equilibrium as a predictor of individual behavior may be misplaced in even simple social situations.
Ethics and Cross-Cultural Nursing
Authors: Donnelly Paja Lee
Published: March 2007

This article examines how cultural misunderstandings and language differences generate ethical dilemmas in cross-cultural nursing. It explores the consequences of actions that result when health care providers lack an awareness of the value systems of patients that differ from their own. Described are the principles arising from ethical theory, their application to nursing, and incorporation into professional codes of ethics. Two case studies illustrate the close relationship between culture, health, and communication, with language barriers a significant factor in predicting the outcomes of care. Recommendations are offered for cultural competency training for health care institutions, nursing administrators, and nursing educators.
Conducting Research in Culturally Diverse Inner-City Neighborhoods: Some Lessons Learned
Authors: Evans Mary E. , Mejía-Maya Luis J. , Zayas Luis H. , Boothroyd Roger A. , Rodriguez Orlando
Published: March 2007

Social, behavioral, and health research among disenfranchised groups in inner cities poses problems in collecting data. It is a challenge to achieve data of sufficient quantity and quality necessary to be scientifically usable. This article describes the experiences of a research team during two phases of data collection in a mental health intervention study in New York’s South Bronx. Challenges in addressing human subject concerns, the formation of a fieldwork team, enrollment and retention of respondents, and administration of instruments are described and solutions are discussed. Emphasis is placed on researchers’ approaches to the selection, orientation, and safety of interviewers, interviewer-respondent race and ethnic matching, contacts and rapport with respondents, and the handling of such interpersonal issues as distrust, poor cooperation, and family dynamics. The procedures developed took into consideration the culture and life conditions of the population to ensure a satisfactory response rate and high-quality data.
A Sociocultural Health Model for Late-in-Life Immigrants
Authors: Emami Azita , Benner Patricia , Ekman Sirkka-Liisa
Published: March 2007

This study develops a sociocultural health and illness model for Iranian late-in-life immigrants in Sweden by analyzing ways in which they perceive, experience, and explain their health situations. Fifteen Iranian immigrants, ages 55 to 80, were interviewed; data were analyzed using the interpretive-phenomenology method. The interviews revealed the following concepts: Reflections on the meaning of health were interpreted as cultural understanding of health. Reflections expressing knowledge about preventing illness and maintaining health were interpreted as proposed strategies and beliefs. Reflections expressing how to prevent illness and maintain health were interpreted as practical strategies, which were based on understanding of cultures and were contingent on immigration. Health care providers might use the resulting model to assist patients and families in appropriating cures and symptom management to support patients’ sense of well-being.
Teaching Culturally Competent Care: Nursing Students Experience Rural Appalachia
Authors: Macavoy Suzanne , Lippman Doris Troth
Published: March 2007

This article describes two courses, Health in Rural Appalachia and Clinical Practice in Appalachia, developed by one of the authors to increase students’ cultural competence as professional nurses. Characteristics of the Appalachian culture are described as well as the need for cultural awareness and sensitivity in those providing health care. Both the three-credit seminar course and the one-credit clinical course are described. Students’ comments, from journals and other assignments, are interspersed throughout to illustrate various aspects of the cultural heritage they experienced as they worked with nurses and patients in eastern Kentucky.
Daily Living Practice of the Life-Satisfied Thai Elderly
Authors: Othaganont Pranom , Sinthuvorakan Chownpis , Jensupakarn Pongsai
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the life satisfaction of Thai elderly depends on their daily living practice. A comparative design was used to study 73 matched pairs of elderly people who perceive themselves as life satisfied or life dissatisfied. Scores of 85% and above on the life satisfaction instrument were used as a criteria to identify the elderly with life satisfaction. The sample was drawn from elderly clubs in four provinces of the eastern border of Thailand. Data were collected using structured interviews regarding the elderly’s daily living practices on physical, mental, social, and economic domains. A two-tailed dependent t test was used to reveal mean scores both overall and for each domain of the daily living practices of the elderly participants. It was found that the life satisfaction group of elderly had significantly higher scores than their dissatisfied counterparts. The findings suggest the importance of Thai elderly’s good practice on food habits, regular exercise, seeking knowledge toward health, religious activity involvement, good relationships with others, and well-planned income and expenses resulting in life satisfaction. Thus, nurses can promote life satisfaction of Thai elderly by motivating these factors that are generally uncommon practices in the Thai elderly culture. Future studies using a longitudinal quasi-experimental design to employ these positive daily living practice to promote life satisfaction of the life dissatisfied elderly is recommended.
Proposed Standards for Transcultural Nursing
Authors: Leuning Cheryl J. , Swiggum Paula D. , Wiegert Hazel Marie Barmore , Mccullough-Zander Kathleen
Published: March 2007

For the past 3 years, the Minnesota Chapter of the Transcultural Nursing Society has focused efforts on the development of standards for transcultural nursing practice. The standards, based on Leininger’s culture care theory and Campinha-Bacote’s model of cultural competence, are intended to foster excellence in transcultural nursing practice, to provide criteria for the evaluation of nursing care, to be a tool for teaching and learning, to increase the public’s confidence in the nursing profession, and overall to advance the field of transcultural nursing. The standards are presented as an invitation for individual and collective reflection and commentary.
Transcultural Nursing: Quo Vadis: (Where Goeth the Field?)
Authors: Leininger Madeleine
Published: March 2007

A modified version of this paper was published in Transcultural Nursing: A Futuristic Field of Health Care, edited by M. Carter, Memphis, Tennessee: The Trancultural Nursing Society, 1986, pp. 1-14. It is viewed as "classic" in the field to partially grasp the historical development of the field of transcultural nursing by the founder. This article is borrowed with permission of the Transcultural Nursing Society.
The Immigrant Haitian Mother: Transcultural Nursing Perspective on Preventive Health Care for Children
Authors: DeSantis Lydia , Thomas Janice T.
Published: March 2007

Thirty immigrant Haitian mothers in Southeast Florida were interviewed regarding their beliefs and practices about preventive health care (illness prevention and health maintenance measures) for infants and preschool children (up to age 5). All mothers used preventive health care measures from both the Western biomedical and traditional Haitian ethnomedical (folk) systems. Ninety-seven percent used magico-religious measures; 47% administered home remedies; 47% gave children over-the-counter drugs; and 35% utilized a variety of measures to ensure cold air did not enter neonates and cause illness or pain. The Haitian mothers considered the preventive health care measures effective because the children remained healthy and will likely use them again. They sought consultation from a variety of individuals who formed their health management groups and child caretaker networks. Infants and toddlers were considered at higher risk than newborns for illness due to "evil harm" inflicted by other people and/or voodoo spirits. Implications for transcultural nursing practice include developing community outreach programs, implementing nursing interventions that combine biomedical and ethnomedical preventive health care measures, and functioning as part of the health management group. The authors wish to thank Maude Vincent, R.N., for her assistance in data gathering and analysis.
Cultural Diversity in Nursing Care: The Lesbian, Gay, or Bisexual Client
Authors: Eliason Michele J.
Published: March 2007

This paper examines the gay, lesbian, and bisexual persons as subcultures of the dominant Anglo-American culture in the United States of America in relation to influences on their access to and use of health care systems and resources. Nurses need to be aware of the unique health needs of such clients, and examine their own cultural belief systems about same-sex relationships. Negative attitudes or misinformation can lead to poor quality of care and disrupt nurse-client relationships.
Teaching Transcultural Nursing in a Transcultural Setting
Authors: Baker Susan Scoville , Burkhalter Natalie C.
Published: March 2007

The application of Leininger's Theory of Culture Care Diversity and Universality to the dialogue between students and faculty regarding nursing education and practice provides the theoretical framework for evaluating a transcultural nursing curriculum in a transcultural, transnational setting on the Texas-Mexico border. In evaluating the first semester of this cultural encounter between the nurse-patient-community system and baccalaureate nursing education, faculty and students at Texas A&M International University School of Nursing in Laredo identified some particular challenges and assessed the effectiveness of approaches to meeting these challenges within the context of Leininger's Culture Care Theory and its three modes of action: culture care preservation, accommodation, and repatterning.