bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Public Attitudes toward the Use of Psychiatric Medications for Children
Authors: Mcleod Jane D. , Pescosolido Bernice A. , Takeuchi David T. , White Terry Falkenberg
Published: January 2010

Psychiatric medication use for children has increased dramatically over the past three decades. Despite substantial media attention to the issue, little is known about how the lay public feels about the use of psychiatric medications for children. Drawing on theories of medicalization, we describe and analyze Americans' attitudes towards the use of psychiatric medications generally and Prozac specifically for children described as having three types of behavioral problems. Using data from the 1998 General Social Survey's Pressing Issues in Health and Medical Care Module, we find that more Americans (57%) are willing to use psychiatric medications for children who have expressed suicidal statements than for “oppo-sitional” behaviors (34.2%) or for hyperactivity (29.5%). Across the board, respondents are less willing to give Prozac than the general class of psychiatric medications. While socio-demographics do little to identify Americans with differing positions, the strongest and most consistent correlates of willingness to give psychiatric medications to children are trust in personal physicians, general attitudes towards psychiatric medications, and the respondent's expressed willingness to take psychiatric medications herself or himself.
Marital Transitions and Mental Health
Authors: Wade Terrance J. , Pevalin David J.
Published: January 2010

Most research identifies marital disruption as a precursor for poor mental health but is generally unable to discount the potential selection effect of poor mental health leading to marital disruption. We use data from nine annual waves of the British Household Panel Survey to examine social selection and social causation as competing explanations. Mental health is measured using the general health questionnaire. We examine mental health at multiple time points prior to and after a marital transition through separation or divorce and compare this process to those who experience widowhood. All groups transitioning out of marriage have a higher prevalence of poor mental health afterwards but for those separated or divorced, poor mental health also precedes marital disruption, lending support to both social-causation and social-selection processes. The processes both preceding and after the transition to widowhood differ, with increased prevalence of disorder centering around the time surrounding the death itself.
Food Insufficiency and Physical and Mental Health in a Longitudinal Survey of Welfare Recipients
Authors: Siefert Kristine , Heflin Colleen M. , Corcoran Mary E. , Williams David R.
Published: January 2010

Food insufficiency is a significant problem in the United States, and poor African American women with children are at especially high risk. An inadequate household food supply can potentially affect the well-being of household members, but it is difficult to distinguish the effects of food insufficiency from risk factors for poor health that are also common among the food insufficient, such as poverty. We examined food insufficiency and physical and mental health among African American and white women (n = 676) who were welfare recipients in 1997. Controlling for common risk factors, women who reported food insufficiency in both 1997 and 1998 were more likely to report fair or poor health at the later date. Food insufficiency in 1998 was significantly associated with meeting the diagnostic screening criteria for recent major depression. Food insufficiency at both times and in 1998 only was related to women's sense of mastery. These findings add to growing evidence that household food insufficiency is associated with poor physical and mental health.
Is it Really Worse to Have Public Health Insurance Than to Have No Insurance at All? Health Insurance and Adult Health in the United States
Authors: Quesnel-Vallée Amélie
Published: January 2010

Using prospective cohort data from the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, this study examines the extent to which health insurance coverage and the source of that coverage affect adult health. While previous research has shown that privately insured nonelderly individuals enjoy better health outcomes than their uninsured counterparts, the same relationship does not hold for those publicly insured through programs such as Medicaid. Because it is unclear whether this finding reflects a true causal relationship or is in fact due to selection bias on socioeconomic status and health, previous estimates of the contribution of health insurance to inequities in health may have been biased. This study attempts to disentangle these competing hypotheses of causation or selection bias by using fixed effects models with sibling clusters to corroborate-or contradict—the results of a conventional OLS regression. By controlling for unobserved factors shared by siblings, such as parental genetic influences, sibling models estimate health insurance effects that are less affected by selection bias. Findings suggest that, among the U.S. birth cohorts of 1957 to 1961, the negative relationship between public health insurance and health is not causal, but rather due to prior health and socioeconomic status. Conversely, the lack of health insurance coverage has a strong cumulative negative impact on adult health.
Self-Rated Health and Mortality: Does the Relationship Extend to a Low Income Setting?
Authors: Frankenberg Elizabeth , Jones Nathan R.
Published: January 2010

Although a relationship between poor self-reported health status and excess mortality risk has been well-established for industrialized countries, almost no research considers developing countries. We use data from Indonesia to show that in a low-income setting, as in more advantaged parts of the world, individuals who perceive their health to be poor are significantly more likely to die in subsequent follow-up periods than their counterparts who view their health as good. This result characterizes both men and women, holds for multiple time periods, and remains after inclusion of measures of nutritional status, physical functioning, symptoms of poor physical health and depression, and hypertension. We also consider the correlates of self-rated health. Symptoms and physical functioning are strong predictors of reporting poor rather than good health, but neither these indicators nor other covariates we consider distinguish between reports of excellent rather than good health.
Environmental Stressors: The Mental Health Impacts of Living Near Industrial Activity
Authors: Downey Liam , Van Willigen Marieke
Published: January 2010

A growing literature examines whether the poor, the working class, and people of color are disproportionately likely to live in environmentally hazardous neighborhoods. This literature assumes that environmental characteristics such as industrial pollution and hazardous waste are detrimental to human health, an assumption that has not been well tested. Drawing upon the sociology of mental health and environmental inequality studies, we ask whether industrial activity has an impact on psychological well-being. We link individual-level survey data with data from the U.S. Census and the Toxic Release Inventory and find that residential proximity to industrial activity has a negative impact on mental health. This impact is both direct and mediated by individuals' perceptions of neighborhood disorder and personal powerlessness, and the impact is greater for minorities and the poor than it is for whites and wealthier individuals. These results suggest that public health officials need to take seriously the mental health impacts of living near industrial facilities.
You Make Me Sick: Marital Quality and Health Over the Life Course
Authors: Umberson Debra , Williams Kristi , Powers Daniel A. , Liu Hui , Needham Belinda
Published: January 2010

We work from a life course perspective and identify several reasons to expect age and gender differences in the link between marital quality and health. We present growth curve evidence from a national longitudinal survey to show that marital strain accelerates the typical decline in self-rated health that occurs over time and that this adverse effect is greater at older ages. These findings fit with recent theoretical work on cumulative adversity in that marital strain seems to have a cumulative effect on health over time—an effect that produces increasing vulnerability to marital strain with age. Contrary to expectations, marital quality seems to affect the health of men and women in similar ways across the life course.
Nonresident Fathers' Involvement and Adolescents' Smoking
Authors: Menning Chadwick L.
Published: January 2010

Although prior research has shown that adolescents from divorced and separated households are more likely to smoke than their peers from intact families, few studies have addressed factors that may minimize this risk, such as the role of involvement by nonresident fathers. A sample from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) is used to examine the longitudinal effects of nonresident fathers'involvement, changes in involvement, and fathers' modeling of smoking behavior on the probability that adolescents will begin smoking regularly. Results indicate that adolescents who are more involved with their fathers are less likely to begin smoking regularly, that changes in involvement over time predict changes in the probability that adolescents will begin to smoke regularly, and that fathers' smoking also affects this outcome. Implications for theory and public policy are discussed.
Age, Ethnicity, and Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Health Self-Management
Authors: Grzywacz Joseph G. , Suerken Cynthia K. , Neiberg Rebecca H. , Lang Wei , Bell Ronny A. , Quandt Sara A. , Arcury Thomas A.
Published: January 2010

Drawing on models of health self-management, we develop hypotheses that age and ethnicity will modify associations among indicators of poor health and use of complementary and alternative medicine. These hypotheses are evaluated using the 2002 National Health Interview Survey with the Alternative Health Supplement. Results produced partial support for hypotheses that the effects of ailments on use of complementary and alternative medicine differ by age. Results suggest that ailments such as bodily pain, chronic conditions, and functional impairment are associated with use of complementary and alternative medicine among midlife and younger adults, but these associations are generally attenuated among older adults. Hypothesized ethnic differences received weak support. These findings suggest that different interpretations of ailments and appropriate responses may explain why complementary and alternative medicine is used by fewer older adults. The results also highlight the significance of social and cultural factors in understanding patterns of complementary and alternative medicine use in the adult population.
Transforming Normality into Pathology: The DSM and the Outcomes of Stressful Social Arrangements
Authors: Horwitz Allan V.
Published: January 2010

The sociology of stress shows how nondisordered people often become distressed in contexts such as chronic subordination; the losses of status, resources, and attachments; or the inability to achieve valued goals. Evolutionary psychology indicates that distress arising in these contexts stems from psychological mechanisms that are responding appropriately to stressful circumstances. A diagnosis of mental disorder, in contrast, indicates that these mechanisms are not functioning as they are designed to function. The American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, however, has come to treat both the natural results of the stress process and individual pathology as mental disorders. A number of social groups benefit from and promote the conflation of normal emotions with dysfunctions. The result has been to overestimate the number of people who are considered to be disordered, to focus social policy on the supposedly unmet need for treatment, and to enlarge the social space of pathology in the general culture.
Fundamental Causes of Health Disparities: Stratification, the Welfare State, and Health in the United States and Iceland
Authors: Olafsdottir Sigrun
Published: January 2010

Research has established that those with higher social status have better health. Less is known about whether this relationship differs cross-nationally and whether it operates similarly across different institutional arrangements. To examine the relationship between stratification and health, two Western, industrialized societies at opposite ends of an equal/unequal continuum are compared: the United States and Iceland. Using data from the 1998 General Social Survey and the 1998 Health and Living Standards of Adult Icelanders survey, I draw from two theoretical perspectives. First, I explore the notion of fundamental causes of disease by examining whether stratification has similar effects on health. Second, I examine whether the organization of welfare states affects this relationship. The results show that education, employment, and relative poverty have similar effects on health in both nations, thus supporting the notion of a fundamental cause. However, in Iceland relative affluence has a weaker relationship with health. Further, being a parent, regardless of marital status, has a stronger positive relationship with good health in Iceland. Welfare state intervention may be most successful in equalizing health outcomes by supporting families and by removing advantages traditionally accumulated by the wealthy in capitalist societies.
Child Health in Peru: Importance of Regional Variation and Community Effects on Children's Height and Weight
Authors: Shin Heeju
Published: January 2010

In developing countries, height and weight are good indicators of children's health and nutritional status. Maternal education has been accepted as one of the most important influences on child health. Using the 2000 Demographic and Health Survey of Peru, however, I find that the effect of maternal education varies as a function of region. In the most prosperous urban region, maternal education is less important for child health than in poor rural areas, and a higher level of education has a greater effect in rural areas. Multilevel analysis shows that a significant part of the observed correlation between maternal education and child health is moderated by regional differences and community characteristics. The finding suggests that Peruvian public policy should emphasize resource redistribution as well as women's education, and that investment in maternal education should be considered within regional contexts to enhance child health in rural areas.
Health Benefits of Volunteering in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study
Authors: Piliavin Jane Allyn , Siegl Erica
Published: January 2010

We investigate positive effects of volunteering on psychological well-being and self-reported health using all four waves of the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. Confirming previous research, volunteering was positively related to both outcome variables. Both consistency of volunteering over time and diversity of participation are significantly related to well-being and self-reported health. The relationship of volunteering to psychological well-being was moderated by level of social integration, such that those who were less well integrated benefited the most. Mattering appears to mediate the link between volunteering and well-being. Controls for other forms of social participation and for the predictors of volunteering are employed in analyses of well-being in 1992. We find volunteering effects on psychological well-being in 2004, controlling for 1992 well-being, thus providing strong evidence for a causal effect.
Seven Years Later: Effects of a Neighborhood Mobility Program on Poor Black and Latino Adults' Well-being
Authors: Fauth Rebecca C. , Leventhal Tama , Brooks-Gunn Jeanne
Published: January 2010

This study explored program effects on adults' well-being seven years following the implementation of a court-ordered neighborhood mobility program. Low-income black and Latino adults residing in poor, segregated neighborhoods in Yonkers, New York were randomly selected to relocate to publicly funded town-houses in middle-class neighborhoods within the city. Adults who moved (n = 141) and demographically similar adults who were not selected to move (n = 106) were interviewed. Data indicate that 85 percent of adults who moved to the new housing remained there at follow-up. Results revealed that adults who moved resided in neighborhoods with higher collective efficacy and less disorder and danger, but had fewer neighborhood social ties than adults who stayed in poor neighborhoods. Movers were also more likely to work and less likely to receive welfare than nonmovers. Adults who remained in low-poverty neighborhoods at the time of the follow-up reported better physical health than adults residing in poor neighborhoods, but mental health did not vary by neighborhood.
Capital and Context: Using Social Capital at Home and at School to Predict Child Social Adjustment
Authors: Dufur Mikaela J. , Parcel Toby L. , Mckune Benjamin A.
Published: January 2010

Research examining the influence of social relationships on child outcomes has seldom examined how individuals derive social capital from more than one context and the extent to which they may benefit from the capital derived from each. We address this deficit through a study of child behavior problems. We hypothesize that children derive social capital from both their families and their schools and that capital from each context is influential in promoting social adjustment. Using a large national data set and structural equation modeling, we find that social capital at home and at school can be measured as separate constructs and that capital at home is more influential than is capital at school. We discuss the implications of these findings for future research on social capital and for practical interventions promoting social adjustment.
Major Life Events: Their Personal Meaning, Resolution, and Mental Health Significance
Authors: Reynolds John R. , Turner R. Jay
Published: January 2010

Researchers have employed varying strategies in an effort to better understand variation in responses to stress. This article argues that crisis theory makes a useful contribution to these efforts, particularly when studying variable response to major life events that are of high threat potential. Regression analyses of depressive symptomatology, mastery, and self-esteem in a community sample of adults (n = 1,542) provide preliminary support for the central tenets of crisis theory that specify the conditions under which experienced events are minimally and maximally hazardous. The results also offer mixed support for the proposition that successfully resolved crises can even yield emotional and coping benefits. Longitudinal models and further development of survey-based measures for distinguishing the occurrence of a crisis and assessing the adequacy of its resolution are needed to more thoroughly test crisis theory.
Crowding in Context: An Examination of the Differential Responses of Men and Women to High-Density Living Environments
Authors: Regoeczi Wendy C.
Published: January 2010

This study examines the question of gender-equivalent outcomes of mental health and social behavior in the context of crowding stress. It tests the hypothesis that gender will influence the exhibition of stress outcomes resulting from exposure to high-density living environments, with women displaying internalized responses and men responding with externalized styles. Expanding on the types of gender-appropriate disorders examined in this area of research, I selected depression, aggression, and withdrawal as gender-specific disorders based on theory and prior research. Multilevel analyses of data from a survey of Toronto residents indicate that, while the effects of household density are conditioned by gender, support for the existence of gender-equivalent outcomes is mixed. While women living in crowded homes are more likely to be depressed, men exposed to high-density living environments do not report increased aggression. However, men report higher levels of withdrawal, and some males respond with both aggression and withdrawal.
The Formation of a Socioeconomic Health Disparity: The Case of Cocaine Use during the 1980s and 1990s
Authors: Miech Richard
Published: January 2010

Despite the substantial and prolonged sociological interest in health disparities, much remains unknown about the processes that initiate them. To investigate this topic, we focus on the case study of cocaine use, for which a socioeconomic disparity emerged across all age groups in a short period of time around 1990. We examine whether the newly-formed disparity represents a selective remnant of previous users or, instead, a selective recruitment of new users. To evaluate these two potential processes we use latent class regression on a nationally representative cohort with repeated measures of past-year cocaine use before and after 1990. Results support the “remnant” hypothesis and show that the newly-formed disparity resulted primarily because people in the lower social strata were less likely to have a trajectory of cocaine use with a sharp drop in use after 1990. These results point to the “remnant” concept as a way to bring together disparity analysis of very different and diverse health outcomes.
Health and Sexual Status in an Urban Gay Enclave: An Application of the Stress Process Model
Authors: Green Adam Isaiah
Published: January 2010

In this article, I apply the stress process model as a framework to understand sexual sociality and its impact on health among urban gay men in a large North American gay enclave. Data consisting of in-depth interviews with 70 gay men coupled with three years of fieldwork demonstrate a sexual status order that privileges caucasian, middle-class men in their twenties and early thirties, and that disadvantages black and Asian men, men over 40 years of age, and poor men. Men with low sexual status faced significant stressors in the form of avoidance from others, stigmatization, and rejection. These stressors, in turn, taxed personal resources, including self-esteem, sense of social support, and sense of control, and they also negatively affected emotional states in the form of depression and anxiety. Finally, some low status men were unable to consistently negotiate condom use as a consequence of a history of field stressors and diminished personal resources. The results suggest that more work on sexual status structures and their connection to health is needed, both within gay enclaves and across a broader spectrum of sexual subcultures.
Ethnic Differences in Trajectories of Depressive Symptoms: Disadvantage in Family Background, High School Experiences, and Adult Characteristics
Authors: Walsemann Katrina M. , Gee Gilbert C. , Geronimus Arline T.
Published: January 2010

Although research investigating ethnic differences in mental health has increased in recent years, we know relatively little about how mental health trajectories vary across ethnic groups. Do these differences occur at certain ages but not others? We investigate ethnic variation in trajectories of depressive symptoms, and we examine the extent to which disadvantages in family background, high school experiences, and adult characteristics explain these differences. Employing random-coefficient modeling using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, we find that blacks and Hispanics experience higher symptom levels in early adulthood in comparison to whites, but equivalent levels by middle age. Ethnic differences remained in early adulthood after including all covariates, but those differences were eliminated by middle age for Hispanics after controlling for demographics only, and for blacks after accounting for the age-varying relationship between income and depressive symptoms. These results highlight the importance of integrating a life course perspective when investigating ethnic variations in mental health.
Fundamental Cause Theory, Technological Innovation, and Health Disparities: The Case of Cholesterol in the Era of Statins
Authors: Chang Virginia W. , Lauderdale Diane S.
Published: January 2010

Although fundamental cause theory has been highly influential in shaping the research literature on health disparities, there have been few empirical demonstrations of the theory, particularly in dynamic perspective. In this study, we examine how income disparities in cholesterol levels have changed with the emergence of statins, an expensive and potent new drug technology. Using nationally representative data from 1976 to 2004, we find that income gradients for cholesterol were initially positive, but then reversed and became negative in the era of statin use. While the advantaged were previously more likely to have high levels of cholesterol, they are now less likely. We consider our case study against a broader theoretical framework outlining the relationship between technology innovation and health disparities. We find that the influence of technologies on socioeconomic disparities is subject to two important modifiers: (1) the nature of the technological change and (2) the extent of its diffusion and adoption.
The “Dark Side” of the Strength of Weak Ties: The Diffusion of Suicidal Thoughts
Authors: Baller Robert D. , Richardson Kelly K.
Published: January 2010

Granovetter's theory on the strength of weak ties motivates hypotheses on the diffusive nature of suicidal thoughts in the friendship networks of adolescents. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, the effects of friends-of-friends attempting suicide on the suicidal thoughts of respondents are estimated. A focus on friends-of-friends permits a test of the weakties thesis because respondents are indirectly linked to friends-of-friends by “open ties” that are both structurally weak and used as bridges. Results for “at-risk” respondents—or those with certain behaviors, statuses, and experiences that create psychological predispositions to suicide—are consistent with Granovetter's theory and thus reveal the “dark side” of the strength of weak ties as at-risk respondents are more likely to seriously think about committing suicide when a friend-of-a-friend attempts suicide, controlling for past suicidal thoughts by the respondent and attempts by friends, family, and students in the respondent's school, among other control factors. Barriers to diffusion are also considered.
Determinants of Anabolic-Androgenic Steroid Risk Perceptions in Youth Populations: A Multivariate Analysis
Authors: Denham Bryan E.
Published: January 2010

Grounded conceptually in social cognitive theory, this research examines how personal, behavioral, and environmental factors are associated with risk perceptions of anabolic-androgenic steroids. Ordinal logistic regression and logit log-linear models applied to data gathered from high-school seniors (N = 2,160) in the 2005 Monitoring the Future study showed significant explanatory effects for sex, race, exposure to drug spots, steroid availability, peer use of steroids, sensation-seeking, depression, and self-esteem. Females, African Americans, and those who had seen drug spots the most frequently estimated higher levels of risk associated with steroid use, while those who indicated ease in obtaining steroids and those with close friends who had used the drugs estimated lower risk. Also estimating lower levels of risk were sensation seekers, those who appeared depressed, and those with low levels of self-esteem. Analyses reveal how steroid risk determinants may differ from those related to methylenedioxymethamphetamine (i.e., MDMA, ecstasy) and marijuana use.
Marital Biography and Health at Mid-Life
Authors: Hughes Mary Elizabeth , Waite Linda J.
Published: January 2010

This article develops a series of hypotheses about the long-term effects of one's history of marriage, divorce, and widowhood on health, and it tests those hypotheses using data from the Health and Retirement Study. We examine four dimensions of health at mid-life: chronic conditions, mobility limitations, self-rated health, and depressive symptoms. We find that the experience of marital disruption damages health, with the effects still evident years later; among the currently married, those who have ever been divorced show worse health on all dimensions. Both the divorced and widowed who do not remarry show worse health than the currently married on all dimensions. Dimensions of health that seem to develop slowly, such as chronic conditions and mobility limitations, show strong effects of past marital disruption, whereas others, such as depressive symptoms, seem more sensitive to current marital status. Those who spent more years divorced or widowed show more chronic conditions and mobility limitations.
Problem Solving in Social Interactions on the Internet: Rumor As Social Cognition
Authors: Bordia Prashant , Difonzo Nicholas
Published: January 2010

Rumor discourse has been conceptualized as an attempt to reduce anxiety and uncertainty via a process of social sensemaking. Fourteen rumors transmitted on various Internet discussion groups were observed and content analyzed over the life of each rumor. With this (previously unavailable) more ecologically robust methodology, the intertwined threads of sensemaking and the gaining of interpretive control are clearly evident in the tapestry of rumor discourse. We propose a categorization of statements (the Rumor Interaction Analysis System) and find differences between dread rumors and wish rumors in anxiety-related content categories. Cluster analysis of these statements reveals a typology of voices (“communicative postures”) exhibiting sensemaking activities of the rumor discussion group, such as hypothesizing, skeptical critique, directing of activities to gain information, and presentation of evidence. These findings enrich our understanding of the long-implicated sensemaking function of rumor by clarifying the elements of communication that operate in rumor's social context.
Explaining Differences in Mental Health Between Married and Cohabiting Individuals
Authors: Marcussen Kristen
Published: January 2010

Research on the relationship between cohabitation and mental health tends to ignore social psychological factors that help explain mental health differences between the married and the unmarried, including coping resources and perceived relationship quality. In this paper I draw on social psychological theory and research to clarify differences in depression and alcohol use between married and cohabiting individuals. Using data from the National Survey of Families and Households, I examine the independent and combined influences of socioeconomic status, coping resources, and relationship quality to account for marital status differences in distress. I find that marital status differences in coping resources and relationship quality help explain the gap in depression, but not in alcohol use, between married and cohabiting individuals. I also find that social selection is not responsible for marital status differences in distress. The implications of these findings for future research on cohabitors' mental health are discussed.
Opportunistic Interruptions: Interactional Vulnerabilities Deriving From Linearization
Authors: Gibson David R.
Published: January 2010

Speaking involves “linearizing” a message into a string of words. This process leaves us vulnerable to being interrupted in such a way that the aborted turn is a misrepresentation of the intended message. Further, because we linearize our messages in standard ways, we are recurrently vulnerable to interruptions at particular turn-construction junctures, and consequently to recurrent types of self-misrepresentation. These vulnerabilities can be exploited strategically when an interrupter responds to the truncated turn in a way that might not have been possible if the turn had run to completion: I refer to interruptions of this sort as “opportunistic.” I explore the connection between linearization and opportunistic interruptions using data from two institutional settings characterized by confrontational exchanges: Supreme Court oral arguments and Pentagon press briefings. The extracts illustrate how speakers open themselves to opportunistic interruptions through projection of incipient options, actions, reasons, consequences, opinions, and restrictions.
Stigma or Sympathy? Attributions of Fault to Hate Crime Victims and Offenders
Authors: Lyons Christopher J.
Published: January 2010

This study investigates the influence of social status on attributions of blame in specific instances of hate crime. Two theoretical explanations for the impact of offender's and victim's social status characteristics on evaluations of hate crimes are examined. The stigma perspective suggests that the public will deride minority-status individuals, whereas the sympathy perspective implies that the public will be sympathetic to members of minorities. Results from a factorial survey reveal mixed support for both perspectives, depending on the victim's status (race, gender, or sexual orientation). Respondents appear especially sensitive to racial status asymmetry, blaming white offenders more than black offenders and black victims less than white victims, but sympathy is not evident for gay and lesbian victims. Results also suggest that gay and lesbian victims are held more accountable for their actions than heterosexual victims and that respondent's attitudes shape attributions of blame.
Perceptions of Economic and Behavioral Differences Between Blacks and Whites: Racial Attitudes of White Americans and Status Generalization
Authors: Kaplowitz Stan A. , Broman Clifford L. , Fisher Bradley J.
Published: January 2010

A telephone survey of Michigan residents provided statistics about the economic conditions and undesirable behavior of white Americans and asked respondents to estimate the corresponding statistics for blacks. Data from white respondents showed that the greater the perceived racial difference (PRD) in rates of undesirable behavior, the more blacks were seen as not trying to better themselves and the less blacks were viewed as experiencing discrimination. The greater the PRD in economic status, especially controlling for education, the more respondents saw racial discrimination as continuing. Controlling for the PRD in Undesirable Behavior, however, the PRD in economic status had little effect on the belief that blacks do not make effort. Implications of these results for status generalization processes are discussed. Because respondents underestimated all racial differences, accurate knowledge of racial statistics might increase both the belief that discrimination continues and the belief that blacks fail to make an effort.
Gender, Legitimation, and Identity Verification In Groups
Authors: Burke Peter J. , Stets Jan E. , Cerven Christine
Published: January 2010

Drawing upon identity theory, expectation states theory, and legitimation theory, we examine how the task leader identity in task-oriented groups is more likely to be verified for persons with high status characteristics. We hypothesize that identity verification will be accomplished more readily for male group members and legitimated task leaders than female group members and those who are not legitimated. We found that there is an interaction of gender and legitimation on identity verification. Legitimated female leaders and non-legitimated males had higher levels of identity verification. Further examination revealed that legitimated male leaders were consistently overevaluated in the amount of their leadership relative to their own identity standards, while non-legitimated female leaders' leadership behavior was consistently underevaluated relative to their own identity standards. The implications of our findings for the study of identity verification and social structural processes are discussed.
Puberty and the Education of Girls
Authors: Cavanagh Shannon E. , Riegle-Crumb Catherine , Crosnoe Robert
Published: January 2010

This study extends previous research on the social psychological implications of pubertal timing to education by applying a life course framework to data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health and from the Adolescent Health and Academic Achievement Study. Early pubertal timing, which has previously been associated with major social psychological changes in girls' lives during middle school, predicted girls' grade point average and probability of course failure at the start of high school. Because of this initial failure during the high school transition, it also predicted their probability of dropping out of high school, and, among those who graduated, their grade point average at the end of high school. Such research demonstrates one way in which the immediate social psychological risk of early pubertal timing, measured as the age at menarche, translates into long-term disadvantage for girls, thereby opening up new avenues of research for social psychologists interested in youth development, health, and education.
Differentiation in Self-Perceived Adulthood: Extending the Confluence Model of Subjective Age Identity
Authors: Kirkpatrick Johnson Monica , Allen Berg Justin , Sirotzki Toni
Published: January 2010

This study examines and extends the confluence model of age identity by testing whether young people's self-perceptions as adults are linked to role transitions, self-assessed personal qualities, and social location. We propose that young people's sense of adulthood and the factors associated with it vary based on socially structured experience tied to race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and age. Analyzing data from 18–28 year olds in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, we find racial/ethnic and socioeconomic status differences in age identity. Consistent with the confluence model, both role transitions and personal qualities are associated with age identity, although the most salient roles and qualities differ somewhat across racial/ethnic groups and consistently by socioeconomic status and age. We discuss the implications of these findings for understanding the transition to adulthood and adult identity, and for the young people themselves.
Sex, Society, and Association: A Cross-national Examination of Status Construction Theory
Authors: Brashears Matthew E.
Published: January 2010

Status construction theory (SCT) has established a set of sufficient conditions for the formation of status characteristics that define informal hierarchies. However, while it has proven successful in explaining the development of status-laden personal characteristics in the laboratory, relatively less attention has been devoted to its predictions at the societal level. This paper alters the current state of affairs by examining the predictions of status construction theory using the 2001 International Social Survey Program's networks module. This data source allows the comparison of a macro-level distribution of a goal object (authority positions) with a novel measure of status derived from the social networks literature. The results are consistent with the predictions of SCT, supporting the theory outside the laboratory and cross-nationally.
Leading the Herd Astray: An Experimental Study of Self-fulfilling Prophecies in an Artificial Cultural Market
Authors: Salganik Matthew J. , Watts Duncan J.
Published: January 2010

Individuals influence each others' decisions about cultural products such as songs, books, and movies; but to what extent can the perception of success become a “self-fulfilling prophecy”? We have explored this question experimentally by artificially inverting the true popularity of songs in an online “music market,” in which 12,207 participants listened to and downloaded songs by unknown bands. We found that most songs experienced self-ful- filling prophecies, in which perceived—but initially false—popularity became real over time. We also found, however, that the inversion was not self-fulfilling for the market as a whole, in part because the very best songs recovered their popularity in the long run. Moreover, the distortion of market information reduced the correlation between appeal and popularity, and led to fewer overall downloads. These results, although partial and speculative, suggest a new approach to the study of cultural markets, and indicate the potential of web-based experiments to explore the social psychological origin of other macrosocio- logical phenomena.
Embodied Self-reflexivity
Authors: Pagis Michal
Published: January 2010

Drawing on G. H. Mead and Merleau-Ponty, this paper aims to extend our understanding of self-reflexivity beyond the notion of a discursive, abstract, and symbolic process. It offers a framework for embodied self-reflexivity, which anchors the self in the reflexive capacity of bodily sensations. The data consist of two years of ethnographic observations and in-depth interviews of vipassana meditation practitioners in Israel and the United States. The findings illustrate how bodily sensations are used as indexes to psychological states, emotions, and past experiences, while constant awareness of embodied responses is used as a tool for self-monitoring. The paper follows the interaction between discursive and embodied modes of reflexivity and the attempt to shift from one mode to the other. I suggest that currently popular practices of embodied awareness, from meditation to yoga, are based on embodied self-reflexivity and are part of the postindustrial culture of self-awareness.
Homing Modern Freedoms
Authors: Crichlow Michaeline A. , Northover Patricia
Published: January 2010

‘Creolization’, as subject and problematic, seems trapped in complex processes of cultural politics within and outside the ‘Caribbean’, even as it continues to figure significantly in the histories of globalization, nationalization and regionalization. In this article, we examine the subject of ‘creolization’ that has been so discursively implicated in the time, space and power marked experiences and practices of ‘Caribbean subjects’, in order to rethink it, and offer some analytical insights into the nature of the historical processes of making ‘modern’ subjects, place, and relatedly, homing modern freedoms.
Moses’ Throne Vision: A Hebrew Fragment of Ezekiel the Tragedian and the Question of its Origin
Authors: Nielsen Flemming A.J.
Published: January 2010

In 1873 A. Jellinek published a Hebrew excerpt from Ezekiel the Tragedian’s drama Exagoge. The fragment contains Moses’ throne vision and its interpretation. Jellinek’s source is unknown, but it can be demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt that Jellinek produced the translation himself on the basis of an edition of Ezekiel the Tragedian published by L. Philippson in 1830.
A review of statistical methods for preprocessing oligonucleotide microarrays
Authors: Zhijin Wu
Published: January 2010

Microarrays have become an indispensable tool in biomedical research. This powerful technology not only makes it possible to quantify a large number of nucleic acid molecules simultaneously, but also produces data with many sources of noise. A number of preprocessing steps are therefore necessary to convert the raw data, usually in the form of hybridisation images, to measures of biological meaning that can be used in further statistical analysis. Preprocessing of oligonucleotide arrays includes image processing, background adjustment, data normalisation/transformation and sometimes summarisation when multiple probes are used to target one genomic unit. In this article, we review the issues encountered in each preprocessing step and introduce the statistical models and methods in preprocessing.
Germs: Prevent the Spread of Infectious Diseases
Authors: Thobaben Marshelle
Published: January 2010

Germs cannot be avoided. They live everywhere. Most germs do not harm people. The 2009 H1N1 influenza virus brought the concept of germs as infectious agents to the public’s attention, which generated fear of germs in some people. Home health nurses can reduce clients’ fear of germs by educating them about the differences between bacteria and viruses, two of the more common types of germs or infectious agents, and can teach them how to reduce their risk of getting diseases caused by these germs.
The Effect of Higher Education on Police Behavior
Authors: Rydberg Jason , Terrill William
Published: January 2010

In the past, police scholars have examined the impact of higher education on different measures of officer behavior, most notably arrest and the use of force. Much of this prior work has suffered from poor methodologies, such as inadequate samples and the inability to control for theoretically relevant variables. In addition, previous inquires have focused on but one single behavior per study. In an attempt to overcome some of these limitations, we examine the effect of officer education on three key decisionmaking points (i.e., arrest, search, and use of force) by relying on observational data from two medium-sized cities.The results of the analysis indicate that higher education carries no influence over the probability of an arrest or search occurring in a police— suspect encounter. College education does, however, significantly reduce the likelihood of force occurring. Results may be due to the amount of discretion officer’s exercise in pursuing these behaviors. Recommendations for future inquiries revolving around theory development and the incorporation of research from the field of education are presented, as well as varying policy implications.
A computational screen for site selective A-to-I editing detects novel sites in neuron specific Hu proteins
Authors: Ensterö Mats , Åkerborg Örjan , Lundin Daniel , Wang Bei , Furey Terrence S , Öhman Marie , Lagergren Jens
Published: January 2010

Background

Several bioinformatic approaches have previously been used to find novel sites of ADAR mediated A-to-I RNA editing in human. These studies have discovered thousands of genes that are hyper-edited in their non-coding intronic regions, especially in alu retrotransposable elements, but very few substrates that are site-selectively edited in coding regions. Known RNA edited substrates suggest, however, that site selective A-to-I editing is particularly important for normal brain development in mammals.

Results

We have compiled a screen that enables the identification of new sites of site-selective editing, primarily in coding sequences. To avoid hyper-edited repeat regions, we applied our screen to the alu-free mouse genome. Focusing on the mouse also facilitated better experimental verification. To identify candidate sites of RNA editing, we first performed an explorative screen based on RNA structure and genomic sequence conservation. We further evaluated the results of the explorative screen by determining which transcripts were enriched for A-G mismatches between the genomic template and the expressed sequence since the editing product, inosine (I), is read as guanosine (G) by the translational machinery. For expressed sequences, we only considered coding regions to focus entirely on re-coding events. Lastly, we refined the results from the explorative screen using a novel scoring scheme based on characteristics for known A-to-I edited sites. The extent of editing in the final candidate genes was verified using total RNA from mouse brain and 454 sequencing.

Conclusions

Using this method, we identified and confirmed efficient editing at one site in the Gabra3 gene. Editing was also verified at several other novel sites within candidates predicted to be edited. Five of these sites are situated in genes coding for the neuron-specific RNA binding proteins HuB and HuD.