bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Improving the Reliability and Validity of Confidence-Scored Tests by Adjusting for Realism
Authors: Rippey Robert M. , Smith Susan
Published: March 2007

Recent theoretical developments in the area of confidence testing suggest that an improvement in the reliability and validity of confidence tests should result from correcting scores for realism. Thirty-six medical and dental students were admin istered two short confidence-scored tests dealing with cellular and molecular biology. Both the uncorrected scores and the scores corrected for realism were correlated with course final test scores and with the biochemistry section of the National Medical Board Examination, Part I. The adjustment of scores for realism led to increases in reliability (split half) and predictive validity, although the differenceswere not statistically significant.
A Comparison of Written Versus Oral Interviews
Authors: Bausell R. Barker , Rinkus Alan J.
Published: March 2007

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Methodologist's Corner is published primarily as an educational service for the readers of EVA L UA-TION AND THE HEALTH PROFESSIONS. The seven topics which have appeared in this space to date are: an application and explanation of path analysis, trading specificity for statistical power, the validation of domain-referenced test items, a statistical prediction model, improving the reliability and validity of test items by adjusting for realism, single versus multiple cutoff scores, and the use of a simulated test to predict actual test scores. We have, in other words, purpose fully sampled a wide range of statistical and methodological issues to serve as many evaluators' interests and needs as possible. We would like to end this "shot gun" approach with this issue's illustration of parsimonious problem solving in evaluation. What we, the editors, would now like from you, the readers, is some feedback on (I) which of our Methodologist's Corners you actually read, (2) which you found most and least helpful, and (3) suggested topics for future issues. Please address your comments and suggestions to: R. Barker Bausell, Ph.D., School of Nursing, University of Maryland, 655 West Lombard Street, Baltimore, MD 21201.
Medical Student Performance
Authors: Hull Alan L.
Published: March 2007

Studies of the evaluation of medical students' clinical performance frequently do not differentiate between ratings by house officer and attending staff evaluators. This practice is not appropriate, since research investigations have shown that house officers rate medical students' clinical performance higher and have higher interrater agreement than do attending staff This investigation studies one aspect of the validity of medical students' clinical performance ratings and demonstrates that there are higher correlations between house officer ratings of student knowledge and student cognitive ability scores than there are between attending staff evaluations and student ability scores.
An Evaluation of the Impact of a Continuing Education Course in Diabetes
Authors: Petersen Cheryl Bowser
Published: March 2007

This article represents the results of an evaluation of a continuing education program for dietitians. The evaluation was built into the program at its inception and involved an assessment of participant satisfaction, short-term knowledge gain and a follow-up assessment of self-reported behavior change. The results of this evaluation indicate that the course did, indeed, impact on both knowledge and behavior. In addition, however, the evaluation also uncovered some problems in planning which minimized the potential impact of this course. These results suggest that there should be increased attention to rigorous educational needs assessment and both process and impact program evaluations in order to determine approaches to education that could make more effective use of the resources availablefor continuing education in health care.
The Professional Role of Physician's Assistants in Adult Ambulatory Care Practices
Authors: Repicky Paul A. , Mendenhall Robert C. , Neville Richard E.
Published: March 2007

This article describes the methodology and findings of a national survey of Physician's Assistants (PAs) in adult, ambulatory care practices. Data on patient care roles and other professional activities were collected for a three-day period via a comprehensive self-reporting, log-diary instrument. Completing the instrument were 356 (50.4%o) PAs. Survey results address thefollowing questions: What is the typical work week for PAs? How do PAs allocate their time in a professional day? What direct patient care services do PAs provide? How productive are PAs with respect to number of patients seen and dollar income generated? In general, the data are consistent with the PA role model of a primary health care professional who provides basic health care services with an emphasis on patient counseling and disease prevention.
Problems in Measuring the Cost of Illness
Authors: Cohodes Donald R.
Published: March 2007

Cost of illness (COI) studies have grown in importance in the last decade. They are frequently used in funding decisions for selected health care programs. Cost of illness study proponents present their results as objective, unbiased analysis. Yet, there are severe conceptual and methodological difficulties with the technique. Given its methodological weaknesses, the singular use of COI analysis to reach polic y decisions may be no better than the political decision process it was intended to replace.
Measuring the Instructional Validity of Clinical Simulation Problems
Authors: Feinstein Ellen , Gustavson Lillian P. , Levine Harold G.
Published: March 2007

Written clinical simulation problems in two formats-forced-choiced and essay were used to test junior and senior medical students at the conclusion of their pediatric rotations. A comparison was made in the performance of students with varying levels of clinical experience. There seemed to be no consistent pattern of improvement with increased instructional time on the forced-choice management problems. Junior students did show improvement over time on the essay management problems, which also seemed to reflect the increased problem-solving and organizational skills of seniors in comparison to juniors. Correlations across problems and correlations between the clinicalproblem test and other measurement techniques were very weak, partly due to the low sampling reliability of clinical simulation problems. In this study, clinical simulation problemsfailed to demonstrate responsiveness to development and maturation in the problem-solving approach to patient care.
Collaborative Practice and Patient Satisfaction
Authors: Koerner Beverly L. , Cohen Joy Ruth , Armstrong Doris M.
Published: March 2007

The Collaborative Practice Project was a demonstration project sponsored by the Hartford Hospital Administration, and the Departments of Medicine and Nursing. A prospective evaluative study was established to measure the impact of collaborative practice on increased patient and family satisfaction with health care, as well as the impact on selected outcome variables. A specific 27-bed medical unit and a comparison unit with identical structural characteristics were chosen for study from March 31, 1982, to March 31, 1983. Results of the study indicate that significant differences in patients' perceptions of care existed between the Collaborative Practice Unit (CPU) and the comparison unit under a traditional team nursing system. More positive ratings from patients on the CPU were found for all selected dimensions: patient-provider interaction; quality of care; health education; knowledge of practitioners; and the environment. In order to assess the impact of collaborative practice on outcome variables, a retrospective audit of randomly selected patient records was done. No significant differences for selected variables were found except for the number of health teaching plans. More documented health teaching was recorded on the Team Nursing Unit.
Behavioral Medicine in Primary Prevention
Authors: Faulstich Michael E. , Hutchinson Kim M.
Published: March 2007

This article is a selective overview of behavioral medicine approaches to primary prevention. The main areas of discussion concern addictive behaviors and dietary factors. Overall, traditional educational approaches appear to succeed in altering understanding of these problems, but are less effective in actual prevention. More recently, behavioral medicine efforts, which focus on psychological and social influences, have demonstrated encouraging results. However, further systematic research is needed on these promising approaches before definitive conclusions can be drawn. Suggestions are provided for future primary prevention efforts as well as discernment of important mediating variables.
A Computer-Assisted System for Analysis of Interaction in Problem-Based Learning Groups
Authors: Magill Michael K. , Gil Doron , Hale Frank , Munning Katharine , Bobula James , Cushing Kay , Chandler Kacey
Published: March 2007

A computer-assisted system was developed to describe teaching in small groups. The system focuses on behaviors basic to the type of active, problem-solving educational experiences recently advocated for improving medical education. Raters can reliably classify the verbal communication of teachers and students by using the system 's coding scheme in real time. Summary profiles are available immediately after an instructional session. Profiles disclose similarities and differences between teachers and classes and provide a feedback tool for improvement of medical teaching skills.
The Dimensionality of Measures Derived from a Nationally Standardized Written Clinical Simulation Examination
Authors: Cavanaugh Sally Hixon , Loadman William E.
Published: March 2007

The literature reflects substantial controversy regarding the dimensionality of various scores derived from a variety of patient management problem tests. The purposes of this study were to determine (1) the dimensionality of 20 problem score measures derived from a nationally standardized written clinical simulation examination and (2) the stability and generalizability of the resulting factor structure across both examinee groups and test forms. Test score data from two independent national samples that completed the same test form were obtained (Ni = 2,812; N2 = 312); a third independent national sample completed a different test form (N3 = 2,546). Each of the three 20 x 20 intercorrelations was subjected to confirmatory factor analysis in an attempt to validate a two-dimensional solution, but such a solution could not be substantiated. Subsequent exploratory factor analyses yielded consistent one-factor solutions for each of the three data sets, demonstrating generalizability and stability of this one-factor structure across both different groups of examinees and different tests forms. This study clearly demonstrated that for the examination under study, there is only one underlying dimension rather than two as suggested in the literature and reflected in the existing test scoring practice.
Study of the Effectiveness of a Health-Risk Reduction Program
Authors: Smith M. F. , Bobroff Linda Benjamin
Published: March 2007

A program titled Contemporary Concerns about Food and Health (CCFH) was developed by the Florida Cooperative Extension Service after research in five counties showed 30%-74% of 2,308 middle-aged citizens to have three or more characteristics that placed them at above-average risk for developing diseases such as cardiovascular disease, adult-onset diabetes, and cirrhosis. CCFH addressed the effects of dietary and other practices that contribute to such lifestyle-related diseases. This article describes the test of the effectiveness of this program in increasing participant knowledge about the causes and preventions of health risk and in motivating them to make healthful risk-reducing changes in their lifestyles. A comparison, four-group, quasi-experimental design was used to study the program in five counties. The four groups included (a) those who participated only in CCFH lessons; (b) lesson participants who had also completed a computerized healthrisk profile; (c) a random sample of persons who completed only the health profile; and (d) a control group randomly selected to match both groups of lesson participants closely in age, sex, race, and county of residence. Results showed that lesson participants knew the answers to a significantly greater number of knowledge items than did the comparison groups, and they reported making more, and more important, changes in their lifestyles for reducing their risks of developing health problems.
Evaluation of Negation in Stems of Multiple-Choice Items
Authors: Harasym P. H. , Price P. G. , Brant R. , Violato C. , Lorscheider F. L.
Published: March 2007

The opinion of some test experts is that negation (e.g., not, except) should be used sparingly or avoided in the stems of multiplechoice items. In these items, examinees are required to select the one alternative that is false from among those that are true. However, negation continues to be used and frequently accounts for 15-20% of the multiple-choice items within a given medical examination. A 90-item multiple-choice examination was administered in various formats to approximately 200 nursing students in each of two consecutive academic years. The findings of the present study provide evidence that the use of negation in stems should be limited and that the single-response, negatively worded (SRNW) item should often be converted to a multiple-response, positively worded (MRPW) item. This recommendation is based on the inherent cuing (ie., eliminating some alternatives by comparative deduction) within SRNW items and on an increase in the reliability and concurrent validity of MRPW test scores.
A Practical Guide for Estimating Dietary Fat and Fiber Using Limited Food Frequency Data
Authors: Neale Anne Victoria , Demers Raymond Y. , Zemel Paula C.
Published: March 2007

There are occasions when health promotion programs must be developed based on limited food intake data that are insufficient for estimating dietary fat and fiber intake. Health educators, however, often have sufficient knowledge to evaluate available food intake data as part of a nutrition education needs assessment. A methodology for estimating daily intake of dietary fat and fiber based on limited food frequency data is presented. This procedure involves identifying the medianportion of food items from National Food Consumption Survey data; determining the insoluble fiber and fat content of the food items; multiplying the fiber and fat content of the median portion by the daily consumption rate; summing all items and calculating mean and standard deviationsfor the entire sample. This method can provide baseline estimates of dietary patterns to health promotion policymakers interested in using existingfood intake information.
The Reliability of Peer Assessments
Authors: Goldman Ronald L.
Published: March 2007

A meta-analysis of studies examining the interrater reliability of the standard practice of peer assessments of quality of care was conducted. Using the Medline, Health Planning and Administration, and SCISEARCH databases, the English-language literature from 1966 through 1991 was searchedfor studies of chance corrected agreement among peer reviewers. The weighted mean kappa of 21 independent findings from 13 studies was .31. Comparison of this result with widely used standards suggests that the interrater reliability of peer assessment is quite limited and needs improvement. Research needs to be directed at modifying the peer review process to improve its reliability or at identifying indexes of quality with sufficient validity and reliability that they can be employed without subsequent peer review.
Portfolios and Professional Development in the Health Professions
Authors: Jensen Gail M. , Saylor Coleen
Published: March 2007

Increasing concern in professional education has focused on the gap between thought and action, theory and practice, the academy and the everyday world. Reflection, a process of reviewing, reenacting, and analyzing one's performance, has been proposed as a process in which a professional can learn from experience. The purpose of this article is to report the results of a project that piloted the use of portfolios as a vehicle for professional development and reflection in two health professions, nursing and physical therapy. Evaluation results obtained through a qualitative content analysis of student portfolios and studentfeedback data suggest that student reflection on professional development was promoted, although the portfolios varied in their structure and complexity. Identified portfolio components and implementation benefits and barriers are relevant findings for educators wishing tofacilitate reflection.
Dimensions of Clinical Competence as Conceptualized by Medical School Faculty
Authors: Solomon David J. , Speer Alice J. , Callaway Michael R. , Ainsworth Michael A.
Published: March 2007

This study identified dimensions of clinical competence underlying faculty ratings of fourth-year student performance in a standardizedpatient examination and assessed the impact of these dimensions onfaculty pass/fail decisions. Content review coupled with exploratoryfactor analysis was used to group 17 of 25 specific behavioral rating categories intofourhomogeneous clusters. Confirmatory factor analysis refined the clusters into four unidimensional scales that included 14 of the original ratings. The dimensions reflected relating to the patient, problem-solving skills, medical history skills, and physical examination skills. The factor structure was crossvalidated in a separate data set. Logistic regression indicated problem solving was the only independent predictor of a student passing the exercise.
Evaluation of a Prospective Payment System for VA Contract Nursing Homes
Authors: Weaver Frances M. , Conrad Kendon J. , Guihan Marylou , Byck Gayle R. , Manheim Larry M. , Hughes Susan L.
Published: March 2007

An evaluation of a pilot program for community nursing home care reimbursement by Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers (VAMCs) was undertaken. Eight VAMCs began using the Enhanced Prospective Payment System (EPPS) in 1992. These sites were compared to eight customary payment sites in a pretest/posttest quasi-experimental design. Outcomes included access to care, administrative workload, quality of care, and cost. As expected, per diem costs were significantly higher for EPPS than customary reimbursement patients ($106 vs. $87). However, EPPS sites placed veterans more quickly (81 days vs. 113 days; p < .01) than comparison sites and reduced administrative workload associated with placement. EPPS sites also increased the number of Medicare-certified homes under contract (76% vs. 54%) and placed significantly more veterans who received therapy (20% vs. < 1%). Savings in hospital days more than offset the increased cost of nursing home placement. Because the findings were attributed largely to a few veterans with long lengths of hospital stay, the early success of EPPS may diminish as the backlog of these long-stay patients decreases.
Gacetilla: a keyword for a revisionist approach to the political economy of Mexico's print news media
Authors: Benavides José Luis
Published: March 2007

Based on the perspective of political economy, this work traces the history of the gacetilla, advertising disguised as news, also known as `reading notice', a key feature in the finances of contemporary Mexican print news media. The work contends that gacetillas have been the key ingredient in a system of governmental press subsidy, essential in explaining the way in which the Mexican press has served as a propaganda tool for both the Mexican government and the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) throughout most of the 20th century. The work also characterizes how the gacetilla system works and how it affects press content and journalistic routines. Finally, the work speculates about the current transition in the political economy of the Mexican press and the implication of this process for future media studies.
Reproducing the nation: `banal nationalism' in the Turkish press
Authors: Yumul Arus , Özkirimli Umut
Published: March 2007

Nationalism is an elusive concept, resisting all attempts at formulating an allembracing definition. Despite this Janus-faced character, however, the literature on nationalism abounds with definitions and theories designed to explain its rise. In a groundbreaking study, Michael Billig (1995) challenges the orthodox conceptions of nationalism and introduces the term `banal nationalism' to cover all those unnoticed, routine practices and ideological habits which enable the daily reproduction of nationhood. The newspapers play a major role in this `unmindful' process of reproduction. This article is inspired by Billig's day survey of British newspapers. Replicating Billig's analysis in the Turkish context, the article examines 38 newspapers on a randomly selected day. In the course of the survey, the presentation and content of the news are analysed and the articles of the columnists and the advertisements are dissected. The results of the survey do not deviate from Billig's findings in the British case: the Turkish newspapers constantly `flag' nationhood. The fundamental premises of nationalist ideology are taken for granted and all debates are conducted within the parameters of the nationalist discourse. The article concludes by raising the following question: is there an alternative to this state of affairs?
Public service television and national identity as a project of modernity: the example of Flemish television
Authors: Van den Bulck Hilde
Published: March 2007

The aim of this article is to study the way in which PSB - as a typical modernist project of a certain cultural elite - has tried to create and maintain a national identity using a uniform, high culture as a vehicle to `educate' its audience into being `citizens' of the community. In particular, the analysis will concentrate on the policy in this regard of Flemish public service television. Our hypothesis is that the (cultural elite within) Flemish PSB - and particularly television - tried for a long time to contribute to the recognition and development of Flemish identity and culture by offering a uniform Felmish culture. An analysis of Flemish public television between 1953 and 1960 is used to illustrate this.
Legislators or interpreters? On the relationship between journalists and their readers
Authors: de Vries Bert , Zwaga Wiebe E. R.
Published: March 2007

This article examines the relationship between journalists and readers in the Netherlands. Following a brief discussion about recent trends in the media landscape in this country, a study of the producers and consumers of four regional newspapers is introduced. The study used qualitative methodology involving more than 500 participants/respondents. The overall finding was that regional newspapers had a major public image problem. Journalists were perceived not to be visible in the region for which they wrote. Readers felt that the newspapers concerned were not sufficiently focused on providing good regional coverage. The newspapers attempted to be `all things to all people', a feature rejected outright by the readers. The readers' verdict appears to be related to the pecking order within the profession of journalism which accredits a low status to regional journalism.
New trends in French political communication: the 1995 presidential elections
Authors: Maarek Philippe J.
Published: March 2007

In France, political communication has always been extensively framed by a very strict pattern of rules and regulations, which has made campaigning quite distinctive in character. A new law, adopted on 15 January 1990, made any kind of paid advertising illegal during the three months before national election days. This article examines how, during the presidential elections in 1995, the new law considerably influenced political campaigning techniques by forcing politicians to come back to `classical' campaigning (for example, public meetings), while public opinion surveys also set the terms of the `political offer' much more than is usual. At the same time, two other shifts were noticeable — the `primary system' made its first appearance in the two main parties and Jacques Chirac's schematic electoral message, denouncing `La Fracture sociale', could be seen as a further triumph in politics of the `Unique Selling Proposition' and a North American-style campaign approach.
Clinical Research with Older African Americans and Latinos
Authors: Nápoles-Springer Anna M. , Grumbach Kevin , Alexander Mark , Moreno-John Gina , Forté Deirdra , Rangel-Lugo Martha , Pérez-Stable Eliseo J.
Published: March 2007

This study examines the social and health priorities of older African Americans and Latinos and their attitudes about participation in clinical research. Focus group discussions were conducted with older Latinos and African Americans, and a survey was mailed to key informants from 117 community-based organizations serving primarily older African Americans or Latinos. Results indicate that affordable housing, enough money to meet their needs, adequate transportation, and safer neighborhoods were urgent priorities for older Latinos and African Americans and superseded their health concerns. Distrust of researchers, lack of information, caregiver obligations, fear of experimentation, and lack of benefits were identified as barriers to research participation. Results indicate that community members are willing to participate in research provided they are fully informed of the research and perceive tangible benefits and congruence between the objectives of researchers and participants.
Daily Life and Forms of “Communitas” in a Personal Care Home for Elders
Authors: Spencer Jean , Hersch Gayle , Aldridge John , Anderson Liane , Ulbrich Alexia
Published: March 2007

This study examined daily life in a personal care home using anthropological theories of liminality and communitas associated with rites of passage. Purposes of this article are to (1) describe daily life in terms of its setting, activities, and social system (elements of normative communitas) and (2) examine cultural beliefs and values that may foster ideological and existential communitas. Ethnographic methods included participant observations and semistructured interviews. Ongoing data analysis and interpretation were conducted by a five-member research team. Factors that foster social cohesion include a small-scale residential environment, a familiar round of activity routines, a social system with flexible roles of residents and staff, and a culture in which mutual support of persons with varying capabilities is valued. Some of these qualities, for which residents and staff used the metaphors of home and family, might be purposely cultivated in other residential settings for elders.
A European Assessment of Aged Migration
Authors: Cribier Francoise
Published: March 2007

This article is not a catalogue of European research on aged migration, although some European findings are incorporated as illustrations and qualifications of point in the article's arguments. Rather, it is an explanation of and an argument for an approach to the study of aged migration, which relies both on quantitative and qualitative data to get beneath the facts to the underlying social processes at work, and against the narrower approach which tends to rely almost exclusively upon quantitative data, the relevance of which is not always clear. Five types of aged residential relocation are delineated, but only one is selected as an appropriate focus of research on the topic-namely, retirement migration-which is then analyzed as a social and spatial system. Five key issues which will continue to be central both to national and to comparative international research on retirement migration are discussed. Throughout the article there is a running argument that more cross-national comparative research is needed and that it must be multidisciplinary as well.
The Disappearing Senior Leaders
Authors: Lammers William W. , Nyomarkay Joseph L.
Published: March 2007

Changing age patterns among cabinet members in postindustrial societies have major significance for both the likely political roles open to aging individuals and the representation of age-related interests. Data on cabinet appointments over the past century in Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States show strikingly common tendencies. Junior and senior appointees are giving way to a greater concentration of middle age cabinet members. The emerging age similarity of cabinet career patterns in each country supports the emphasis on regularity and uniformity stressed by recent observers of postindustrial societies. Aging populations thus seem destined to be increasingly underrepresented in the emerging leadership groups of postindustrial societies.
Criminal Victimization and Fear of Crime
Authors: Ollenburger Jane C.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this research is twofold: to examine the relationship between criminal victimization and age-related characteristics, and to investigate the extent and reasons for high rates of fear of crime among the elderly. The data suggest a linear relationship between age and victimization with the elderly being victimized least and the age category of 18-24 having the highest victimization rates. The evidence supports conclusions that the elderly have the highest fear of crime and "'community protectiveness" is used as an important explanation for differences between rural and urban elderly fear of crime. A multivariate approach was used to determine the impact of criminal victimization and fear of crime upon the elderly.
The Will-to-Live
Authors: Brown Julia S. , Perman Bette S. , Dobbs Jeri L.
Published: March 2007

Interviews with 100 patients dependent on implanted pacemakers for survival provided data on their will-to-live, extent of social participation, and perceptions of health and of locus of control. The sample was mainly male (N = 81), elderly (mean age = 69 years), poor, and of working-class background. Patients expressed a strong will-to-live; perceived their health to be as good as that of their age peers; were neither strongly internal nor external in locus-of-control orientation; and led quite active social lives. Regression analysis indicated that those persons who perceived themselves as healthier, who were married, who believed in internal control, who were currently experiencing fewer symptoms, and who led more active social lives expressed a stronger will-to-live. These five variables accounted for 25% of the variance observed in the will-to-live of these subjects.
Childlessness and Family Satisfaction
Authors: Singh B. Krishna , Williams J. Sherwood
Published: March 2007

This study examines the effects of childlessness on family satisfaction among older persons. Respondents 65 years of age and older from four national surveys are selected for the analysis. The results indicate that childlessness has significant negative effects on family satisfaction, especially among those who are 70 years of age and older, and more so among older women than men. This effect is above and beyond sociodemographic characteristics and interaction patterns with relatives, neighbors, and friends. Implications of childlessness and roles of formal and informal support systems for the older persons are discussed.
Major Role Losses and Social Participation of Older Males
Authors: Wan Thomas T. H. , Odell Barbara Gill
Published: March 2007

This article examines the relative importance of major role losses experienced in widowhood and retirement, personal characteristics, and prior level of participation as predictors of formal and informal social participation in old age. Data obtained from the Longitudinal Retirement History Survey (LRHS) of a panel (N = 6603) of males in their sixties are analyzed. Stepwise regression analysis reveals that prior level of participation and personal characteristics explain more variance in participation than major role losses considered alone or in conjunction with related deteriorative changes such as income loss. When the effects of these variables are simultaneously controlled, persons with major role losses have lower levels of participation in formal organizations and in selected areas of informal activity than those without comparable losses. Examination of the cumulative effects of experiencing both major role losses exacerbated these results. Policy implications for preretirement education and programming are discussed.
The Current Population Shift among Elderly Migrants
Authors: Kim Joochul , Hartwigsen Gail
Published: March 2007

An elderly migration shift away from urban areas and toward rural areas and small towns has been noted recently. In addition to documenting general migration trends, this article focuses on the characteristics of elderly migrants who have moved in either the urban or rural direction. Data from a longitudinal nationwide survey conducted by the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan are used for this study. A general trend toward ruralward migration was found, with these migrants having a higher educational level, higher total family income, higher working status for those still in the job market, and fewer hours currently worked per week when compared to urbanward migrants. It appears that households with more choices were selecting homes in rural areas as opposed to urban sites.
Residential Satisfaction as a Function of Micro and Macro Environmental Conditions among Urban Elderly Men
Authors: Jirovec Ronald L. , Jirovec Mary Marmoll , Bosse Raymond
Published: March 2007

The dual purpose of this study was to investigate in a comprehensive fashion the impact of both micro (housing) and macro (neighborhood) environmental conditions on residential satisfaction as well as to ascertain the relative importance of housing compared to neighborhood elements within a sample of urban elderly men. Data revealed that residential satisfaction was largely a function of macro environmental conditions (i.e., neighborhood beauty, safety, interest level, and quietness).
Board and Care Housing
Authors: Benjamin A. E. , Newcomer Robert J.
Published: March 2007

Interest in board and care arrangements designed to provide food, shelter, and protective and personal care for chronically impaired adults has increased in recent years. Most of the authority for licensing and regulating such supportive housing arrangements resides with the states. The results of a regression analysis of state board and care supply for 1983 suggest that Supplemental Security Income Program (SSI) policy, specific board and care regulations, Medicaid nursing home rates, and the percentage of elderly are particularly important in explaining about two-thirds of the variance in state bed supply.
Age Stereotyping
Authors: Levin William C.
Published: March 2007

College students from California, Tennessee, and Massachusetts evaluated 19 characteristics of a 25-, 52-, or 73-year-old stimulus person on semantic differential scales. Results revealed significantly more negative evaluations of the person when he was older than when he was either middle-aged or younger and were consistent for all three regions of the country.
Data for Long-Term Care Planning
Authors: Unger Alan , Weissert William G.
Published: March 2007

To provide state-level estimates for long-term care planning, synthetic estimation techniques were used to generate estimates of dependency in activities of daily living (ADL) and mobility among each state's population. Dependency is regressed on demographic predictor variables in a data set created by combining the 1977 National Health Interview Survey and 1977 National Nursing Home Survey. Coefficients were then applied to 1980 U.S. Bureau of the Census state prevalence estimates for these predictors. The results are state estimates that vary from 7.2% of the aged population ADL dependent in Alaska to 10.4% in Iowa and Nebraska. An alternative model regresses dependency on state mortality rates and produces similar but generally lower estimates.
The Effects of Race Differences in Work History, Work Attitudes, Economic Resources, and Health on Women ' Retirement
Authors: Belgrave Linda Liska
Published: March 2007

The effects of work history, work attitudes, economic resources, and health on the retirement of women, particularly Black women, are poorly understood. This report examines racial differences in these factors and in their effects on the decision to retire, using data gathered from 258 Black and white women aged 62 through 66. Results showed that Black women were considerably more likely than whites to have worked steadily most of their adult lives, although Black and white women expressed quite similar attitudes toward work. Reflecting their work histories, Black women were more likely than whites to be eligible for pensions but were less likely to have retired. In multivariate analysis poor health was a predictor of retirement for both Black and white women, while low average income over the last five years of employment was a predictor only for Blacks. Work history and attitude were unrelated to retirement.
The Pension Cost of Changing Jobs
Authors: Allen Steven G. , Clark Robert L. , McDermed Ann A.
Published: March 2007

Workers covered by defined benefit pension plans receive lower benefits at retirement if they leave their current jobs before reaching retirement age. This study estimates the magnitude of this pension loss for workers in the May 1983 supplement of the Current Population Survey, using pension formula estimates from the 1983 Employee Benefit Survey. The pension loss is generally greatest between the ages of 35 and 54 and represents roughly half of a year's earnings for that age group. The loss tends to be quite high in the declining mining and manufacturing sectors. This probably resulted in lower voluntary attrition at a time of massive layoffs and plant closings.
Retirement in Shanghai
Authors: Hayward Mark D. , Wang Wei
Published: March 2007

This study probes those attributes of elderly Chinese related to their retirement status. Despite recent pioneering surveys of the objective conditions of the aged in China, multivariate models of retirement, necessary to inform policy and account for important subgroup differences, have been lacking. The present study brings established multivariate modeling approaches to bear on two companion "Older People in Shanghai" surveys of urban and rural residents. The analytic task is to investigate how the elderly's economic activity is shaped by the traditional Western retirement determinants, health and financial status, as well as by factors that are uniquely Chinese such as family living arrangements and intergenerational support. The pattern of results differs markedly from established Western models, reflecting the importance of historical changes in Chinese pension policy and economic development. For example, health status exhibited no significant effects, and pension benefits for urban males increased the likelihood of working. Although family living arrangements and intergenerational relations differentially influenced the retirement decisions of Chinese elderly, the pattern was not entirely consistent with the general perception of the Chinese family as a key source of social security for the elderly. The results also revealed sex differences in retirement determinants.
The Use of Workplace Eldercare Programs by Employed Caregivers
Authors: Wagner Donna L. , Hunt Gail G.
Published: March 2007

Workplace eldercare programs have become a more common component of the work-family benefit package of employers in recent years. This pilot study examines the correlates of caregiving employees' use of workplace eldercare programs. Phone surveys were conducted with 115 employed caregivers; both users and nonusers were interviewed. Findings suggest that use is related to both the type of caregiving situation in which an employee is involved and the work-related burdens of the caregiving experience. The research and practice implications of the study are discussed.
Qualitative Gerontology
Authors: Holstein Martha
Published: March 2007

This commentary examines four articles in qualitative and humanistic gerontology, with the purpose of explicating the goals of such work, the criteria that make them exemplary, and the contribution they make to an enriched understanding of aging and old age. Qualitative work, undertaken with its own evaluative criteria, can also challenge understandings gained through quantitative research. For example, by revealing how individuals shape their lives and find meanings, social behavior assumes a complexity often hidden by other forms of research. This commentary suggests that to understand how people experience old age and to develop policy and programmatic responses, it is necessary to ask questions and design research sufficiently robust and varied to explicate the diversity and ambiguity we know exists.
Factors that Influence Attitudes Toward Retirement
Authors: Mutran Elizabeth J. , Reitzes Donald C. , Fernandez Maria E.
Published: March 2007

A set of older workers 58 to 64 years of age from the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill metropolitan area were followed for two years to explore their attitudes toward retirement. Findings include (1) workers who retired by 1994 were more positive about retirement than those who continued to work; (2) attitudes toward retirement in 1992 were influenced by social background, expectations of a pension, having an anticipated time for retirement, worker identity, and self-concept factors; and (3)attitudes toward retirement in 1994 were bolstered by expectations of a pension at retirement, participation in retirement planning activities, earlier attitudes toward retirement, and self-esteem. Further, the pension expectations, retirement planning, earlier retirement attitudes, and identity as a confident worker increased and depression decreased attitudes toward retirement for retirees, while retirement planning, earlier retirement attitudes, and self-esteem improved attitudes toward retirement for those who continued to work.
Overlooked, Ignored, and Forgotten
Authors: Zablotsky Diane L.
Published: March 2007

This article explores the experience of mature women in the HIV/AIDS epidemic,especially in terms of their vulnerability to infection and lack of AIDS-relatedknowledge. Demographic trends illustrate the increase of AIDS diagnoses amongmidlife women and women of color. The proportion of adolescent and adult femalecases among women age 50 and older has been 9% to 10% since 1989. However, theproportion of those mature women who are age 65 and older when diagnosed hasdeclined from 36% in 1989 to 20% in 1997. Lack of accurate knowledge amongwomen in older cohorts is shown with data from the 1994 National Health InterviewSurvey. Increased age is related to not having accurate information, including knowledge necessary to protect oneself from high-risk behavior such as the effectivenessof condoms or that someone with AIDS can look well and healthy. Finally, researchrecommendations are made along with the suggestion to employ a life-courseperspective when developing education, intervention, and treatment programs forwomen.
The Political Participation of Ethnic Minorities
Authors: Crowley John
Published: March 2007

The author calls attention to the theoretical and empirical difficulties of assigning a presumptive capacity for collective consciousness and action to ethnic categories. Evidence from Western Europe shows how the ways in which numerically small ethnic groups are recognized, either positively or negatively, may promote specific forms of marginalization in democratic systems. To this extent, an ethnic problem exists within Western liberal democracies. However, this problem can be analyzed using the tools appropriate to other instances of unequally distributed citizenship rights, and it expresses both the ideal and the inherent limits of citizenship.
The US Power Cycle, Expected Utility, and the Probable Future of the FTAA
Authors: James Patrick , Lusztig Michael
Published: March 2007

Power cycle theory, which associates future foreign policy role expectations with the level and trend of relative power, will be used to derive propositions about the likely us role in future trade negotiations involving the Free Trade Area for the Americas (ftaa). In power cycle theory, foreign policy role is the “bargaining substance” of statecraft, requiring actor initiative and systemic (other actors') acceptance. Leadership is not hegemony. The concept of “systemism” provides a persuasive justification for the research on micro-micro and micro-macro linkages in power cycle theory. Forecasting negotiation outcomes, the Decision Insights expected utility bargaining model finds support for the hypotheses derived from the known us position on its power cycle, and for the theory's claim that the inertia of role change is greater than that of power.
Crisis Escalation: Model and Findings
Authors: Brecher Michael
Published: March 2007

The concept, crisis escalation, has three distinct but closely-related meanings: change from incipient to full-scale crisis; change from non-violence to violence; and change from no/low violence to severe violence. These are examined through a model of crisis escalation and a group of seven hypotheses derived from the model.

Testing of the propositions on crisis escalation with the evidence from 388 international crises and 829 foreign policy crises from the end of 1918 to the end of 1988 reveals strong support for most of the postulated linkages in the crisis escalation model. Moreover, the evidence from ten indepth case studies indicates a widely shared pattern of coping with high stress, despite notable diversity in crisis attributes. This finding challenges conventional wisdom about how states cope with foreign policy crises.
Federalism and the European Union: The Scope and Limits of the Treaty of Maastricht
Authors: Wincott Daniel
Published: March 2007

The Treaty of Maastricht should be understood as a political compromise in the process of European integration, rather than as a definitive legal document. This article analyzes the integrative and fragmenting elements of the Treaty and concludes that, on balance, it contains more of the latter than the former. In particular the Treaty may exacerbate the problems increasingly faced by the European Court of Justice, by forcing it to decide politically controversial cases. Nevertheless, the ability of the European institutions, particularly the Commission, to turn crises to their advantage means that the future of Europe remains uncertain.
Electoral Systems and Democracy in Central Europe, 1990-1994
Authors: Simon János
Published: March 2007

The article analyzes, in seven post-communist countries the results of their first two elections and the consequences for party development, democratization and governing stability. The analysis shows that during the transition period, the electoral system has only a minor effect on the electoral results as far as the emergence and stability of the new power system is concerned. Much more important is the degree to which democratization had progressed (a) in the state and in the civil society, and (b) in the relations between the state and the civil society at the time of the founding election. Post-communist countries fall into three categories: (1) late pluralizing; (2) early pluralizing; and (3) concomitantly pluralizing.