bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Fiction and Reality
Authors: GAENSLEN FRITZ
Published: March 2007

Although the relationship between fiction and reality would seem to be of general concern to social scientists interested in the unobtrusive observation of social processes, systematic empirical evidence concerning this relationship is hard to come by. This study examines 1000 cases of interpersonal conflict resolution drawn from contemporary Chinese, Japanese, Russian, and American fiction and discusses, under the broad headings of reliability and validity, a number of objections to taking these cases as “real.” More specifically, it is argued and/or demonstrated (1) that fiction can be read reliably, (2) that fiction is more about “life” than “art,” (3) that fiction is always in part mimetic, and (4) that while authors of fiction may choose their outcomes, they tend to be constrained by reality in depicting the processes that produce these outcomes. This last conclusion is based on a comparison between relationships found in the fiction and 36 propositions drawn from the social science literature.
A Note on Who's Who in America as a Biographical Data Source in Studies of Elites
Authors: PRIEST T. B.
Published: March 2007

This article examines the comprehensiveness of Who's who in America coverage of elites and the extent of biographical data reported in Who's Who in America biographies using two business elite populations derived from standard sources. Who's Who in America coverage of the two business elite populations appeared fairly comprehensive when three editions were examined for each population. The extent of data reported in Who's Who in America biographies varied greatly by type of data, with more “sensitive” types less likely to be reported. These results are discussed.
The Analysis of Covariance Structures
Authors: HOELTER JON W.
Published: March 2007

A major problem encountered in covariance structure analyses involves decisions concerning whether or not a given theoretical model adequately represents the data used for its assessment. Given that X2 goodness-of-fit tests are joint functions of the difference between theoretical and empirical covariance structures and sample size, gauging the impact of sample size on such tests is essential. In this paper, we propose a simple index (critical N) and tentative acceptance criterion, which, by focusing on sample size, provide an improved method for assessing goodness-of-fit. Both small- and large-sample examples are presented, illustrating the utility of the proposed method for assessing theoretical models.
Network Autocorrelation Models
Authors: DOREIAN PATRICK , TEUTER KLAUS , WANG CHI-HSEIN
Published: March 2007

For network effects models of network autocorrelation we use Monte Carlo methods to study the relative properties of three estimation methods. The methods are the iterative maximum likelihood estimation (Ord, 1975; Doreian, 1981), ordinary least squares, and a regression-based “quick and dirty” substitution for iterative MLE. Of the three, OLS is clearly the inferior estimation method and MLE the superior method. We recommend the use of the maximum likelihood method when network autocorrelation models are to be estimated.
Is there a “Socratic Effect” in Nonexperimental Panel Studies?
Authors: JAGODZINSKI WOLFGANG , KÜHNEL STEFFEN M. , SCHMIDT PETER
Published: March 2007

It has often been observed in experimental studies that the reliability of items increases if the same questions are asked of the same respondents more than once. This phenomenon, called the “Socratic effect,” also occurs in nonexperimental, short-wave panel studies. In the first section of this article a number of hypotheses presumed to underlie the “Socratic effect” are presented. It is argued that a distinction must be made between consistency processes at the structural level (latent attitudes) and the observational level (respondent behavior). Given this distinction, the hypotheses are tested within a LISREL framework that takes this differentiation into account. The hypotheses are then evaluated using four items to measure respondents' attitudes toward guestworkers in West Germany. By and large the central hypotheses are confirmed. It is also shown that two different models can be fit to the observed data equally well, and therefore a nonstatistical criterion has to be invoked to decide which model to use as the basic model for describing the stability and reliability of the attitude.
A Note on Approximating Correlations from Odds Ratios
Authors: BECKER MARK P. , CLOGG CLIFFORD C.
Published: March 2007

An approximate relationship between the odds ratio and the tetrachoric correlation for 2×2 contingency tables is presented. The approximation is simple in form and demonstrates a close linkage between these two important measures of association. This relationship can be used to reconcile (at least in part) the two ostensibly different ways to study association or partial association. The approximation is related to Yule's Q and can also be motivated by recent results on association models. The approximation is used to relate the parameters of the common factor model and the 2-class latent structure model applied to dichotomous items.
Model Estimation when Observations are not Independent:
Authors: BYE BARRY V. , RILEY GERALD F.
Published: March 2007

Parameter estimation and the computation of standard errors in social science models often require the assumption that observations are independent. This assumption is frequently violated with pooled cross-section and time-series data and household survey data. A recent article by Liang and Zeger (1986) shows that classical estimation methods retain good statistical properties in a wide variety of analyses where observations are not independent, and that correct standard errors of estimated model parameters are not difficult to compute. This article describes one of Liang and Zeger's results and presents its applications to the estimation of linear and logistic regression models from pooled cross-section and time-series data.
Discrete-Choice Logit Models
Authors: ZHANG JUNSEN , HOFFMAN SAUL D.
Published: March 2007

Multinomial logit discrete-choice models are now being used more frequently in sociological research, but often without appropriate attention to the central role played by the independence of irrelevant alternatives (IIA) property. In this article, three tests of the IIA property are discussed and then how to apply them is illustrated, using a data set previously analyzed by Hoffman and Duncan. The IIA tests decisively reject the IIA property in the single/welfare/remarriage choice model.
Multilevel Cross-Classified Models
Authors: GOLDSTEIN HARVEY
Published: March 2007

Random cross-classifications of units can arise at any level of a data hierarchy. For example, school students may be classified both by the schools they attend and their neighborhoods of residence. This article explores the issues of efficiently modeling such data and gives an example from a study of parental choice of schools.
Producing locality: Space, houses and public culture in a Hindu festival in Malaysia
Authors: Yeoh Seng Guan
Published: March 2007

Victor Turner's concepts of liminality and communitas have left an indelible mark on anthropological studies on ritual. Basically, Turner argued that there is a dialectic between the mediacy of social structure (characterised as a 'closed society' or 'status system') and the immediacy of communitas (an 'open society'). This article argues for a more fluid understanding of these kinds of social processes, drawing from Arjun Appadurai's char acterisation of a 'locality'as a 'complex phenomenological quality, constituted by a series of links between the sense of social immediacy, the technologies of interactivity and the relativity of contexts'. This is illustrated through the ethnographic description and analy sis of a local annual Hindu festival in an urban squatter settlement in Malaysia. While the mythic territoriality of the female deity primarily engenders symbolic boundary-making and life-sustaining activities, it also constitutes other layers of social spaces for organ isers and participants alike. Individual and corporate agendas overlap and criss-cross one another. Local knowledge is both parochial and constituted within the wider religious, social and political landscapes. Altogether, these kinds of activities contribute towards a 'public culture' of Hinduism in Malaysia, characterised both by differentiation and the semblance of communitas.
No reciprocation? Wife-givers and wife-takers and the bartan of the samskara among the Khatris of Mandi, Himachal Pradesh
Authors: Hesse Klaus
Published: March 2007

The aim of this paper is to question the paradigm—which is also central to Parry's theory of the 'Indian gift'-of the unilaterality of the gift structure among wife-givers and wife-takers in north India on the occasion of marriage and other samskara. On the basis of detailed ethnography, it will be shown that the gift giving system (bartan) of the urban Khatri in Mandi (Himachal Pradesh) does not substantiate this theory of unilaterality. In Mandi there is definitely an asymmetric, but not a clear-cut unilateral, structure. Even with regard to kanyadan, reciprocation seems to be more complex than the soteriological argument of Trautmann and Parry suggests. It will be further argued that, with regard to Mandi, proportional, asymmetric reciprocation is central to the system of bartan, which implies a gift exchange in Mauss' categories. Bartan is conditioned by the content and structure of the rites de passage, by the general hierarchical social order, by the kin structure, and by asymmetry of giving, receiving and returning of gifts within the life cycle and over the generations.
The issue of 'right to food' among the Hindus: Notes and comments
Authors: Khare R.S.
Published: March 2007

The paper starts with a comparative discussion of food in Hindu religion and law and in Indian democratic polity, examining the general question whether the Hindu system possesses at all a substantive cultural basis of its own for addressing the goal of 'food-accessibility-for-all'. Though democracy demands egalitarian 'public policy' and 'public action programmes' for food for all its citizens, the Hindu system frames the issue within its language of karma, debts and duties, and yields some moral-practical (if socially weak) formulations and four specific 'notions of shared sustenance'. But today, as dharma, history, caste, and modern India entangle with one another, there is no clear social direction, and the issue of 'right to food' also remains correspondingly muddled.
On living in the kal(i)yug: Notes from Nagda, Madhya Pradesh
Authors: Pinney Christopher
Published: March 2007

Nagda in Madhya Pradesh is the site of a large viscose rayon factory employing significant numbers of workers from surrounding villages. Pollution and health and safety issues in and around the factory have been key concerns for several decades and this, combined with the continuous shift system and division of labour, embodies industry as the apparently (negative) antithesis of the rural. This is certainly the perspective of local high-caste village employers who articulate a very negative view of the factory, seeking to project it as part of the degenerate kaliyug which is associated with machinery, the goddess Kali, and a dangerous and unstable modernity. Local village-resident factory workers, however, value the comparatively high industrial wages, shorter working hours, and their liberation from the oppressive expectations of rural 'patronage'. The complex everyday predicaments of living in the kaliyug are explored through a variety of different voices which suggest the inadequacy of trans-local narratives of industrialisation.
Artisan labour in the Agra footwear industry: Continued informality and changing threats
Authors: Knorringa Peter
Published: March 2007

Informal artisanal employment conditions effectively pass on overall instability in the Agra footwear industry to the Jatav community. Although in recent decades both mar ket channels and the production structure have become more complex, Jatav artisans are incorporated in basically two ways. Since the 1980s, artisans either run or work in home-based units that manufacture cheap footwear for local upper-caste merchants, or they work as hired labourers in larger workshops and small-scale factories. Arti sanal employment in the 1990s is decreasing because of the increased availability of plastic footwear, the collapse of some export markets and the caste-based antagonism between the dominant Punjabi trader-entrepreneurs and Jatav artisans. This has resulted in an increasingly overcrowded home-based sector of last resort, and more precarious employment conditions. Only a small group of artisans, who are employed in small-scale export-oriented factories run by non-Agra entrepreneurs, enjoy relatively better employment conditions.
Tribal Politics and Discourses of Environmentalism
Authors: Baviskar Amita
Published: March 2007

In India, state-led developmentalism has recently been challenged by the discourse of environmentalism. Among the various streams of environmentalism, Ecological Marxism has been the most dominant. Its marrying of two concerns—social justice and ecological sustainability—has made this ideology highly appealing to social activists working with tribal communities in western India. Yet closer examination reveals that the dynamics of tribal politics often strain against the discourse of environmentalism and have an ambivalent attitude towards development. This paper analyses conflicts between middle-class activists and tribal leaders within a trade union of tribal peasants in Madhya Pradesh and argues that their disparate political strategies and postures stem from sharp differences in the ways in which they conceptualise the place of the `tribal' in relation to `nature'. The paper shows that the discourse of environmentalism is neither consistent nor complete, but consists of the interweaving of often contradictory political thought and action.
Liberal Equality and Inherited Wealth
Authors: Levy Michael B.
Published: March 2007

I am sure there are no men marked of God above another; for none comes into the world with a saddle on his back, neither any booted and spurred to ride him.

A Leveller Commonplace, circa 1647

... the day will come when the individual will no more be permitted to bequeath his property to his descendents even by means of a will thatn he has been permitted (since the French Revolution) to bequeath his offices and his status.

Emile Durkheim, 1892

... despite the ideology of the `open society' and social democratic attacks upon inherited wealth through the imposition of estate and death duties, inheritance remains an important factor in the distribution of control over resources, especially wealth.

Roderick Martin, 1977
“Supposing Truth Were a Woman...”
Authors: Brown Wendy
Published: March 2007

What is found at the historical beginnings of things is not the inviolable identity of their origin; it is the dissention of other things. It is diaparity.

—Michel Foucault
Maxims, “Practical Wisdom,” and the Language of Action
Authors: NICHOLS RAY
Published: March 2007

Only among barbarians is practice alone recognized in politics.

Alexis de Tocqueville
Affect and Persuasion
Authors: DILLARD JAMES PRICE , PECK EUGENIA
Published: March 2007

An experiment was designed to examine the role of emotion in persuasion. In this study, 140 undergraduates viewed eight public service announcements (PSAs) and then reported on their cognitive, emotional, and attitudinal responses to each. Some participants were instructed to attend to their feelings and use them in evaluating the PSAs (heuristic-enabled condition), whereas others were told to dampen their feelings and not let their emotions influence their judgments of the PSAs (heuristic-disabled condition). After controlling for cognition, the data showed a unique and separate effect for each emotion on perceived message effectiveness. However, the manipulations produced no observable effect on the magnitude of association between emotion and perceived effectiveness. Effects of both emotion and cognition on attitude toward the issue were mediated by perceived message effectiveness. A second study showed that perceived effectiveness and liking for the message are distinct judgments. Effectiveness is the preferred measure for studying PSAs.
Cultural Communication Competence and Psychological Adjustment
Authors: LEE BETTY KAMAN , CHEN LING
Published: March 2007

Cross-cultural adaptation starts with communication, proceeds in and through communication, and is revealed in host communication competence. Based on this conceptualization, this study examines the relationship between psychological adjustment and cultural communication competence among members of immigrant families. Participants included 124 seventh- and eighth-grade Chinese-Canadian adolescents, together with 48 fathers and 64 mothers. The adolescents were group-administered the adolescent version of the Host and Native Communication Competence Scale, the How-I-Feel questionnaire, and the Children's Depression Inventory. Parents completed questionnaries concerning their own host and native communication competence and their children's psychological adjustment. Adolescents' host communication competence was correlated negatively with psychological problems, whereas their native communication competence was nonsignificantly associated with psychological problems. In addition, interactions between adolescents' host and native communication competence and parents' host and native communication competence were found to predict adolescents' psychological adjustment. Implications of findings are discussed.
Communication, Community, and Democracy
Authors: FRIEDLAND LEWIS A.
Published: March 2007

This article asks whether the concept of community is of continuing relevance in a postindustrial society that is rapidly advancing to a networked form of social organization. The author argues that community is necessary for democratic life to function, and asks what new forms of integration might emerge to create the boundaries necessary for community reproduction. Turning to Habermas's theory of communicative action, the author shows the relevance of the two-level concept of society, system, and lifeworld for addressing this question, and proposes the concept of the communicatively integrated community as a framework for understanding the central role of communication in producing community. Finally, the article offers a mid-range analytic theory of community communication ecology as a frame for connecting this larger theory to the specific analysis of communication and community.
THE DIMENSIONALITY OF READERSHIP MEASURES
Authors: JOHNSON J. DAVID
Published: March 2007

This study posits three dimensions of self-report measures of readership based on the extent to which a measure reflects a general predisposition to expose oneself to a magazine or is tied to a specific issue. Confirmatory factor analysis of specific indicants related to the three general dimensions was used to test the resulting measurement model with a readership study conducted in Venezuela (N = 500). The results demonstrate that the specified dimensions provided a good fit to the data, with higher loadings and less measurement error associated with the dimension reflecting the most abstract measures. As predicted, the intercorrelations between the dimensions indicated they reflect differing underlying dimensions of readership.
ANALYSES OF INTERNATIONAL PROPAGANDA BROADCASTS
Authors: LINDAHL RUTGER
Published: March 2007

International radio broadcasts are relatively common elements in the international flow of communication. They can be used for a number of different purposes. An important one is the distribution of propaganda. This article contains a presentation of the analyses of international propaganda broadcasts—analyses that for a number of years have been carried out at the Department of Political Science, University of Gothenburg. The studies have primarily been aimed at finding propaganda patterns for different broadcasters and at finding ways to measure variations in propaganda intensity.
NORMATIVE EXPECTATIONS AND INDIVIDUAL DECISIONS CONCERNING MEDIA GRATIFICATION CHOICES
Authors: LICHTENSTEIN ALLEN , ROSENFELD LAWRENCE
Published: March 2007

Results from this study, in which subjects evaluated gratifications for various media channels based on their beliefs concerning how “most people” would respond, indicate that each medium has a clear, socially defined image. This suggests a two-stage model of media channel utilization, of normative expectations followed by individual decisions.
Electronic Emotion
Authors: RICE RONALD E. , LOVE GAIL
Published: March 2007

This article investigates a new communication medium—public computer conferencing—by separately and jointly analyzing two basic aspects of human communication: (1) content, the extent to which such systems can support socioemotional communication, and (2) connectivity, communication patterns among system users. Results indicate that (1) computer-mediated communication systems can facilitate a moderate exchange of socioemotional content and (2) basic network roles did not generally differ in percentage of socioemotional content. Some fundamental issues in analyzing content and networks in computer-mediated systems, such as structural equivalence versus cohesion network approaches, are discussed in light of these results.
Coorientational Accuracy and Organizational Conflict
Authors: PAPA MICHAEL J. , POOD ELLIOTT A.
Published: March 2007

The relationship between coorientational accuracy and two dimensions of conflict (tactic selection and interaction satisfaction) was investigated in an experimental study of 80 employees from a large corporation. The employees were placed in dyads in one of two settings, low or high coorientational accuracy (CA), and were videotaped while discussing a topic of personal and organizational relevance. In the high-CA setting, the employees were more likely to be satisfied with the process of discussion and with the decision outcome. Although employees in both groups selected reason as their primary conflict tactic, those in the high-CA setting chose friendliness and bargaining more frequently, while those in the low-CA setting chose assertiveness more frequently.
News Coverage of the Gulf Crisis and Public Opinion
Authors: IYENGAR SHANTO , SIMON ADAM
Published: March 2007

This article documents three types of media effects that operated on public opinion during the Persian Gulf crisis and war. First, the level of network news coverage matched the proportion of Gallup poll respondents naming the Gulf crisis as the nation's most important problem (agenda-setting ). Second, use of data from the 1988, 1990, and 1991 National Election Studies (NES) shows that the weight respondents accorded foreign policy performance when evaluating George Bush significantly increased (priming ) in the aftermath of the Gulf crisis. Third, content data (showing that network news coverage was preoccupied with military affairs and highly event oriented) and survey data are coupled to show that respondents reporting higher rates of exposure to television news expressed greater support for a military as opposed to a diplomatic response to the crisis (framing ). In conclusion, it is suggested that these effects, in combination with the nature of the media's information sources, were conducive to legitimizing the administration's perspective on the crisis.
The Impact of Press Coverage on Social Beliefs
Authors: HERTOG JAMES K. , FAN DAVID P.
Published: March 2007

This study reviewed the impact of newspaper and newsmagazine coverage of AIDS from 1987 through 1991 on public beliefs concerning the likelihood of HIV transmission via toilets, sneezing, and insects. Fan's ideodynamic model was applied to an analysis of coverage in The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Time magazine, Newsweek, US News and World Report, and the United Press International newswire. The trend line formed was then compared to public opinion polls concerning each of the HIV transmission routes. A significant relationship was found, and when Granger causality tests were applied, prediction was unidirectional—from news content to public opinion and not from opinion to content. Implications for theories of media effect were noted.
The Relationship Between Social Skills Deficits and Psychosocial Problems
Authors: SEGRIN CHRIS
Published: March 2007

This study sought to determine whether social skills deficits are a vulnerability factor in the development of psychosocial problems. In the first month of a semester, 227 students completed a laboratory interaction, measures of various components of social skills, and measures of the following psychosocial problems: depression, loneliness, social anxiety, substance use, and poor academic performance. Three to 4 months later, students again completed the measures of psychosocial problems and a measure of stress. The results were consistent with the hypothesis that some social skills deficits function as a vulnerability factor only for the development of social anxiety. For the remaining psychosocial problems, social skills deficits do not appear to be vulnerability factors. Poor social skills may be causally linked to social anxiety on their own and in concert with stress. Because the psychosocial problems were very stable over the course of the investigation, the vulnerability hypothesis received a restricted test.
Perceptions of Media Influence and Support for Censorship
Authors: SALWEN MICHAEL B.
Published: March 2007

Complaints about media coverage of presidential elections have raised concerns that the public may support restrictions on election campaign messages. This study, based on a nationwide telephone survey (N = 549), investigated perceptions of media influence and support for campaign message restrictions during the 1996 presidential campaign. The study was theoretically grounded in the third-person effect approach. The results confirmed the perceptual component hypothesis for individuals to perceive greater media influence on people other than themselves. They also confirmed the behavioral component hypothesis for third-person perception to lead to support for restrictions on election messages. The implications of the results are discussed.
The Repressive Coping Style and Fright Reactions to Mass Media
Authors: SPARKS GLENN G. , PELLECHIA MARIANNE , IRVINE CHRIS
Published: March 2007

Over the last 15 years, a number of studies in the mass communication literature have tested hypotheses about viewers' emotional reactions to frightening movies or TV programs. An assumption seems to be that self-reports of negative emotion are adequate for testing hypotheses about emotional responses. This study challenges that assumption in arguing for an alternative position that self-report responses provide only a partial picture of emotional response. By including data on physiological arousal, a more complete and sometimes different view of emotional responses emerges. Participants were either repressors or nonrepressors. Consistent with research on the repressive coping style, this study revealed that repressors who reported low levels of negative affect in response to a frightening film exhibited significantly higher physiological arousal than did nonrepressors. These results suggest that for repressors, low levels of self-reported negative affect may not provide a complete picture of their emotional experience. Implications and future directions for research are discussed.
Where Should We Intervene?
Authors: HANSON R. KARL , HARRIS ANDREW J. R.
Published: March 2007

Effective intervention with sexual offenders requires the targeting of appropriate risk factors. In this study, information on dynamic (changeable) risk factors was collected through interviews with community supervision officers and file reviews of 208 sexual offense recidivists and 201 nonrecidivists. The recidivists were generally considered to have poor social supports, attitudes tolerant of sexual assault, antisocial lifestyles, poor self-management strategies, and difficulties cooperating with supervision. The overall mood of the recidivists and nonrecidivists was similar, but the recidivists showed increased anger and subjective distress just before reoffending. The dynamic risk factors reported by the officers continued to be strongly associated with recidivism, even after controlling for preexisting differences in static risk factors. The factors identified in the interview data were reflected (to a lesser extent) in the officers' contemporaneous case notes, which suggests that the interview findings cannot be completely attributed to retrospective recall bias.
Law Enforcement-Assisted Suicide
Authors: LORD VIVIAN B.
Published: March 2007

This study describes historical, personality, behavioral, and situational factors of law enforcement-assisted suicides, which are also known as suicide-by-cop (SbC) subjects. These factors were then used to compare differences between SbC subjects who successfully forced officers to shoot them and those subjects who were unsuccessful. SbC subjects appear to share several risk factors with other suicide victims. This study detected some differences in the characteristics of the SbC subjects who were successful in forcing the officers to intervene with lethal force and those who were not. Substance abuse, previous suicide attempts, stressful life events, length of residency in the location of the incident, and homicidal conversation during the SbC incident did have weak relationships with the outcome of the incident.
Getting Tough with Juvenile Offenders
Authors: MEARS DANIEL P.
Published: March 2007

Despite recent “get tough” trends in juvenile justice, relatively little is known about support for sanctioning youths in adult courts. In response, this study examines several neglected explanatory factors, including links between marital status, political orientation, and philosophy of punishment. Analysis of data from the 1995 National Opinion Survey of Crime and Justice suggests that marital status and philosophy of punishment are consistently associated with support for adult sanctioning of youths when the offense involves any of three categories of offenses (selling illegal drugs, committing property crime, or committing violent crime). It also suggests that marital status conditions the effect of philosophy of punishment, an effect itself conditioned by political orientation when the offense involves selling illegal drugs. Research and policy implications are discussed.
The Attitudes and Decisions of Probation Officers
Authors: KATZ JANET
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study is to examine the attitudes of probation officers and determine how these attitudes are correlated with their decisions to recommend sentences of incarceration or probation for hypothetical defendants described in six case studies. The theoretical model for the prediction of behavioral intentions proposed by Fishbein is used to examine this relationship. The predictive power of each of the variables included in Fishbein's model is discussed, as well as the total amount of variance explained using multiple regression. The implications of these findings and suggestions for further study are discussed.
Local Corrections
Authors: SMITH DALE E.
Published: March 2007

The present study is an assessment of detainee preferences as observed within three jail settings. Individuals were sampled who, prior to the dates of testing, had been detained for five days or less. To assess these individuals' preferences, a modified version of Toch's “Prison Preference Inventory” was employed. This instrument was administered to groups of sampled inmates during a series of weekly sessions held at each facility. The responses of the detainees surveyed revealed a pattern of preferences similar to that which has been obtained among prison inmates. This similarity was also revealed in the analyses conducted across detainees' backgrounds, in that preferences were found to vary as a function of respondents' race and prior exposure to confinement. Yet in spite of these differences according to background, little variation in preference was revealed across the three facilities surveyed. Of additional note is the finding that among the eight concerns assessed, support via program opportunities was the most highly preferred factor. This greater preference for support was observed within each facility surveyed as well as in each category of detainee that was compared.
Don't Pass Go
Authors: BECKHAM JEAN C. , ANNIS ALWRENCE V. , BEIN MONTE F.
Published: March 2007

Data for two samples of competent defendants were collected from hospital records in order to determine group differences for those who maintain competency to stand trial (nonrecidivists) versus those who do not maintain competency (recidivists). Stepwise discriminant analysis derived a model with two significant variables for predicting recidivism: medication change and severity of charges. Decreases in medication after being determined competent and a maximum possible penalty of greater than 40 years were significant in predicting recidivism. The discriminant model resulted in 63% correct classifications for the derivation sample and 68% correct classifications for the crossvalidation sample. Effectiveness of the predictive model and implications for assessment and treatment are discussed.
Deliberate Self-Harm
Authors: FRANKLIN RICHARD K.
Published: March 2007

It is now recognized that not all self-injurious behavior is suicidal, particularly within correctional settings. This class of behaviors is referred to by some authors as deliberate self-harm. The purpose of the present study was to investigate variables that have been described as distinguishing deliberate self-harm from other types of self-injurious behavior. The result suggested that (1) 50% of all prison inmates who injured themselves reported manipulation as their goal; (2) contrary to previous research results, deliberate self-harmers were older than suicidal subjects; (3) self-injurious subjects did not receive differential treatment with regard to length of hospitalization; (4) deliberate self-harmers were more frequently diagnosed as having a borderline personality disorder; (5) deliberate self-harmers more frequently had a history of self-injury than suicidal subjects; and (6) the type of self-injury, as defined, failed to distinguish deliberate self-harmers from others self-injurious subjects.
Background Characteristics and Responses to Treatment of Two Types of Institutionalized Delinquent Boys
Authors: GOLD MARTIN , MATTLIN JAY , OSGOOD D. WAYNE
Published: March 2007

Two types of institutionalized delinquent boys were identified in a sample of 306 for the purpose of investigating differences in the etiology of their antisocial behavior and in their responses to a group-centered treatment program. The “Buoyant” and “Beset” types, defined by their levels of anxiety and depression, are compared conceptually to types identified in other classification schemes. Two-thirds of the sample showed sufficiently stable anxiety and depression over time to warrant classification. The importance of considering stability in defining the types is underscored by comparisons of the stable with unstable boys. Comparison of the Buoyant and Beset types revealed significant differences in life experiences and style of delinquent behavior prior to their institutionalization, in their behavior and attitudes during incarceration, and in the components of the treatment that affected their behavior and attitudes. The findings are discussed in terms of the validity of the proposed typology, their implications for etiological theory, and the guidance they may provide for differential treatment.
Testing Causal Models of Delinquency
Authors: AMDUR RICHARD L.
Published: March 2007

Researchers studying the etiology of delinquency often use correlational data in an attempt to test causal theories. This article shows that several specific methodological problems have hampered much of the research in this area. These problems include confusion over the definitions of measurement model and causal model, use of improper methods for testing each sort of model, and misunderstanding of the conditions under which data collected at a single time period can be used to draw conclusions about causal relationships between variables. Data presented in several studies are reanalyzed here to illustrate the use of methods that can help to solve these conceptual and methodological problems. It is concluded that we may know less than we thought we did about the causes of delinquency.
Attitudinal Differences Between Police Constables and Their Supervisors
Authors: PERROTT STEPHEN B. , TAYLOR DONALD M.
Published: March 2007

Rank may affect police attitudes because the occupational role and day-to-day experiences of police constables, their direct supervisors, and police managers vary considerably. This study compared a sample of constables ( n = 123) and a sample of their immediate supervisors ( n = 36) on measures of authoritarianism, perceived stress, job satisfactioin, and social nearness to several clearly defined groups. Although constables and their supervisors did not differ on perceived stress, supervisors reported significantly higher levels of authoritarianism, job satisfaction, and social nearness to certain groups. Lower levels of social nearness in the constable sample accompanied by lower levels of authoritarianism suggest that feelings of social nearness may result from situational factors. Explanations for these differences are proposed, and implications for the psychological well-being of police officers and for police-community relations are discussed.
Offender Classification
Authors: CLEMENTS CARL B.
Published: March 2007

This article reviews the literature of the past 20 years on offender classification. Early developments represented a convergence of professional, legal, and political demands. Recent progress in several areas is noted: risk assessment and correctional supervision, classification based on psychological characteristics, and needs assessment. An integration of trends argues for a systems approach to classification, connecting it more specifically to intervention. Current efforts that warrant further attention are discussed.
Modeling the Patriarchal Factor in Juvenile Delinquency
Authors: AVAKAME EDEM F.
Published: March 2007

This article attempts to extend power-control theory by (a) explicitly accounting for the ideological component of patriarchy and (b) examining the influences of extrafamilial socialization agents—peer groups, the church, and television—on the development of patriarchal sex-role attitudes, taste for risk, and delinquent activity. Data generated by a study of high school seniors from three Canadian cities were used for the study. There were substantial gender differences among matriarchal, egalitarian, and patriarchal family types in regard to parental relational and instrumental control, but these differences were not in directions suggested by power-control theory. In a similar vein, the data did not support the argument that the analytic focus must extend beyond the nuclear family and its socialization methods to properly account for the development of patriarchal sex-role attitudes.
Self-Control and Criminal Opportunity
Authors: LONGSHORE DOUGLAS , TURNER SUSAN
Published: March 2007

In this study, the authors tested two hypotheses drawn from the general theory of crime. The first hypothesis is that low self-control is a major individual-level cause of crime. The second, that the effect of self-control is contingent on criminal opportunity. The measure of self-control used was a 23-item self-report index. To measure criminal opportunity, two proxy variables were used: gender and crime-involved friends. Crime measures included number of criminal acts of force and number of criminal acts of fraud reported in a 6-month recall period by a sample of 522 criminal offenders. Self-control was lower among offenders reporting more crimes of force and fraud, but the variance explained by self-control was low in each case. The relationship between self-control and fraud crimes was contingent on criminal opportunity, but the relationship between self-control and force crimes was not. Implications of these findings for the general theory of crime are reviewed.
Assessment of Criminal Attitudes
Authors: SIMOURD DAVID J. , VAN DE VEN JENNIFER
Published: March 2007

The present study investigated the criterion-related validity of two measures of criminal attitudes—the Criminal Sentiments Scale-Modified (CSS-M) and the Pride in Delinquency Scale (PID)—among a sample of 141 Canadian federally incarcerated offenders. Eighty-seven offenders whose current conviction was for a violent offense and 54 offenders whose current conviction was for a property-based offense completed both measures and were compared. Scores on the measures also were evaluated against a variety of criminal history and postrelease measures. The results indicated that both the CSS-M and PID are significantly related to criminal behavior and can predict recidivism. The results also show that the CSS-M is a better measure among violent offenders, whereas the PID is preferred for nonviolent offenders. These results are discussed within the context of theory, research, and practice.
Antecedents of Public Bureaucracy
Authors: Nachmias David , Rosenbloom David H.
Published: March 2007

A theoretical framework for studying patterns of voluntary departure from public bureaucracies is developed and tested It was found that self-image, a sense of bureaucratic efficacy, and perceived politicization of the public bureaucracy determine the propensity to exit not independently of organizational attributes and social backgrounds.
Hierarchical Authority and Decision-Making in Pr ofessional Organizations
Authors: Zeitz Gerald
Published: March 2007

Organizational researchers have attacked the rational, or bureaucratic, model of organizations and have sought to replace it with a number of different perspectives that stress informal influence, political processes, situational negotiations, or random interaction. Yet one key test that bears on the applicability of the rational model has not been systematically or thoroughly, performed: an analysis of the extent to which formal authority, in comparison to various nonformal factors, constrains actual behavior. The current study focuses on one key characteristic of the rational model; namely, organizational decision-making. Regression analysis is used to weigh the relative effect on participation in decisions of formal hierarchical authority and general nonformal power bases. Limited support is given to one aspect of the rational model, though not to the exclusion of other models. Renewed research effort, using a variety of techniques, is called upon to fully investigate the role of formal authority in organi zations.
The Citizen Participation-Representation Roles of American Ombudsmen
Authors: Hill Larry B.
Published: March 2007

Providing increased opportunity for citizen access to the administrative system is the principal goal of those who urge the adoption of ombudsmen. Although several state and local jurisdictions in the United States have created ombudsmen, empiricalstudies of their roles in encouraging citizens to appeal administrative decisions and in representing those appeals are only beginning. This article compares questionnaire responses of the American ombudsmen with those of a group of "quasi-ombudsmen" on these subjects; but the focus is on the ombudsman's role. Reportedly, substantial numbers of citizens-including many of society's "underclass"—bring many problems-including information requests, demands for service, and grievances-that concern a wide range of policy areas and agencies to the ombudsmen. Furthermore, ombudsmen believe they are effective in helping citizens and in performing the role of impartial investigator. Thus, the office increases political participation, defined both as instrumental action and as interaction.
Journal Prestige in Public Administration
Authors: Vocino Thomas , Elliott Robert H.
Published: March 2007

This article compares journal prestige in 1975 and 1978 in the field of public administration. Information from two surveys of the membership of the American Society for Public Administration formed the data base for the study. Two dimensions of the concept of prestige have been analyzed: intensity and extensity. The intensity rating measured the strength of feeling toward a particular journal, while the extensity rating measured the breadth of recognition for a journal. The results of these surveys revealed differences between academic and practitioner perceptions of public administration and related journals which may indicate some trends for the field.
Ethical Discourse in Public Administration
Authors: Fischer Frank
Published: March 2007

From Weber to Ellul, the neglect of ethics and normative discourse in public organizational decision-making has been an enduring theme in bureaucratic theory. A number of contemporary public administration theorists have begun to search for a solution by turning to recent developments in ethics, political philosophy, jurisprudence, and the philosophy of science. An important theme in these efforts has been an attempt to present an alternative decision model capable of integrating both facts and values. As an extension of this line of investigation, the purpose of this article is to suggest a methodological framework for such a model developed from the informal logic of practical reason. Presented as a logic of questions that systematically integrate empirical and normative judgments, the framework is designed to serve as a rational-analytic guide for the evaluation of organizational decisions.
Holding Agencies Accountable for Efficiency
Authors: Swiss James E.
Published: March 2007

Despite increasing public concern and dissatisfaction with the efficiency of government bureaucracies, there a refew existing means by which the public can hold agencies accountable for achieving greater efficiency. The accountability process can be viewed in terms of a simple feedback model: setting of standards, comparison of activities against those standards, and imposition of sanctions if the activities fall below standards. In carrying out each of these steps, the citizen as "consumer"of governmental efficiency can either act directly or rely on surrogates. Suggestions for improving accountability mechanisms focused on efficiency are evaluated in terms of the model. Trials of many approaches, such as oversight committees and voucher plans in education, have often had disappointing results because their design failed to separate the "standard-setting and monitoring" role from the "sanction-imposition" role. A lack of consumer information is the single greatest drawback in most proposed accountability systems, and self-conscious government promotion of informational sources (through such means as direct subsidies of nonprofit efficiency monitors) is necessary. Future attempts to improve accountability mechanisms for efficiency should emphasize a combination of surrogate monitoring and direct sanctions.