Prevention of Adolescent Depression in the Spanish-Speaking World

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea B. Horn

2014-05-01

Full Text Available This paper aims at presenting programs targeted at the prevention of adolescent depression applied with Spanish-speaking populations that have been developed in Spanish-speaking countries and are mostly published in Spanish. These programs have been developed under different cultural contexts in Spain and Latin-America. The main goal of this paper is to make the studies and movements of the Spanish-speaking literature in this field accessible to the non-Spanish-speaking part of the research community. Therefore, after an introduction referring to possible cultural differences regarding depression in general and epidemiological basics, several programs are introduced. In total 11 programs will be shortly presented and discussed. After revising the programs it can be concluded that in the Spanish-speaking world many programs have been developed and conducted following current state of the art-approaches for adolescent depression prevention. Further research is needed especially targeting possible cultural and contextual aspects of prevention measures and their efficacy and efficiency.

Prevention of adolescent depression in the Spanish-speaking world.

Science.gov (United States)

Horn, Andrea B; Cañizares, Catalina; Gómez, Yvonne

2014-05-27

This paper aims at presenting programs targeted at the prevention of adolescent depression applied with Spanish-speaking populations that have been developed in Spanish-speaking countries and are mostly published in Spanish. These programs have been developed under different cultural contexts in Spain and Latin-America. The main goal of this paper is to make the studies and movements of the Spanish-speaking literature in this field accessible to the non-Spanish-speaking part of the research community. Therefore, after an introduction referring to possible cultural differences regarding depression in general and epidemiological basics, several programs are introduced. In total 11 programs will be shortly presented and discussed. After revising the programs it can be concluded that in the Spanish-speaking world many programs have been developed and conducted following current state of the art-approaches for adolescent depression prevention. Further research is needed especially targeting possible cultural and contextual aspects of prevention measures and their efficacy and efficiency.

Articulation Skills in Spanish-Speaking Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Linares, Thomas A.

The purpose of the research was to develop an articulation test for Spanish-speakers and to field-test the instrument in both a monolingual Spanish-speaking environment and a bilingual Spanish/English environment. Such a test is needed because there has been little available to enable the diagnostician, whose clientele includes Spanish-speakers,…

Teaching Units for Consumer Home Economics. Topic: Housing and Interior Decorating, Bilingual/Spanish.

Science.gov (United States)

Bernadt, Ruth

The instructional aids in this packet were designed to be used by high school home economics teachers who have Spanish speaking students with limited English skills mainstreamed into their regular classes. The teaching aids can be used by both English and Spanish speaking students at the same time because both Spanish and English are presented on…

Socio-economic conditions in selected biosphere reserves

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kušová, Drahomíra; Těšitel, Jan; Matějka, K.; Bartoš, Michael

2006-01-01

Roč. 12, č. 3 (2006), s. 157-169 ISSN 1211-7420 R&D Projects: GA MŽP(CZ) SM/610/3/03 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60870520 Keywords : nature protection * socio-economic conditions * biosphere reserves * sustainable development Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour

Enhancing Hispanic participation in mental health clinical research: development of a Spanish-speaking depression research site.

Science.gov (United States)

Aponte-Rivera, Vivianne; Dunlop, Boadie W; Ramirez, Cynthia; Kelley, Mary E; Schneider, Rebecca; Blastos, Beatriz; Larson, Jacqueline; Mercado, Flavia; Mayberg, Helen; Craighead, W Edward

2014-03-01

Hispanics, particularly those with limited English proficiency, are underrepresented in psychiatric clinical research studies. We developed a bilingual and bicultural research clinic dedicated to the recruitment and treatment of Spanish-speaking subjects in the Predictors of Remission in Depression to Individual and Combined Treatments (PReDICT) study, a large clinical trial of treatment-naïve subjects with major depressive disorder (MDD). Demographic and clinical data derived from screening evaluations of the first 1,174 subjects presenting for participation were compared between the Spanish-speaking site (N = 275) and the primary English-speaking site (N = 899). Reasons for ineligibility (N = 888) for the PReDICT study were tallied for each site. Compared to English speakers, Spanish speakers had a lower level of education and were more likely to be female, uninsured, and have uncontrolled medical conditions. Clinically, Spanish speakers demonstrated greater depression severity, with higher mean symptom severity scores, and a greater number of previous suicide attempts. Among the subjects who were not randomized into the PReDICT study, Spanish-speaking subjects were more likely to have an uncontrolled medical condition or refuse participation, whereas English-speaking subjects were more likely to have bipolar disorder or a non-MDD depressive disorder. Recruitment of Hispanic subjects with MDD is feasible and may enhance efforts at signal detection, given the higher severity of depression among Spanish-speaking participants presenting for clinical trials. Specific approaches for the recruitment and retention of Spanish-speaking participants are required. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Understading neoliberal politics by the mediation of institutional economics

OpenAIRE

Akansel, İlkben

2014-01-01

Neoliberalism, which cannot be described by a certain rule, includes a wide range of perspective. Therefore, it is a highly effective notion in terms of economics and politics. This efficiency has a mutual meaning in socio-cultural area. However, it is obvious that the most effective area of neoliberal politics is economics, because intended efficiency in politics and socio-cultural levels are provided through applicable economics politics. Although it has some certain notions derived from al...

Socio-economic and Socio-cultural Reversals in Sembene ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The Class Struggle and Social Truth in this novel is investigated through the ... and voiceless women who have now become 'men' who provide nurturance to their ... the mainstream socio-political, economic, cultural and judiciary affairs of their ...

The Nigerian Economy in the Face of Socio-Political Challenges: A Retrospective View and Ways Forward

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomola M Obamuyi

2016-04-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the Nigerian economy and the tendency for its growth in the face of several socio-political challenges facing the country, which have hampered the rate of economic development in spite of the tremendous human and material resources inherent. The paper identifies the socio-political challenges to include corruption, poverty, unemployment, insecurity, politics and governance, among others. The central argument of the paper is that steady economic growth can be achieved and financial crisis mitigated in Nigeria, if the effects of socio-political challenges, which are the key factors that have contributed to the high poverty, unemployment and economic instability in the country, are minimised. To ensure economic growth and move the country forward politically and economically, government must be more accountable in managing the nation’s resources in order to avoid wastage, poverty and unemployment. Close attention should be given to those socio-political challenges in the formulation of policies that aimed at maintaining economic growth at a level commensurate with the country’s growth rate. This study put forward that government must be proactive in all issues relating to the socio-political challenges to prevent resource mismanagement, poverty, unemployment, insecurity and slow economic growth in future.

The political economy of dignity: monitoring the advancement of socio-economic human rights in a globalized economy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Biermans, M.

2005-01-01

The dichotomy between political and socio-economic rights has been subject to criticism ever since the proclamation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, almost sixty years ago. The declaration itself leaves little doubt regarding the interconnectedness between both types of human rights.

Spanish-speaking patients' satisfaction with clinical pharmacists' communication skills and demonstration of cultural sensitivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim-Romo, Dawn N; Barner, Jamie C; Brown, Carolyn M; Rivera, José O; Garza, Aida A; Klein-Bradham, Kristina; Jokerst, Jason R; Janiga, Xan; Brown, Bob

2014-01-01

OBJECTIVE To assess Spanish-speaking patients' satisfaction with their clinical pharmacists' communication skills and demonstration of cultural sensitivity, while controlling for patients' sociodemographic, clinical, and communication factors, as well as pharmacist factors, and to identify clinical pharmacists' cultural factors that are important to Spanish-speaking patients. DESIGN Cross-sectional study. SETTING Central Texas during August 2011 to May 2012. PARTICIPANTS Spanish-speaking patients of federally qualified health centers (FQHCs). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S) A Spanish-translated survey assessed Spanish-speaking patients' satisfaction with their clinical pharmacists' communication skills and demonstration of cultural sensitivity. RESULTS Spanish-speaking patients (N = 101) reported overall satisfaction with their clinical pharmacists' communication skills and cultural sensitivity. Patients also indicated that pharmacists' cultural rapport (e.g., ability to speak Spanish, respectfulness) was generally important to Spanish speakers. Multiple linear regression analyses showed that cultural rapport was significantly related to satisfaction with pharmacists' communication skills and demonstration of cultural sensitivity. CONCLUSION Overall, patients were satisfied with pharmacists' communication skills and cultural sensitivity. Patient satisfaction initiatives that include cultural rapport should be developed for pharmacists who provide care to Spanish-speaking patients with limited English proficiency.

English-Speaking and Spanish-Speaking Domestic Violence Perpetrators: An MMPI-2 Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Scott, Ronald L.; Flowers, John V.; Bulnes, Alejandro; Olmsted, Eileen; Carbajal-Madrid, Pedro

2009-01-01

The use of assessments to characterize domestic violence perpetrators continues to develop with an emphasis on increasing the effectiveness of domestic violence interventions. The present study examines and compares Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)-2 responses from 41 English-speaking and 48 Spanish-speaking men who were in…

Neurocognitive performance and symptom profiles of Spanish-speaking Hispanic athletes on the ImPACT test.

Science.gov (United States)

Ott, Summer; Schatz, Philip; Solomon, Gary; Ryan, Joseph J

2014-03-01

This study documented baseline neurocognitive performance of 23,815 athletes on the Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing (ImPACT) test. Specifically, 9,733 Hispanic, Spanish-speaking athletes who completed the ImPACT test in English and 2,087 Hispanic, Spanish-speaking athletes who completed the test in Spanish were compared with 11,955 English-speaking athletes who completed the test in English. Athletes were assigned to age groups (13-15, 16-18). Results revealed a significant effect of language group (p Spanish-speaking athletes completing the test in Spanish scored more poorly than Spanish-speaking and English-speaking athletes completing the test in English, on all Composite scores and Total Symptom scores. Spanish-speaking athletes completing the test in English also performed more poorly than English-speaking athletes completing the test in English on three Composite scores. These differences in performance and reported symptoms highlight the need for caution in interpreting ImPACT test data for Hispanic Americans.

Economic Citizenship and Socio-Economic Rationality as Foundations of an Appropriate Economic Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christoph Schank

2014-10-01

Full Text Available In this article we argue that social science education needs to convey more than operational mechanisms of society. Especially in socio-economic education, questions of business ethics, i.e. phenomena of economics and society need to be integrated and reflected, decidedly focusing on the moral content of economics. With the introduction of economic citizenship as the ideal economic actor to be the purpose of economic education, this paper proposes that economic education needs to connect economic expertise and moral judgment and should also allude to the necessity of every market action’s conditional legitimization by society. We propose to discuss different ‘sites’ of morality as a heuristic approach to the different areas of economic responsibility. The individual, organizational and political level of responsibility helps to categorize the different moral issues of economic activity and serves as a great pattern to explain economic relations to scholars and students.

Political, Economic, Socio-Cultural, and Educational Challenges of Administering a Sino-US Joint Venture Campus in China

Science.gov (United States)

Ozturgut, Osman

2008-01-01

This qualitative study explored the political, economic, socio-cultural, and educational challenges of administering a Sino-U.S. joint-venture campus in the People's Republic of China. China American University (CAU) is an educational joint venture between China Investment Company (CIC) and American University (AU) in the U.S. that resulted in…

Validation of self-reported health literacy questions among diverse English and Spanish-speaking populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Sarkar, Urmimala; Schillinger, Dean; López, Andrea; Sudore, Rebecca

2011-03-01

Limited health literacy (HL) contributes to poor health outcomes and disparities, and direct measurement is often time-intensive. Self-reported HL questions have not been validated among Spanish-speaking and diverse English-speaking populations. To evaluate three self-reported questions: 1 "How confident are you filling out medical forms?"; 2 "How often do you have problems learning about your medical condition because of difficulty understanding written information?"; and 3 "How often do you have someone help you read hospital materials?" Answers were based on a 5-point Likert scale. This was a validation study nested within a trial of diabetes self-management support in the San Francisco Department of Public Health. English and Spanish-speaking adults with type 2 diabetes receiving primary care. Using the Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (s-TOFHLA) in English and Spanish as the reference, we classified HL as inadequate, marginal, or adequate. We calculated the C-index and test characteristics of the three questions and summative scale compared to the s-TOFHLA and assessed variations in performance by language, race/ethnicity, age, and education. Of 296 participants, 48% were Spanish-speaking; 9% were White, non-Hispanic; 47% had inadequate HL and 12% had marginal HL. Overall, 57% reported being confident with forms "somewhat" or less. The "confident with forms" question performed best for detecting inadequate (C-index = 0.82, (0.77-0.87)) and inadequate plus marginal HL (C index = 0.81, (0.76-0.86); pSpanish and English speakers with adequate HL and those with inadequate and/or inadequate plus marginal HL. The "confident with forms" question or the summative scale may be useful for estimating HL in clinical research involving Spanish-speaking and English-speaking, chronically-ill, diverse populations.

An approach to the socio-labour situation of disabled women in rural communities in a Spanish region.

Science.gov (United States)

Mondéjar-Jiménez, José; Vargas-Vargas, Manuel; Mondéjar-Jiménez, Juan-Antonio; Bayot-Mestre, Agustín

2009-01-01

Disabled women suffer socio-labour discrimination because of both their gender and their disability. The situation is gradually improving, thanks to the national and supranational organisations, which in the past few decades have made considerable progress in improving the legislation, providing financial resources and encouraging social awareness. Despite this, few studies quantify this double discrimination in order to permit the evaluation of the socio-labour situation of this group of people. This scarcity is even more pronounced for rural areas, where many other factors hinder the integration of disabled women into the labour market and generate some specific problems that the specialist literature seldom addresses. The current work presents the results of a survey on the socio-economic situation of disabled women in a strongly rural area: the Spanish region of Castilla-La Mancha. It stresses the fundamental difficulties of these women in integrating into the labour market and the most urgent political measures needed to help this group.

Theory and methodology of social, political and economic processes risks determining in different countries of the world

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yashina Nadezhda, I.

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The study deals with the problems of the theory and methodology of social, political and economic processes risks in different countries with relative indicators of the socio-economic development level, as well as the size and condition of the public debt. Developed by the authors the methodology of determining the risks of social, political and economic processes of public policy around the world revealed close relationship between socio-economic situation of the countries and their public debt. Within the framework of this methodology two groups of factors characterizing the socio-political and economic processes in the country are being developed. After that each exponent and indicator are being processed, using expert procedures. Maximum statutory values for tentatively referenced countries with effective and ineffective government policies are identified. Then standardization (specification and definition of integral (generalized indexes of socio-political and economic processes in the country are taking place. After that the ranking of countries by aggregated standardized ratio is arranged, taking into account the significance of the developed indicators. The final phase of implementation methodology is identifying risks of social, political and economic processes of public policy around the world. This is the ranking of countries by ratio of stability in public policy (stability of economic and socio-political processes in the country. As the result of implementation methodology the following output was received: what really makes a difference is not the amount of the country's debt, but how effectively it manages this debt, whether it has a goal to improve social and economic indicators. Practical testing methodology has proven that studied indicators fully characterize the development of the countries, their political, social and economic situation on the world stage.

Working with Spanish-Speaking Latin American Students in Toronto

Science.gov (United States)

Duran, Marcela S.

1978-01-01

The problems affecting the reception, adjustment, and placement of Spanish-speaking students into the Toronto school system are discussed, and include immigration patterns, Spanish values, and the Latin American school. (Author/HP)

GOVERNANCE AND THE CHALLENGE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Keywords: Democracy, Corruption, Governance, Socio-economic development .... given the fact that the excesses of political leaders through the institutions ..... and its style of governance in Nigeria, therefore, requires an examination.

Socio-economic analysis in the transport sector

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

an important element in the political decision process. The analysis provides information about how the society’s resources – from an economic viewpoint – are used in the best possible way, and how costs and benefits are distributed between e.g. the state, the users and the environment. The society does......This compendium is intended to be a tool for students in conducting socio-economic appraisals in the transport sector following the recommendations made by the Danish Manual for Socio-economic Appraisal (DMT, 2003). The appraisal process is in this compendium outlined as a step-by-step process...

Communication barriers among Spanish-speaking women with pelvic floor disorders: lost in translation?

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, Aqsa A; Sevilla, Claudia; Wieslander, Cecilia K; Moran, Meghan B; Rashid, Rezoana; Mittal, Brita; Maliski, Sally L; Rogers, Rebecca G; Anger, Jennifer T

2013-01-01

The purpose of our study was to evaluate barriers in communication and disease understanding among office staff and interpreters when communicating with Spanish-speaking women with pelvic floor disorders. We conducted a qualitative study to evaluate barriers to communication with Spanish-speaking women with pelvic floor disorders among office staff and interpreters. Sixteen office staff and interpreters were interviewed; interview questions focused on experiences with Spanish-speaking patients with pelvic floor disorders in the clinic setting. Interview transcripts were analyzed qualitatively using grounded theory methodology. Analysis of the interview transcripts revealed several barriers in communication as identified by office staff and interpreters. Three major classes were predominant: patient, interpreter, and system-related barriers. Patient-related barriers included a lack of understanding of anatomy and medical terminology and inhibited discussions due to embarrassment. Provider-related barriers included poor interpreter knowledge of pelvic floor vocabulary and the use of office staff without interpreting credentials. System-related barriers included poor access to information. From these preliminary themes, an emergent concept was revealed: it is highly likely that Spanish-speaking women with pelvic floor disorders have poor understanding of their condition owing to multiple obstacles in communication. There are many levels of barriers to communications with Latin women treated for pelvic floor disorders, arising from the patient, interpreter, and the system itself. These barriers contribute to a low level of understanding of their diagnosis, treatment options, and administered therapies.

Library Service to the Spanish Speaking.

Science.gov (United States)

Peterson, Anita R.

This manual was developed to formalize Inglewood Public Library's existing policies and programs regarding library services to the Spanish speaking, and to define future program goals. The introduction discusses why such services have been initiated, why the manual was developed, and the potential benefits the manual has for library…

The Idea of Conformation in the Study of Systemic Socio-Economic Transformations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olga Valentinovna Brizhak

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The author shows the idea of conformation at studying the issues of intracorporate structure, corporate capital and economic (productive relations in the context of specific systemic socio-economic transformations. The dynamism and depth of current changes makes reflect on their nature, their objective conditionality, their dependence on existing factors. The problems of systemic market reforms are projected to private transformations. They relate both to individual economic entities (firms, companies, corporations, and to individual regions and territories of the national economy. In such conditions the aims of economic system development are changing and being corrected, and the possibilities are being reestimated. In the process of reforming the Russian economy some of the borrowed elements were rejected as inadequate and socially unacceptable. The other part was modified and embedded in public life in the course of implementation, so that they often served the opposite purposes in comparison with those for which they were borrowed. The article reveals the mission of conformation as a seamless integration of this process into the context of systemic socio-economic reforms, ensuring the necessary proportionality of transformations, the prevention of arousing gaps that threaten the sustainable movement in the corporate sector and systemic organization of economic relations at the intra-corporate level. Core development of contradictions, sprouts of post-market relations, components of the traditional capitalist market organization in terms of socio-economic transformation of Russia have impact on the economic behavior of corporations and on the specifics of intracorporate relations and interests. The corporation’s behavior is always focused on the specifics of domestic relations, the stability of legal and political system, property rights protection, preservation of national culture, etc. The author carries out the present research on the

[The influence of socio-economic conditions in renal posttransplant infection].

Science.gov (United States)

Ianhez, L E; Sampaio, M; Chocair, P R; Fonseca, J A; Sabbaga, E

1993-01-01

Two hundred and four patients who underwent renal transplantation were followed up as outpatients with a minimum of four years. They were divided into two socio-economic levels: group I - 104 patients who underwent transplantation in a private hospital and 120 patients (group II) with a lower socio-economic standard, treated in a public hospital. In both groups urinary infections and hepatitis were excluded. The incidence of infection in group I was 24% and in group II, 50% (p = 0.0002). There was no difference in relation to viral infection in either groups. However, bacterial infection and infection by opportunistic agents were significantly higher in group II (p = 0.0001 and p = 0.0282). The number of hospitalizations and the number of infections of patients were higher in group II. There was a tendency for an increase in mortality owing to infection in group II. There was no difference in the two groups as the parameters of: age, sex, type of donor, primary disease, number of rejections crises, level of serum creatinine and number of patients with ciclosporine. On the other hand, the dose of azathioprine and prednisone was mildly higher in those patients of group II. Low level of socio-economic conditions is a risk factor in renal transplant patients.

The intermediate performance of territories of priority socio-economic development in Russia in conditions of macroeconomic instability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beliakov Sergey

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The Russian economy in recent years has faced the influence of a number of negative factors due to macroeconomic instability and increased foreign policy tensions. In these conditions the considerable constraints faced processes of socio-economic development of regions of the Russian Federation. In this article the authors attempt to analyze the key indicators of socio-economic development of the regions in which it was created and operate in the territories of priority socio-economic development. These territories are concentrated in the Far Eastern Federal District. The article identified, processed, and interpreted indicators, allowing to produce a conclusion on the interim effectiveness of the territories of priority socio-economic development in Russia in conditions of macroeconomic instability.

Stages of socio-economic development: Shah Wali-Allah's concept of al-irtifaqat

OpenAIRE

aislahi, Abdul Azim

1989-01-01

The present paper introduces Shah Wali-Allah Dehlawi’s concept of the stages of socio-economic developments (al-irtifaqat). According to him, starting from simple primitive village life to an international community, the socio-economic development of human society can be divided into four stages. The first stage is dominated by simple economic struggle while the last stage is developed to maintain just political order on international level, to safeguard the socio-economic interests of differ...

Patient satisfaction among Spanish-speaking patients in a public health setting.

Science.gov (United States)

Welty, Elisabeth; Yeager, Valerie A; Ouimet, Claude; Menachemi, Nir

2012-01-01

Despite the growing literature on health care quality, few patient satisfaction studies have focused upon the public health setting; where many Hispanic patients receive care. The purpose of this study was to examine the differences in satisfaction between English and Spanish-speaking patients in a local health department clinical setting. We conducted a paper-based satisfaction survey of patients that visited any of the seven Jefferson County Department of Health primary care centers from March 19 to April 19, 2008. Using Chi-squared analyses we found 25% of the Spanish-speaking patients reported regularly having problems getting an appointment compared to 16.8% among English-speakers (p speaking patients controlling for center location, purpose of visit, and time spent waiting. Specifically, Spanish speaking patients were more likely to report problems getting an appointment and less likely to report having their medical problems resolved when leaving their visit as compared to those who spoke English. Findings presented herein may provide insight regarding the quality of care received, specifically regarding patient satisfaction in the public health setting. © 2011 National Association for Healthcare Quality.

Moving forward socio-economically focused models of deforestation.

Science.gov (United States)

Dezécache, Camille; Salles, Jean-Michel; Vieilledent, Ghislain; Hérault, Bruno

2017-09-01

Whilst high-resolution spatial variables contribute to a good fit of spatially explicit deforestation models, socio-economic processes are often beyond the scope of these models. Such a low level of interest in the socio-economic dimension of deforestation limits the relevancy of these models for decision-making and may be the cause of their failure to accurately predict observed deforestation trends in the medium term. This study aims to propose a flexible methodology for taking into account multiple drivers of deforestation in tropical forested areas, where the intensity of deforestation is explicitly predicted based on socio-economic variables. By coupling a model of deforestation location based on spatial environmental variables with several sub-models of deforestation intensity based on socio-economic variables, we were able to create a map of predicted deforestation over the period 2001-2014 in French Guiana. This map was compared to a reference map for accuracy assessment, not only at the pixel scale but also over cells ranging from 1 to approximately 600 sq. km. Highly significant relationships were explicitly established between deforestation intensity and several socio-economic variables: population growth, the amount of agricultural subsidies, gold and wood production. Such a precise characterization of socio-economic processes allows to avoid overestimation biases in high deforestation areas, suggesting a better integration of socio-economic processes in the models. Whilst considering deforestation as a purely geographical process contributes to the creation of conservative models unable to effectively assess changes in the socio-economic and political contexts influencing deforestation trends, this explicit characterization of the socio-economic dimension of deforestation is critical for the creation of deforestation scenarios in REDD+ projects. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Socio-political, cultural and economic preferences and behaviour of the social and cultural specialists and the technocrats. Social class or education?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Güveli, A.; Need, A.; Graaf, N.D. de

2007-01-01

Do the social and cultural specialists differ from the technocrats and other social classes with respect to their socio-political, cultural and economic preferences and behaviour? If they do, is this attributable to their level and field of education? The social and cultural specialists are assumed

Inequitable walking conditions among older people: examining the interrelationship of neighbourhood socio-economic status and urban form using a comparative case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, Theresa L; Edwards, Nancy; Sveistrup, Heidi; Andrew, Caroline; Egan, Mary

2010-11-05

Supportive neighbourhood walking conditions are particularly important for older people as they age and who, as a group, prefer walking as a form of physical activity. Urban form and socio-economic status (SES) can influence neighbourhood walking behaviour. The objectives of this study were: a) to examine how urban form and neighbourhood SES inter-relate to affect the experiences of older people who walk in their neighbourhoods; b) to examine differences among neighbourhood stakeholder key informant perspectives on socio-political processes that shape the walkability of neighbourhood environments. An embedded comparative case study examined differences among four Ottawa neighbourhoods that were purposefully selected to provide contrasts on urban form (inner-urban versus suburban) and SES (higher versus lower). Qualitative data collected from 75 older walkers and 19 neighbourhood key informants, as well as quantitative indicators were compared on the two axes of urban form and SES among the four neighbourhoods. Examining the inter-relationship of neighbourhood SES and urban form characteristics on older people's walking experiences indicated that urban form differences were accentuated positively in higher SES neighbourhoods and negatively in lower SES neighbourhoods. Older people in lower SES neighbourhoods were more affected by traffic hazards and more reliant on public transit compared to their higher SES counterparts. In higher SES neighbourhoods the disadvantages of traffic in the inner-urban neighbourhood and lack of commercial destinations in the suburban neighbourhood were partially offset by other factors including neighbourhood aesthetics. Key informant descriptions of the socio-political process highlighted how lower SES neighbourhoods may face greater challenges in creating walkable places. These differences pertained to the size of neighbourhood associations, relationships with political representatives, accessing information and salient neighbourhood

Maryland environmental public health tracking outreach with Spanish-speaking persons living in Baltimore city or county.

Science.gov (United States)

Braggio, John T; Mitchell, Clifford S; Fierro-Luperini, Sonia

2015-01-01

The 2000 Pew reports became the impetus for the National Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) Program, but there was no mention that Spanish-speaking persons are at increased risk of exposure to environmental hazards. To undertake successful EPHT outreach on Spanish-speaking persons (Hispanics), it is necessary to better understand their environmental health profile and barriers to health care access. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey questions were administered orally in Spanish to Spanish-speaking study participants. Volunteers were tested at a non-for-profit social service and referral agency in Baltimore. To control for acculturation, only Spanish-speaking persons who had lived in the United States for less than 10 years were selected. Responses to 40 BRFSS survey questions asked during the assessment and completion of 3 intervention activities. This study provides new information about Spanish-speaking persons, most of whom (85.3%) would not have been included in the landline administration of the BRFSS survey. Although 29.9% of the participants reported indoor pesticide use and another 9.2% reported outdoor pesticide use, lifetime (3.5%) and current (1.2%) asthma prevalence was significantly lower than asthma prevalence reported by Maryland Hispanics and all Maryland residents. There were significantly lower cholesterol screening (21.5%) and a significantly higher prevalence of diabetes (12.5%) in Spanish-speaking participants than in Maryland Hispanics and all Maryland residents. Among study participants, only 7.8% had health insurance and 39.9% reported that they could not see a doctor. Of the 3 outreach efforts completed, the most promising one involved asking Spanish-English-speaking health care professionals to distribute Spanish comic books about pesticides exposures and health outcomes in community settings where Spanish-only speakers and children were found. The effectiveness of passive and community-based EPHT

The socio-political economy of nuclear power development in Japan and South Korea

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Valentine, Scott Victor [Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Tokyo, 616 Administration Bureau Building No. 2, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, 113-0033 Tokyo (Japan); Sovacool, Benjamin K. [Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore, 469C Bukit Timah Road, Singapore 259772 (Singapore)

2010-12-15

This paper analyzes the socio-cultural, political and economic conditions prevalent during the inception of nuclear power programs in Japan and South Korea in order to identify commonalities which support nuclear power program expansion. The study identifies six factors as having a clear influence on supporting nuclear power development: (1) strong state involvement in guiding economic development; (2) centralization of national energy policymaking and planning; (3) campaigns to link technological progress with national revitalization; (4) influence of technocratic ideology on policy decisions; (5) subordination of challenges to political authority, and (6) low levels of civic activism. The paper postulates that insights from this study can be used to assess the propensity of nations which have the emergent capacity to support nuclear power development to actually embark on such programs. (author)

Measuring Early Communication in Spanish Speaking Children: The Communication Complexity Scale in Peru.

Science.gov (United States)

Atwood, Erin; Brady, Nancy C; Esplund, Amy

There is a great need in the United States to develop presymbolic evaluation tools that are widely available and accurate for individuals that come from a bilingual and/or multicultural setting. The Communication Complexity Scale (CCS) is a measure that evaluates expressive presymbolic communication including gestures, vocalizations and eye gaze. Studying the effectiveness of this tool in a Spanish speaking environment was undertaken to determine the applicability of the CCS with Spanish speaking children. Methods & Procedures: In 2011-2012, researchers from the University of Kansas and Centro Ann Sullivan del Perú (CASP) investigated communication in a cohort of 71 young Spanish speaking children with developmental disabilities and a documented history of self-injurious, stereotyped and aggressive behaviors. Communication was assessed first by parental report with translated versions of the Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales (CSBS), a well-known assessment of early communication, and then eleven months later with the CCS. We hypothesized that the CCS and the CSBS measures would be significantly correlated in this population of Spanish speaking children. The CSBS scores from time 1 with a mean participant age of 41 months were determined to have a strong positive relationship to the CCS scores obtained at time 2 with a mean participant age of 52 months. The CCS is strongly correlated to a widely accepted measure of early communication. These findings support the validity of the Spanish version of the CCS and demonstrate its usefulness for children from another culture and for children in a Spanish speaking environment.

A social work study on relationship between thinking styles, self-esteem and socio-economic conditions among university students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sahar Mirghobad Khodarahmi

2013-07-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a social work study on relationship between thinking style and self-esteem as well as socio-economic conditions among university students. The study selects 512 students from Islamic Azad University of Najafabad in province of Esfahan, Iran and distributes a questionnaire, which measures creativity and self-esteem. We also collect students’ socio-economic conditions and analyze the information. The results of our survey disclose that thinking style and self-esteem have overlap with each other. In addition, students with better socio-economic conditions are more creative and use complex style of thinking. The study also provides some guidelines for practically implementing the results of our survey among other students.

Socio-economic project evaluation in practice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larsen, A.

1995-01-01

The theoretical basis for a socio-economic project evaluation can be doubtful and specific analyses can involve quite essential uncertainty. Among serious theoretical problems of the energy sector there should be named the price distortions, due to various taxes. The choice of the presumed calculation interest can be difficult, due to the extremely long-range energy-political planning. (EG) 10 refs

Improving advance care planning for English-speaking and Spanish-speaking older adults: study protocol for the PREPARE randomised controlled trial

Science.gov (United States)

Sudore, Rebecca L; Barnes, Deborah E; Le, Gem M; Ramos, Roberto; Osua, Stacy J; Richardson, Sarah A; Boscardin, John; Schillinger, Dean

2016-01-01

Introduction Advance care planning (ACP) is a process that allows patients to identify their goals for medical care. Traditionally, ACP has focused on completing advance directives; however, we have expanded the ACP paradigm to also prepare patients to communicate their wishes and make informed decisions. To this end, we created an ACP website called PREPARE (http://www.prepareforyourcare.org) to prepare diverse English-speaking and Spanish-speaking older adults for medical decision-making. Here, we describe the study protocol for a randomised controlled efficacy trial of PREPARE in a safety-net setting. The goal is to determine the efficacy of PREPARE to engage diverse English-speaking and Spanish-speaking older adults in a full spectrum of ACP behaviours. Methods and analysis We include English-speaking and Spanish-speaking adults from an urban public hospital who are ≥55 years old, have ≥2 chronic medical conditions and have seen a primary care physician ≥2 times in the last year. Participants are randomised to the PREPARE intervention (review PREPARE and an easy-to-read advance directive) or the control arm (only the easy-to-read advance directive). The primary outcome is documentation of an advance directive and/or ACP discussion. Secondary outcomes include ACP behaviour change processes measured with validated surveys (eg, self-efficacy, readiness) and a broad range of ACP actions (eg, choosing a surrogate, identifying goals for care, discussing ACP with clinicians and/or surrogates). Using blinded outcome ascertainment, outcomes will be measured at 1 week and at 3, 6 and 12 months, and compared between study arms using mixed-effects logistic regression and mixed-effects linear, Poisson or negative binomial regression. Ethics and dissemination This study has been approved by the appropriate Institutional Review Boards and is guided by input from patient and clinical advisory boards and a data safety monitoring board. The results of this study will

The Impact of a Systematic and Explicit Vocabulary Intervention in Spanish with Spanish-Speaking English Learners in First Grade

Science.gov (United States)

Cena, Johanna; Baker, Doris Luft; Kame'enui, Edward J.; Baker, Scott K.; Park, Yonghan; Smolkowski, Keith

2013-01-01

This study examined the impact of a 15-min daily explicit vocabulary intervention in Spanish on expressive and receptive vocabulary knowledge and oral reading fluency in Spanish, and on language proficiency in English. Fifty Spanish-speaking English learners who received 90 min of Spanish reading instruction in an early transition model were…

Management and socio-economic conditions of fishermen of the Baluhar Baor, Jhenaidah, Bangladesh

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

BM Shahriar Abdullah-Bin-Farid

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This study was conducted on the management of the Baluhar Baor and fishermen’s socio-economic conditions of the Baor in Jhenaidah district, Bangladesh. Data were collected by interviews, FGDs and CIs with key informants. This Baor was managed under Oxbow Lake Project-1 of Department of Fisheries of Bangladesh government. Hypophthalmichthys molitrix, Labeo rohita, Catla catla, Cirrhina cirrhosus, Cyprinus carpio and Ctenopharyngodon idella were commonly stocked at the composition of 34%, 13%, 12%, 12%, 15% and 14%, respectively. Kochal, Komor and Chack fishing were used for harvesting and yearly production was 750 kg/ha. While studying the socio-economics, 58% fishermen were lived in joint families. 78% fishermen used Kancha sanitary latrine which reflects their poor hygienic condition but they used tubewell for drinking water. 58% fishermen were with 0.045 hectare lands and 74% lived in Kancha house. The annual income varied from BDT 15,000 to 60,000. Education level was found very low and only 18% completed their primary education. Majority fishermen (82% visited village doctor for health services due to low income and lack of knowledge. All fishermen were fully dependent on Baor fishery for their livelihood. It is possible to uplift their socio-economic by managing the Baor with improved technology.

Effects of Length, Complexity, and Grammatical Correctness on Stuttering in Spanish-Speaking Preschool Children

Science.gov (United States)

Watson, Jennifer B.; Byrd, Courtney T.; Carlo, Edna J.

2011-01-01

Purpose: To explore the effects of utterance length, syntactic complexity, and grammatical correctness on stuttering in the spontaneous speech of young, monolingual Spanish-speaking children. Method: Spontaneous speech samples of 11 monolingual Spanish-speaking children who stuttered, ages 35 to 70 months, were examined. Mean number of syllables,…

The utilization of oncology web-based resources in Spanish-speaking Internet users.

Science.gov (United States)

Simone, Charles B; Hampshire, Margaret K; Vachani, Carolyn; Metz, James M

2012-12-01

There currently are few web-based resources written in Spanish providing oncology-specific information. This study examines utilization of Spanish-language oncology web-based resources and evaluates oncology-related Internet browsing practices of Spanish-speaking patients. OncoLink (http://www.oncolink.org) is the oldest and among the largest Internet-based cancer information resources. In September 2005, OncoLink pioneered OncoLink en español (OEE) (http://es.oncolink.org), a Spanish translation of OncoLink. Internet utilization data on these sites for 2006 to 2007 were compared. Visits to OncoLink rose from 4,440,843 in 2006 to 5,125,952 in 2007. OEE had 204,578 unique visitors and 240,442 visits in 2006, and 351,228 visitors and 412,153 visits in 2007. Although there was no time predilection for viewing OncoLink, less relative browsing on OEE was conducted during weekends and early morning hours. Although OncoLink readers searched for information on the most common cancers in the United States, OEE readers most often search for gastric, vaginal, osteosarcoma, leukemia, penile, cervical, and testicular malignancies. Average visit duration on OEE was shorter, and fewer readers surveyed OEE more than 15 minutes (4.5% vs. 14.9%, P users of web-based oncology resources are increasingly using the Internet to supplement their cancer knowledge. Limited available resources written in Spanish contribute to disparities in information access and disease outcomes. Spanish-speaking oncology readers differ from English-speaking readers in day and time of Internet browsing, visit duration, Internet search patterns, and types of cancers searched. By acknowledging these differences, content of web-based oncology resources can be developed to best target the needs of Spanish-speaking viewers.

Changes in socio-economic and health condition of rehabilitated slum dwellers in Kolkata, West Bengal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M.H. Askari

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The cancerous spread of slum has been a rampant problem in urban areas worldwide. The acute shortage of housing facilities compels the poor to live in slums. Proper rehabilitation is considered as a very essential remedial measure to provide better living environment to slum peoples. This study is an essential attempt to gauge the effectiveness of a rehabilitation program, which studies the changes in socio-economic and health condition of rehabilitated slum dwellers since they got rehabilitated. In order to do so, a household survey was carried comprising 240 households in two rehabilitated sites in the city of Kolkata (ward no. 107 and 114 during the month of July, 2014. The results conforms a strand of a belief that in-situ rehabilitation or rehabilitation within short distance is more effective. A rehabilitation too far away area disrupts the existing social, economic and political ties of neighborhoods. Measures have also been proposed to overcome such problems and to make the slum dwellers an integral part of urban society.

The socio-political economy of nuclear energy in China and India

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sovacool, Benjamin K. [Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore, 469C Bukit Timah Road Singapore 259772 (Singapore); Valentine, Scott Victor [Graduate School of Public Policy, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033 (Japan)

2010-09-15

This article investigates forms of social, political, and economic organization conducive to nuclear power expansion. We begin by developing a theoretical framework of nuclear socio-political economy based primarily upon the evolution of nuclear energy in France. This framework posits that (1) strong state involvement in guiding economic development, (2) centralization of national energy planning, (3) campaigns to link technological progress to a national revitalization, (4) influence of technocratic ideology on policy decisions, (5) subordination of challenges to political authority, and (6) low levels of civic activism are influential factors in supporting development of nuclear power. Accordingly, we seek to verify the causal properties of these six catalysts for nuclear power expansion in two nations - India and China - that are on the brink of becoming major nuclear powers. We validate our framework by confirming the presence of the six catalysts during the initial nuclear power developmental periods in each country. We also apply our framework as a predictive tool by considering how present conditions in the two nations will impact nuclear power development trends. We conclude by highlighting the emergence of a potential seventh catalyst - the influence of greenhouse gas emission abatement policy on nuclear power development. (author)

The socio-political economy of nuclear energy in China and India

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sovacool, Benjamin K.; Valentine, Scott Victor

2010-01-01

This article investigates forms of social, political, and economic organization conducive to nuclear power expansion. We begin by developing a theoretical framework of nuclear socio-political economy based primarily upon the evolution of nuclear energy in France. This framework posits that (1) strong state involvement in guiding economic development, (2) centralization of national energy planning, (3) campaigns to link technological progress to a national revitalization, (4) influence of technocratic ideology on policy decisions, (5) subordination of challenges to political authority, and (6) low levels of civic activism are influential factors in supporting development of nuclear power. Accordingly, we seek to verify the causal properties of these six catalysts for nuclear power expansion in two nations - India and China - that are on the brink of becoming major nuclear powers. We validate our framework by confirming the presence of the six catalysts during the initial nuclear power developmental periods in each country. We also apply our framework as a predictive tool by considering how present conditions in the two nations will impact nuclear power development trends. We conclude by highlighting the emergence of a potential seventh catalyst - the influence of greenhouse gas emission abatement policy on nuclear power development.

Tornado hazard communication disparities among Spanish-speaking individuals in an English-speaking community.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahlborn, Leslie; Franc, Jeffrey Michael

2012-02-01

The state of Oklahoma, known for destructive tornados, has a native Spanish-speaking (NSS) population of approximately 180,241, of which 50% report being able to speak English "very well" (US Census Bureau). With almost 50% of these native Spanish-speaking persons being limited English proficient (LEP), their reception of tornado hazard communications may be restricted. This study conducted in northeast Oklahoma (USA) evaluates the association between native language and receiving tornado hazard communications. This study was a cross-sectional survey conducted among a convenience sample of NSS and native English-speaking (NES) adults at Xavier Clinic and St. Francis Trauma Emergency Center in Tulsa, OK, USA from September 2009 through December 2009. Of the 82 surveys administered, 80 were returned, with 40 NES and 40 NSS participants. A scoring system (Severe Weather Information Reception (SWIR)) was developed to quantify reception of hazard information among the study participants (1-3 points=poor reception, 4-5=adequate reception, 6-8=excellent reception). Pearson's chi-squared test was used to calculate differences between groups with Yates' continuity correction applied where appropriate, and SWIR scores were analyzed using ANOVA. P-valuestornado siren. NSS were less likely to have Internet access (Ptornado warning reception between NSS and NES. Poor English proficiency was noted to be 75% among NSS, which is approximately 25% more than estimated by the US Census Bureau. This study demonstrates a need for emergency managers to recognize when appropriate and overcome communication disparities among limited English proficient populations.

Parent Training and Skill Acquisition and Utilization Among Spanish- and English-Speaking Latino Families.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramos, Giovanni; Blizzard, Angela M; Barroso, Nicole E; Bagner, Daniel M

2018-01-01

In the U.S., there is a growing Latino population, in which parents primarily speak Spanish to their children. Despite the evidence that language preference is associated with level of acculturation and influences parenting practices in these families, no study has compared how Spanish-and English-speaking Latino families acquire and utilize the skills taught during parent-training programs such as Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT). Twenty-seven mother-infant Latino dyads received a home-based adaptation of the Child-Directed Interaction (CDI) phase of PCIT as part of a larger randomized control trial. Most infants were male (63%), and their average age was 13.7 months ( SD = 1.43). Most families (52%) lived below the poverty line. The Dyadic Parent-Child Interaction Coding System-Third Edition (DPICS-III) was employed to evaluate PCIT skills at baseline and post-treatment, as well as at 3- and 6-month follow-up, assessments. We conducted multiple linear regression analyses among Spanish-speaking (55%) and English-speaking (45%) families to examine differences in acquisition and utilization of do and don't skills at each assessment while controlling for mother's education. Results yielded no group differences in the acquisition rate of do or don't skills at any time point. However, Spanish-speaking mothers used significantly more don't skills than English-speaking mothers at each assessment. Specifically, Spanish-speaking families used significantly more commands at baseline, post-treatment, and the 6-month followup assessments, as well as more questions at post-treatment and at the 6-month follow-up assessments. These findings highlight the importance of addressing cultural values such as respeto to ensure culturally robust parent-training programs for Latino families.

Assessment of health literacy and numeracy among Spanish-Speaking parents of young children: validation of the Spanish Parental Health Literacy Activities Test (PHLAT Spanish).

Science.gov (United States)

Yin, H Shonna; Sanders, Lee M; Rothman, Russell L; Mendelsohn, Alan L; Dreyer, Benard P; White, Richard O; Finkle, Joanne P; Prendes, Stefania; Perrin, Eliana M

2012-01-01

To assess the health literacy and numeracy skills of Spanish-speaking parents of young children and to validate a new Spanish language health literacy assessment for parents, the Spanish Parental Health Literacy Activities Test (PHLAT Spanish). Cross-sectional study of Spanish-speaking caregivers of young children (validated tests of health literacy (S-TOFHLA) and numeracy (WRAT-3 Arithmetic). Psychometric analysis was used to examine item characteristics of the PHLAT-10 Spanish, to assess its correlation with sociodemographics and performance on literacy/numeracy assessments, and to generate a shorter 8-item scale (PHLAT-8). Of 176 caregivers, 77% had adequate health literacy (S-TOFHLA), whereas only 0.6% had 9th grade or greater numeracy skills. Mean PHLAT-10 score was 41.6% (SD 21.1). Fewer than one-half (45.5%) were able to read a liquid antibiotic prescription label and demonstrate how much medication to administer within an oral syringe. Less than one-third (31.8%) were able to interpret a food label to determine whether it met WIC (Special supplemental nutrition program for Women, Infants, and Children) guidelines. Greater PHLAT-10 score was associated with greater years of education (r = 0.49), S-TOFHLA (r = 0.53), and WRAT-3 (r = 0.55) scores (P Spanish-speaking parents have difficulty performing health-related literacy and numeracy tasks. The Spanish PHLAT demonstrates good psychometric characteristics and may be useful for identifying parents who would benefit from receiving low-literacy child health information. Copyright © 2012 Academic Pediatric Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Affordances and Constraints of Using the Socio-Political Debate for Authentic Summative Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Anker-Hansen, Jens; Andrée, Maria

2015-01-01

This article reports from an empirical study on the affordances and constraints for using staged socio-political debates for authentic summative assessment of scientific literacy. The article focuses on conditions for student participation and what purposes emerge in student interaction in a socio-political debate. As part of the research project,…

Helpdesk for Spanish Speaking Telecentre Communities in Peru ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Helpdesk for Spanish Speaking Telecentre Communities in Peru and Latin America. IDRC's telecentre.org supports various efforts to strengthen the capacity of people working in telecentres across the world through knowledge-sharing, collaboration and networking. Through these efforts, strong telecentre networks in Africa ...

Self-Regulation Abilities and Spanish-Speaking Preschoolers' Vocabulary and Letter-Word Skills in Spanish and English

Science.gov (United States)

Palermo, Francisco; Mikulski, Ariana M.; Conejo, L. Diego

2017-01-01

Research Findings: This study examined the heterogeneity in Spanish-speaking children's (N = 117; M age = 53 months; SD = 5 months; 57% boys) vocabulary and letter-word skills in English and Spanish after one year of preschool and the extent to which early self-regulation abilities (i.e., executive function and effortful control) were associated…

Socio-Racial Sensibilities towards coloured subaltern sectors in the Spanish Atlantic

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gómez, Alejandro E.

2015-12-01

Full Text Available This article studies from a longue durée perspective the articulation of anti-slavery sentiments and other socio-racial sensibilities within the Spanish Atlantic, from the first theological criticisms of the 16th century to the efforts to abolish slavery in Cuba, Puerto Rico and Spain, in the second half of the 19th century. We focus on the most significant cases of individuals who shared a white identity and who advocated against slavery, slave trade and socio-racial discrimination of Free Coloureds. We argue that the many egalitarian proposals made during the Spanish American revolutions and at the Cortes of Cádiz represent a second golden moment (after the ‘Mulatto Affaire’ during the French Revolution in the struggle for the granting of political equality to subaltern sectors the Atlantic World. In the end, we expect to provide a clearer picture of how the socio-racial sensibilities contributed to accelerate, or to postpone, the introduction of abolitionist or equalitarian measures vis-à-vis the coloured subaltern sectors in the Spanish Atlantic in the Late Modern Age.Este artículo estudia desde una perspectiva de longue durée la articulación de los sentimientos anti-esclavistas con otras sensibilidades socio-raciales en el Atlántico español, desde las primeras críticas teológicas del siglo xvi hasta los esfuerzos para abolir la esclavitud en Cuba, Puerto Rico y España, en la segunda mitad del siglo XIX. El estudio se centra en los casos más significativos de individuos que compartían una identidad blanca y que abogaron contra la esclavitud, la trata de esclavos y la discriminación socio-racial de los libres de color. El mismo sostiene que las muchas propuestas igualitarias hechas durante las revoluciones hispanoamericanas y en las Cortes de Cádiz representan un segundo momento dorado (después del llamado ‘Asunto de los mulatos’ durante la Revolución Francesa en la lucha por el otorgamiento de igualdad política a

The socio-political economy of nuclear power development in Japan and South Korea

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valentine, Scott Victor; Sovacool, Benjamin K.

2010-01-01

This paper analyzes the socio-cultural, political and economic conditions prevalent during the inception of nuclear power programs in Japan and South Korea in order to identify commonalities which support nuclear power program expansion. The study identifies six factors as having a clear influence on supporting nuclear power development: (1) strong state involvement in guiding economic development; (2) centralization of national energy policymaking and planning; (3) campaigns to link technological progress with national revitalization; (4) influence of technocratic ideology on policy decisions; (5) subordination of challenges to political authority, and (6) low levels of civic activism. The paper postulates that insights from this study can be used to assess the propensity of nations which have the emergent capacity to support nuclear power development to actually embark on such programs. - Research highlights: → The study identifies six factors as having a clear influence on supporting nuclear power development in Japan and South Korea: (1) strong state involvement in guiding economic development; (2) centralization of national energy policymaking and planning; (3) campaigns to link technological progress with national revitalization; (4) influence of technocratic ideology on policy decisions; (5) subordination of challenges to political authority.

Health Care Disparities Among English-Speaking and Spanish-Speaking Women With Pelvic Organ Prolapse at Public and Private Hospitals: What Are the Barriers?

Science.gov (United States)

Alas, Alexandriah N; Dunivan, Gena C; Wieslander, Cecelia K; Sevilla, Claudia; Barrera, Biatris; Rashid, Rezoana; Maliski, Sally; Eilber, Karen; Rogers, Rebecca G; Anger, Jennifer Tash

The objective of this study was to compare perceptions and barriers between Spanish-speaking and English-speaking women in public and private hospitals being treated for pelvic organ prolapse (POP). Eight focus groups, 4 in English and 4 in Spanish, were conducted at 3 institutions with care in female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery. Standardized questions were asked regarding patients' emotions to when they initially noticed the POP, if they sought family support, and their response to the diagnosis and treatment. Transcripts were analyzed using grounded theory qualitative methods. Thirty-three women were Spanish-speaking and 25 were English-speaking. Spanish speakers were younger (P = 0.0469) and less likely to have a high school diploma (P speaking women had more concerns that the bulge or treatments could lead to cancer, were more resistant to treatment options, and were less likely to be offered surgery. Women in the private hospital desired more information, were less embarrassed, and were more likely to be offered surgery as first-line treatment. The concept emerged that patient care for POP varied based on socioeconomic status and language and suggested the presence of disparities in care for underserved women with POP. The discrepancies in care for Spanish-speaking women and women being treated at public hospitals suggest that there are disparities in care for POP treatment for underserved women. These differences may be secondary to profit-driven pressures from private hospitals or language barriers, low socioeconomic status, low health literacy, and barriers to health care.

Counseling Spanish-speaking patients: Atlanta pharmacists' cultural sensitivity, use of language-assistance services, and attitudes.

Science.gov (United States)

Muzyk, Andrew J; Muzyk, Tara L; Barnett, Candace W

2004-01-01

To document the types of language-assistance services available in pharmacies and the perceptions of pharmacists regarding the effectiveness of these services, and to measure the attitudes toward counseling Spanish-speaking patients and cultural sensitivity of pharmacists. Cross-sectional assessment. Metropolitan Atlanta, Ga. Registered Georgia pharmacists residing in metropolitan Atlanta. Mailed survey, with repeat mailing 2 weeks later. 38 survey items measuring demographic and practice-site characteristics, types of language-assistance services available with an assessment of the effectiveness of each measured on a nominal scale, and attitudinal items concerning counseling of Spanish-speaking patients and pharmacists' cultural sensitivity using a 5-point Likert-type response scale. Of 1,975 questionnaires mailed, 608 were returned, a 30.8% response rate. Nearly two thirds of the pharmacists had recently counseled a Spanish-speaking patient, but only one fourth of those respondents considered their interactions effective. Nearly all pharmacists, 88.0%, worked in pharmacies with language-assistance services. Of seven types of these services, a mean of 2.19 were available in pharmacies, and the majority of pharmacists (84.4% or more) identifying a service considered it to be effective. The pharmacists were neutral about counseling Spanish-speaking patients (mean = 2.94) and indifferent toward other cultures (mean = 3.28); however, they agreed they had a responsibility to counsel Spanish-speaking patients, and they believed that use of language-assistance services would constitute a reasonable effort to counsel these patients. Pharmacists have an opportunity to address barriers to communication with the Spanish-speaking population through use of language-assistance services and educational measures within the profession.

Notable Books in Spanish for Children and Young Adults from Spanish-Speaking Countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Schon, Isabel

1985-01-01

Presents a bibliography of books recently published in Mexico, Spain, Argentina, and Peru for Spanish-speaking children and young adults. The books are grouped by the following levels: (1) preschool and primary grades; (2) grades 3 to 6; (3) junior high and up; and (4) young adult. (SED)

The Smoking Consequences Questionnaire: Factor structure and predictive validity among Spanish-speaking Latino smokers in the United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Vidrine, Jennifer Irvin; Vidrine, Damon J; Costello, Tracy J; Mazas, Carlos; Cofta-Woerpel, Ludmila; Mejia, Luz Maria; Wetter, David W

2009-11-01

Much of the existing research on smoking outcome expectancies has been guided by the Smoking Consequences Questionnaire (SCQ ). Although the original version of the SCQ has been modified over time for use in different populations, none of the existing versions have been evaluated for use among Spanish-speaking Latino smokers in the United States. The present study evaluated the factor structure and predictive validity of the 3 previously validated versions of the SCQ--the original, the SCQ-Adult, and the SCQ-Spanish, which was developed with Spanish-speaking smokers in Spain--among Spanish-speaking Latino smokers in Texas. The SCQ-Spanish represented the least complex solution. Each of the SCQ-Spanish scales had good internal consistency, and the predictive validity of the SCQ-Spanish was partially supported. Nearly all the SCQ-Spanish scales predicted withdrawal severity even after controlling for demographics and dependence. Boredom Reduction predicted smoking relapse across the 5- and 12-week follow-up assessments in a multivariate model that also controlled for demographics and dependence. Our results support use of the SCQ-Spanish with Spanish-speaking Latino smokers in the United States.

Examining the Relationship between Emergent Literacy Skills and Invented Spelling in Prekindergarten Spanish-Speaking Dual Language Learners

Science.gov (United States)

Pendergast, Meghan; Bingham, Gary; Patton-Terry, Nicole

2015-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to examine associations among English and Spanish emergent literacy skills of prekindergarten (pre-K) Spanish-speaking dual language learners in relation to their English invented spelling. Study participants included 141 Spanish-speaking 4-year-old children enrolled in state-funded pre-K programs in a large…

Survey of US Veterinary Students on Communicating with Limited English Proficient Spanish-Speaking Pet Owners.

Science.gov (United States)

Landau, Ruth E; Beck, Alan; Glickman, Larry T; Litster, Annette; Widmar, Nicole J Olynk; Moore, George E

2015-01-01

Veterinary schools and colleges generally include communication skills training in their professional curriculum, but few programs address challenges resulting from language gaps between pet owners and practitioners. Due to shifting US demographics, small animal veterinary practices must accommodate an increasing number of limited English proficient (LEP) Spanish-speaking pet owners (SSPOs). A national survey was conducted to assess the interest and preparedness of US veterinary students to communicate with LEP SSPOs when they graduate. This online survey, with more than 2,000 first-, second-, and third-year US veterinary students, revealed that over 50% of students had worked at a practice or shelter that had LEP Spanish-speaking clients. Yet fewer than 20% of these students described themselves as prepared to give medical information to an LEP SSPO. Over three-fourths of respondents agreed that communication with LEP SSPOs was important for veterinarians in general, and two-thirds agreed that communication with LEP SSPOs was important for themselves personally. Ninety percent of students who described themselves as conversant in Spanish agreed that they would be able to communicate socially with SSPOs, while only 55% said they would be able to communicate medically with such clients. Overall, two-thirds of students expressed interest in taking Spanish for Veterinary Professionals elective course while in school, with the strongest interest expressed by those with advanced proficiency in spoken Spanish. Bridging language gaps has the potential to improve communication with LEP SSPOs in the veterinary clinical setting and to improve patient care, client satisfaction, and the economic health of the veterinary profession.

Growing Economic Inequality and Its (Partially Political Roots

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kay Lehman Schlozman

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Growing economic inequality fosters inequality in the political processes of American democracy. Since the 1970’s inequalities in earnings and wealth have increased dramatically in the United States creating a higher level of inequality in disposable income than in other developed democracies. The United States also lags behind other rich nations in the way it provides for those at the bottom of the income distribution, and there is no evidence that the opportunities for success promised by the American Dream compensate for inequality in America. Technological and economic developments are significant causes of this growing economic inequality. The role of politics is more controversial, but government policy influences the distribution of income and education by the way it determines government benefits, taxes and the way markets function. For a number of reasons—including, most importantly, the relationship between education and income and the ability of the affluent to make large campaign donations—those who are economically well-off speak more loudly in politics. They are more likely to engage in most forms of individual political participation—not only ones that involve using cash but also ones that cost nothing except time. Moreover, when it comes to political voice through organizations, a professionalized domain dominated by hired experts in which the volume of political voice can be altered to reflect available economic resources, affluent interests are more likely to be organized and active. This essay considers the growing economic inequalities that form an important part of the backdrop for unequal political voice.

The political mobilization of corporate directors: socio-economic correlates of affiliation to European pressure groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Bond, Matthew; Glouharova, Siana; Harrigan, Nicholas

2010-06-01

Business has played a central role in the debate over Britain's place in the European Union. This paper examines the socio-economic characteristics of directors of Britain's largest corporations who affiliated either to Business for Sterling or Britain in Europe. It reports associations between directors' social backgrounds and their probabilities of affiliation. Elite university education, club membership, wealth and multiple directorships were all associated with higher propensities to affiliate. The associations are consistent with the idea that directors' social resources allow them to overcome collective action problems as well as supplying them with the motivations to affiliate. They also indicated that directors form a privileged group in that they have a number of very powerful actors who can take unilateral political actions.

Perceptions of the Pediatric Hospice Experience among English- and Spanish-Speaking Families.

Science.gov (United States)

Thienprayoon, Rachel; Marks, Emily; Funes, Maria; Martinez-Puente, Louizza Maria; Winick, Naomi; Lee, Simon Craddock

2016-01-01

Many children who die are eligible for hospice enrollment but little is known about parental perceptions of the hospice experience, the benefits, and disappointments. The objective of this study was to explore parental perspectives of the hospice experience in children with cancer, and to explore how race/ethnicity impacts this experience. We held 20 semistructured interviews with 34 caregivers of children who died of cancer and used hospice. Interviews were conducted in the caregivers' primary language: 12 in English and 8 in Spanish. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using accepted qualitative methods. Both English and Spanish speakers described the importance of honest, direct communication by medical providers, and anxieties surrounding the expectation of the moment of death. Five English-speaking families returned to the hospital because of unsatisfactory symptom management and the need for additional supportive services. Alternatively, Spanish speakers commonly stressed the importance of being at home and did not focus on symptom management. Both groups invoked themes of caregiver appraisal, but English-speaking caregivers more commonly discussed themes of financial hardship and fear of insurance loss, while Spanish-speakers focused on difficulties of bedside caregiving and geographic separation from family. The intense grief associated with the loss of a child creates shared experiences, but Spanish- and English-speaking parents describe their hospice experiences in different ways. Additional studies in pediatric hospice care are warranted to improve the care we provide to children at the end of life.

Screening for bipolar disorders in Spanish-speaking populations: sensitivity and specificity of the Bipolar Spectrum Diagnostic Scale-Spanish Version.

Science.gov (United States)

Vázquez, Gustavo Héctor; Romero, Ester; Fabregues, Fernando; Pies, Ronald; Ghaemi, Nassir; Mota-Castillo, Manuel

2010-01-01

Bipolar disorder is commonly misdiagnosed, perhaps more so in Latin American and Spanish-speaking populations than in the United States. The Bipolar Spectrum Diagnostic Scale (BSDS) is a 19-item screening instrument designed to assist in screening for all types of bipolar disorder. The authors investigated the sensitivity of a Spanish-language version of the BSDS in a cohort of 65 outpatients with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, based on a semi-structured interview and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision criteria. To determine specificity, we assessed a control group of 36 outpatients with diagnosis of unipolar major depressive disorder. The overall sensitivity of the BSDS Spanish version with bipolar disorders types I, II, and NOS was 0.70, which was slightly lower than the sensitivity in the study using the English version of the BSDS (0.76). The specificity was 0.89. When the threshold was decreased from 13 to 12, the sensitivity of the Spanish BSDS increased to 0.76 and specificity dropped to 0.81. The Spanish version of the BSDS is promising as a screening instrument in Spanish-speaking populations. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Internalized HIV Stigma and Disclosure Concerns: Development and Validation of Two Scales in Spanish-Speaking Populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Hernansaiz-Garrido, Helena; Alonso-Tapia, Jesús

2017-01-01

Internalized stigma and disclosure concerns are key elements for the study of mental health in people living with HIV. Since no measures of these constructs were available for Spanish population, this study sought to develop such instruments, to analyze their reliability and validity and to provide a short version. A heterogeneous sample of 458 adults from different Spanish-speaking countries completed the HIV-Internalized Stigma Scale and the HIV-Disclosure Concerns Scale, along with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Rosenberg's Self-esteem Scale and other socio-demographic variables. Reliability and correlation analyses, exploratory factor analyses, path analyses with latent variables, and ANOVAs were conducted to test the scales' psychometric properties. The scales showed good reliability in terms of internal consistency and temporal stability, as well as good sensitivity and factorial and criterion validity. The HIV-Internalized Stigma Scale and the HIV-Disclosure Concerns Scale are reliable and valid means to assess these variables in several contexts.

Writing Disabilities in Spanish-Speaking Children: Introduction to the Special Series.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiménez, Juan E

This special issue of the Journal of Learning Disabilities focuses on studies of writing disabilities in Spanish-speaking children. The World Health Organization (2001) included writing difficulties as one of the problems considered to constitute an impediment to school participation, a significant element in the normal developmental process of the child. In this introduction, I describe the background of a larger project promoted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). This special series offers recent findings on writing disabilities in Spanish-Speaking children within the UNESCO project. The pilot study was carried out in the Canary Islands, an autonomous Spanish region located between three continents and composed of seven islands in the Atlantic Ocean. Most of the current empirical evidence on writing disabilities comes from English, a language with deep orthography; therefore, it is very relevant to investigate the writing process in Spanish, a language with shallow, fine-grained orthography. Included are a number of articles that form a conspectus on writing disabilities in the Spanish language. Topics center on early grade writing assessment, prevalence of writing disabilities, handwriting and keyboarding, transcription and text generation, graphonomic and handwriting analysis, and instructional practices with an learning disabled population.

The political-economic transition and the building of the welfare state in Spain (1975-1986

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rafael Muñoz de Bustillo Llorente

2008-12-01

Full Text Available This article analyses the economic policy in Spain during the govern- ments of the Spanish political transition from 1975 to 1986. It considers the different areas of economic policy with special emphasis on the development of welfare state issues in this period. Taking into account the difficult economic and political situation in 1975, there were some important advances in social policy and progressive taxation during the period. The transition to democracy in Spain changed the role and size of the public sector above all from 1975 to 1986. The social demands over the political system were possible improvements in the progressive and redistributive policies in education, health, and social programs. Spain’s transition to democracy and the first period of welfare state show a mutually reinforcing and its consequences were the modernization of the Spanish economy. However, from 1986 the economic develop- ment and the progress of welfare state have had a different growth.Key words: Welfare state, Economic transition, Spain.

Assessing Spanish-Speaking Immigrant Parents' Perceptions of Climate at a New Language Immersion School: A Critical Analysis Using "Thinking with Theory"

Science.gov (United States)

Aguayo, David; Dorner, Lisa M.

2017-01-01

Parent involvement in schools is often developed through one-way, deficit-oriented relationships, where information flows from schools "to" families and parents are perceived to lack some capacity or knowledge. However, little is known about the conditions facing Spanish-speaking families at Spanish language immersion schools, which…

Adaptation and validation of the Spanish Versión of the "Survey Work-Home Interaction - NijmeGen" (SWING to Spanish speaking countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marina Romeo

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is the adaptation and validation of the "Survey Work-Home Interaction - NijmeGen" (SWING developed by Geurts and colleagues to Spanish speaking countries (SWING-SSC. In order to analyze the questionnaire's psychometnc properties, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA was carried out with a sample of 203 employees from various Spanish-speaking countries. Criterion related validity was tested by examining correlations between the SWING-SSC, and the theoretically relevant variables: health, role conflict, role clarity and supervisor support. Finally, reliability was tested analyzing the internal consistency of the scales. The analyses carried out indicate that SWING-SSC has good psychometric properties. In addition, the present results support the relation of the construct with health, role conflict, role clarity, and supervisor support. This study offers evidence for a sound work-life balance measure that contributes to encourage adequate conditions in the workplace, to reduce the conflict between the two spheres of professional and personal life, and to enhance positive relationships.

[Political ecology, ecological economics, and public health: interfaces for the sustainability of development and health promotion].

Science.gov (United States)

Porto, Marcelo Firpo; Martinez-Alier, Joan

2007-01-01

This article proposes to focus contributions from political ecology and ecological economics to the field of collective health with a view towards integrating the discussions around health promotion, socio-environmental sustainability, and development. Ecological economics is a recent interdisciplinary field that combines economists and other professionals from the social, human, and life sciences. The field has developed new concepts and methodologies that seek to grasp the relationship between the economy and ecological and social processes such as social metabolism and metabolic profile, thereby interrelating economic, material, and energy flows and producing indicators and indexes for (un)sustainability. Meanwhile, political ecology approaches ecological issues and socio-environmental conflicts based on the economic and power dynamics characterizing modern societies. Collective health and the discussions on health promotion can expand our understanding of territory, communities, and the role of science and institutions based on the contributions of political ecology and ecological economics in analyzing development models and the distributive and socio-environmental conflicts generated by them.

Validation of a home food inventory among low-income Spanish- and Somali-speaking families.

Science.gov (United States)

Hearst, Mary O; Fulkerson, Jayne A; Parke, Michelle; Martin, Lauren

2013-07-01

To refine and validate an existing home food inventory (HFI) for low-income Somali- and Spanish-speaking families. Formative assessment was conducted using two focus groups, followed by revisions of the HFI, translation of written materials and instrument validation in participants’ homes. Twin Cities Metropolitan Area, Minnesota, USA. Thirty low-income families with children of pre-school age (fifteen Spanish-speaking; fifteen Somali-speaking) completed the HFI simultaneously with, but independently of, a trained staff member. Analysis consisted of calculation of both item-specific and average food group kappa coefficients, specificity, sensitivity and Spearman’s correlation between participants’ and staff scores as a means of assessing criterion validity of individual items, food categories and the obesogenic score. The formative assessment revealed the need for few changes/additions for food items typically found in Spanish-speaking households. Somali-speaking participants requested few additions, but many deletions, including frozen processed food items, non-perishable produce and many sweets as they were not typical food items kept in the home. Generally, all validity indices were within an acceptable range, with the exception of values associated with items such as ‘whole wheat bread’ (k = 0.16). The obesogenic score (presence of high-fat, high-energy foods) had high criterion validity with k = 0.57, sensitivity = 91.8%, specificity = 70.6% and Spearman correlation = 0.78. The revised HFI is a valid assessment tool for use among Spanish and Somali households. This instrument refinement and validation process can be replicated with other population groups.

Are Employee Emotional and Socio-political Competences Related with Innovative Behavior?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kähler, Helena Grøn

on the socio-political paradigm and the theory of innovation as a socio-political process, the main hypothesis is that employees’ strategic emotional intelligence, mediated by their socio-political competencies, will predict their innovative behavior, particularly their degree of idea-promoting and idea-realization....

Initial Spanish Proficiency and English Language Development among Spanish-Speaking English Learner Students in New Mexico. REL 2018-286

Science.gov (United States)

Arellano, Brenda; Liu, Feng; Stoker, Ginger; Slama, Rachel

2018-01-01

To what extent do Spanish-speaking English learner students develop English proficiency and grade-level readiness in English language arts and math from early elementary school to upper elementary school? Is there a relationship between proficiency in a student's primary home language, Spanish, and the amount of time needed to attain fluency in…

Internet-based developmental screening: a digital divide between English- and Spanish-speaking parents.

Science.gov (United States)

Hambidge, Simon J; Phibbs, Stephanie; Beck, Arne; Bergman, David Aaron

2011-10-01

Internet-based developmental screening is being implemented in pediatric practices across the United States. Little is known about the application of this technology in poor urban populations. We describe here the results of focus groups, surveys, and in-depth interviews during home visits with families served by an urban safety-net organization to address the question of whether it is possible to use Internet or e-mail communication for medical previsit engagement in a population that is majority Hispanic, of low socioeconomic status, and has many non-English-speaking families. This study included families in 4 clinics within a safety-net health care system. The study design included the use of (1) parental surveys (n = 200) of a convenience sample of parents whose children received primary care in the clinics, (2) focus groups (n = 7 groups) with parents, and (3) in-depth interviews during home visits with 4 families. We used χ(2) and multivariate analyses to compare Internet access in English- and Spanish-speaking families. Standard qualitative methods were used to code focus-group texts and identify convergent themes. In multivariate analysis, independent factors associated with computer use were English versus Spanish language (odds ratio: 3.2 [95% confidence interval: 1.4-6.9]) and education through at least high school (odds ratio: 4.7 [95% confidence interval: 2.3-9.7]). In focus groups, the concept of parental previsit work, such as developmental screening tests, was viewed favorably by all groups. However, many parents expressed reservations about doing this work by using the Internet or e-mail and stated a preference for either paper or telephone options. Many Spanish-speaking families discussed lack of access to computers and printers. In this economically disadvantaged population, language and maternal education were associated with access to the Internet. Given the potential power of previsit work to tailor well-child visits to the needs of

Development of early numerical abilities of Spanish-speaking Mexican preschoolers: A new assessment tool.

Science.gov (United States)

Beltrán-Navarro, Beatriz; Abreu-Mendoza, Roberto A; Matute, Esmeralda; Rosselli, Monica

2018-01-01

This article presents a tool for assessing the early numerical abilities of Spanish-speaking Mexican preschoolers. The Numerical Abilities Test, from the Evaluación Neuropsicológica Infantil-Preescolar (ENI-P), evaluates four core abilities of number development: magnitude comparison, counting, subitizing, and basic calculation. We evaluated 307 Spanish-speaking Mexican children aged 2 years 6 months to 4 years 11 months. Appropriate internal consistency and test-retest reliability were demonstrated. We also investigated the effect of age, children's school attendance, maternal education, and sex on children's numerical scores. The results showed that the four subtests captured development across ages. Critically, maternal education had an impact on children's performance in three out of the four subtests, but there was no effect associated with children's school attendance or sex. These results suggest that the Numerical Abilities Test is a reliable instrument for Spanish-speaking preschoolers. We discuss the implications of our outcomes for numerical development.

Spanish Language Self-Efficacy Beliefs among Spanish-Speaking Social Workers: Implications for Social Work Education

Science.gov (United States)

Arriaza, Pablo

2015-01-01

Limited research exists about Spanish-speaking social workers that provide bilingual social work services. To date, studies have not exclusively focused on actual language competence of bilingual social workers or even their self-perceived language beliefs. This study reviews the results of a cross-sectional Internet-based survey exploring…

Early Lexical Development in Spanish-Speaking Infants and Toddlers.

Science.gov (United States)

Jackson-Maldonado, Donna; And Others

1993-01-01

The development of a new parent report instrument, Inventario del Desarollo de Habilidades Communicativas, is reported and 5 studies carried out with the instrument for 328 children aged 8 months to 2 years/7 months are presented. Among the findings are similar trajectories of development for Spanish- and English-speaking children and for children…

The impact of language barriers and immigration status on the care experience for Spanish-speaking caregivers of patients with pediatric cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Zamora, Eduardo R; Kaul, Sapna; Kirchhoff, Anne C; Gwilliam, Vannina; Jimenez, Ornella A; Morreall, Deborah K; Montenegro, Roberto E; Kinney, Anita Y; Fluchel, Mark N

2016-12-01

An increasing proportion of pediatric cancer patients in the United States are Latino and many have Spanish-speaking immigrant parents with limited English proficiency (LEP). Little is known about how language or undocumented immigration status impacts their care experience. A cross-sectional survey was administered to English (N = 310) and Spanish-speaking LEP (N = 56) caregivers of pediatric cancer patients. To assess differences in healthcare experiences between the language groups, t-tests and chi-square statistics were used. Multivariable logistic regression evaluated associations between primary language and knowledge of clinical trial status. Spanish-speaking caregivers were more likely to report higher rates of quitting or changing jobs as a direct result of their child's cancer, and their children were more likely to experience a delay in education. Although Spanish-speaking caregivers reported higher satisfaction with care, 32% reported feeling that their child would have received better care if English was their primary language. Spanish-speaking caregivers were more likely to incorrectly identify whether their child was on a clinical trial compared with English-speaking caregivers. The majority of Spanish-speaking caregivers reported at least one undocumented caregiver in the household and 11% of them avoided or delayed medical care for their child due to concerns over their undocumented immigration status. Language barriers and undocumented immigration status may negatively impact the quality of informed decision-making and the care experience for Spanish-speaking LEP caregivers of pediatric cancer patients. These families may benefit from culturally appropriate Spanish language resources to improve communication and open a dialogue regarding undocumented immigration status. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Development of Forms of Corporate Social Responsibility in Russia in the Current Economic Conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natalya Arzumanova

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The article reveals the characteristic features of modern trends in the formation and implementation of corporate social responsibility in Russia in the current economic conditions, which is based on the fact that reasonable economic interests oriented business not only on maximizing profits, but also to improve their own macro - socio-economic, natural, political, through voluntary investment profits in the respective areas.

Measuring Disparities: Bias in the SF-36v2 among Spanish-speaking Medical Patients

Science.gov (United States)

Sudano, Joseph J.; Perzynski, Adam; Love, Thomas E.; Lewis, Steven A.; Murray, Patrick M.; Huber, Gail; Ruo, Bernice; Baker, David W.

2011-01-01

Background Many national surveys have found substantial differences in self-reported overall health (SROH) between Spanish-speaking Hispanics and other racial/ethnic groups. However, because cultural and language differences may create measurement bias, it is unclear whether observed differences in SROH reflect true differences in health. Objectives This study uses a cross-sectional survey to investigate psychometric properties of the SF-36v2 for subjects across four racial/ethnic and language groups. Multi-group latent variable modeling was used to test increasingly stringent criteria for measurement equivalence. Subjects Our sample (N = 1281) included 383 non-Hispanic whites, 368 non-Hispanic blacks, 206 Hispanics interviewed in English and 324 Hispanics interviewed in Spanish recruited from outpatient medical clinics in two large urban areas. Results We found weak factorial invariance across the four groups. However, there was no strong factorial invariance. The overall fit of the model was substantially worse (change in CFI > .02, RMSEA change > .003) after requiring equal intercepts across all groups. Further comparisons established that the equality constraints on the intercepts for Spanish-speaking Hispanics were responsible for the decrement to model fit. Conclusions Observed differences between SF-36v2 scores for Spanish speaking Hispanics are systematically biased relative to the other three groups. The lack of strong invariance suggests the need for caution when comparing SF-36v2 mean scores of Spanish-speaking Hispanics with those of other groups. However, measurement equivalence testing for this study supports correlational or multivariate latent variable analyses of SF-36v2 responses across all four subgroups, since these analyses require only weak factorial invariance. PMID:21430580

K. Schmitt’s Theory of Partisan: Socio - Political Eventuality of Partisan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mihail Petrovich Ostromenskij

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Eventual socio-political conditions of the appearance of a partisan are considered. It is shown that the appearance of the partisan becomes possible when the socio-political uncertainty in the state and social anomie in society caused serious set into question the legitimacy of the sovereign. In such circumstances, falling value of public institutions, the rule of law and the rules of the routine, but the role of the individual and adopt independent decisions, in each case, increases. And increasing the area of independent ad hoc decisions. Such conditions arise in the occupied territory, especially in a situation of the continuing war. Besides, here indigenous people without taking any illegal actions, from the point of view of both clashing sovereigns, it is struck in the rights. All this makes a real opportunity to show the political subjectivity of the citizen, even with low social status. The behavior of the occupied population can follow three models: expectations of the solution of the conflict between sovereigns and the subsequent acceptance of its results as due - absolute majority population, the active help to the occupying sovereign for the purpose of the statement new political - the collaborator, active opposition of the occupying authority for the purpose of return former political - the partisan.

THE RELATIONSHIP OF TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS AND REGIONAL SOCIO-ECONOMIC SYSTEMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ilya Maximov

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The article considers the interaction of corporate and socio-economic systems within the perimeter of the model. Characterized qualitatively and quantitatively the socio-economic system, are the subjects of corporate relations and conditions of their joint functioning, determined by the conditions of functioning of TNCs and their impact on the region-recipient.

The Efficacy of Child-Centered Play Therapy with Hispanic Spanish-Speaking Children when Conducted by a Monolingual English-Speaking Counselor

Science.gov (United States)

McGee, Lola V.

2010-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of child-centered play therapy as an intervention when the client and the counselor do not speak the same language. The participants of the study were 34 Spanish-speaking children of Hispanic descent ranging in age from 4 to 8 who were referred to counseling for exhibiting…

Relations between Early Reading and Writing Skills among Spanish-Speaking Language Minority Children

Science.gov (United States)

Goodrich, J. Marc; Farrington, Amber L.; Lonigan, Christopher J.

2016-01-01

Although there is a growing body of literature on the development of reading skills of Spanish-speaking language minority children, little research has focused on the development of writing skills in this population. This study evaluated whether children's Spanish early reading skills (i.e., print knowledge, phonological awareness, oral language)…

The Effect of Community-Level Socio-Economic Conditions on Threatening Racial Encounters

OpenAIRE

Heather Antecol; Deborah A. Cobb-Clark

2008-01-01

This paper contributes to the emerging literature on racial and ethnic tension by analyzing the relationship between local socio-economic conditions and the propensity for outsiders to have threatening racial encounters with insiders. We use unique data for a sample of active-duty Army personnel that allow us to first, link personnel to the local communities in which they are located and second, to avoid any selectivity bias associated with endogenous community selection. We find at best mixe...

Women’s Role in the Spanish Politics: The PSOE Case

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gema Sánchez Medero

2008-05-01

Full Text Available This article analyzes women incorporation in different levels of political life, namely in the political parties and representative institutions. The aspects it focused on were the actions taken by the PSOE (Spanish Labour Socialist Party in relation to the paritary democracy, so as to properly evaluate the consequences produced on the organization party itself and on those institutional areas where they have obtained representation (General Spanish Parliament, Autonomous Parliaments, and City Halls, to observe whether women are actually committed to political life or such integration only obeys to political party interests.

Effect of Households' Socio-Economic Condition on Crowding in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The results indicate a preponderance of gentrification, with attendant policy implications. The results also show that there is no significant difference in the degree of crowding among the different socio-economic classifications. This is inconsistent with the generally held understanding in urban housing studies that crowding ...

Executive Functioning in Spanish- and English-Speaking Head Start Preschoolers

Science.gov (United States)

White, Lisa J.; Greenfield, Daryl B.

2017-01-01

A growing percentage of low-income children in the United States come from Spanish-speaking homes and are dual language learners (DLLs). Recent research shows that bilingual children, compared to monolinguals, have enhanced executive functioning (EF), a set of foundational cognitive skills that predict higher social-emotional competence and…

Mode and tempo in the evolution of socio-political organization: reconciling ‘Darwinian’ and ‘Spencerian’ evolutionary approaches in anthropology

Science.gov (United States)

Currie, Thomas E.; Mace, Ruth

2011-01-01

Traditional investigations of the evolution of human social and political institutions trace their ancestry back to nineteenth century social scientists such as Herbert Spencer, and have concentrated on the increase in socio-political complexity over time. More recent studies of cultural evolution have been explicitly informed by Darwinian evolutionary theory and focus on the transmission of cultural traits between individuals. These two approaches to investigating cultural change are often seen as incompatible. However, we argue that many of the defining features and assumptions of ‘Spencerian’ cultural evolutionary theory represent testable hypotheses that can and should be tackled within a broader ‘Darwinian’ framework. In this paper we apply phylogenetic comparative techniques to data from Austronesian-speaking societies of Island South-East Asia and the Pacific to test hypotheses about the mode and tempo of human socio-political evolution. We find support for three ideas often associated with Spencerian cultural evolutionary theory: (i) political organization has evolved through a regular sequence of forms, (ii) increases in hierarchical political complexity have been more common than decreases, and (iii) political organization has co-evolved with the wider presence of hereditary social stratification. PMID:21357233

Syntactic Universals and the Acquisition of Spanish Word Order by Quechua-Speaking Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Lujan, Marta; Liliana Minaya

Because of the syntactic differences between Spanish and Quechua, Quechua-speaking children must make major word order adjustments to learn the Peruvian Spanish taught in school. This study investigates whether the order or time sequence in which these changes are adopted reflects any general constraint, or is in any way predicted by a theory of…

Noninitiation and Noncompletion of HPV Vaccine Among English- and Spanish-Speaking Parents of Adolescent Girls: A Qualitative Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Albright, Karen; Barnard, Juliana; O'Leary, Sean T; Lockhart, Steven; Jimenez-Zambrano, Andrea; Stokley, Shannon; Dempsey, Amanda; Kempe, Allison

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends routine human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination for female adolescents aged 11 to 12 years, yet vaccination rates remain low. We conducted a qualitative study to understand English- and Spanish-speaking parents' reasons for noninitiation or noncompletion of the HPV vaccine series for their daughters. Parents of female adolescents aged 12 to 15 years who had not initiated or not completed the HPV vaccine series were identified through administrative data in 2 large urban safety net health care systems in Colorado. Focus groups and in-depth interviews were conducted with English-speaking parents and in-depth interviews were conducted with Spanish-speaking parents. All data were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for thematic content by experienced analysts using established qualitative content analysis techniques. Forty-one parents participated in the study. Thirty parents participated in individual interviews and 11 parents participated in 1 of 2 focus groups. The most common reasons for noninitiation and noncompletion among English-speaking parents included a low perceived risk of HPV infection, vaccine safety concerns, and distrust of government and/or medicine. In contrast, Spanish-speaking parents most often reported that providers had either not encouraged initiation of the HPV vaccine series or had not explained the necessity of completing the series. Some noninitiating parents, particularly Spanish-speaking ones, also cited concerns that vaccination would encourage sexual activity. The reasons for noninitiation and noncompletion of the HPV vaccine series differed substantially between English- and Spanish-speaking parents. To maximize uptake of HPV vaccine, varying approaches might be needed to effectively target specific populations. Copyright © 2017 Academic Pediatric Association. All rights reserved.

Health inequities: lower socio-economic conditions and higher incidences of intestinal parasites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Limoncu M Emin

2007-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Intestinal parasitic infections affect child health and development and slow down growth, while reducing adults' productivity and work capacity. The aim of the present study was to determine and compare the incidences of intestinal parasitic infections and the socio-economic status of two near primary school children in Manisa, a western city of Turkey. Methods A total of 352 children were involved a questionnaire study from a private school (Ülkem Primary School – ÜPS, 116 children and a community-based school (Şehzadeler Primary School – ŞPS, 236 children. Of these, stool samples could be obtained from a total of 294 students; 97 (83.6% from ÜPS, and 197 (83.5% from ŞPS. The wet mount preparations of the stool samples were examined; samples were also fixed in polyvinyl alcohol and examined with modified formalin ethyl acetate sedimentation and trichrome staining techniques. Data were analyzed using SPSS for Windows version 10.0. The chi-squared test was used for the analytic assessment. Results The percentages of the students found to be infected with intestinal parasites, were 78 (39.6% and 13 (13.4% in ŞPS and ÜPS, respectively. Totally 91 (31.0% of the students from both schools were found to be infected with at least one intestinal parasite. Giardia lamblia was found to be the most common pathogenic intestinal parasite and Blastocystis hominis was prevalent independently from the hygienic conditions. The factors which significantly (p Conclusion Intestinal parasitic infections in school children were found to be a public health problem that increased due to lower socio-economic conditions. We conclude that organization of education seminars including the topics such as prevention of the infectious diseases, improving general hygienic conditions, and application of supportive programs for the parents may be suggested not only to reduce intestinal parasitic infections, but also to elevate the socio

Health-Related Quality of Life of Latin-American Immigrants and Spanish-Born Attended in Spanish Primary Health Care: Socio-Demographic and Psychosocial Factors

Science.gov (United States)

Salinero-Fort, Miguel Ángel; Gómez-Campelo, Paloma; Bragado-Alvárez, Carmen; Abánades-Herranz, Juan Carlos; Jiménez-García, Rodrigo; de Burgos-Lunar, Carmen

2015-01-01

Background This study compares the health-related quality of life of Spanish-born and Latin American-born individuals settled in Spain. Socio-demographic and psychosocial factors associated with health-related quality of life are analyzed. Methods A cross-sectional Primary Health Care multi center-based study of Latin American-born (n = 691) and Spanish-born (n = 903) outpatients from 15 Primary Health Care Centers (Madrid, Spain). The Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) was used to assess health-related quality of life. Socio-demographic, psychosocial, and specific migration data were also collected. Results Compared to Spanish-born participants, Latin American-born participants reported higher health-related quality of life in the physical functioning and vitality dimensions. Across the entire sample, Latin American-born participants, younger participants, men and those with high social support reported significantly higher levels of physical health. Men with higher social support and a higher income reported significantly higher mental health. When stratified by gender, data show that for men physical health was only positively associated with younger age. For women, in addition to age, social support and marital status were significantly related. Both men and women with higher social support and income had significantly better mental health. Finally, for immigrants, the physical and mental health components of health-related quality of life were not found to be significantly associated with any of the pre-migration factors or conditions of migration. Only the variable “exposure to political violence” was significantly associated with the mental health component (p = 0.014). Conclusions The key factors to understanding HRQoL among Latin American-born immigrants settled in Spain are age, sex and social support. Therefore, strategies to maintain optimal health outcomes in these immigrant communities should include public policies on

Young Spanish-English Speaking Children's Reading Attitudes in Relation to Language Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Carla L.; Gabas, Clariebelle M.

2017-01-01

Background: Reading attitudes are recognised as an influencing factor on the language and literacy achievement of school age monolingual English-speaking children. The relationship between reading attitudes and achievement in young Spanish-speaking English Learners (ELs) remains understudied. Purpose: The aim of the current study was to describe…

HIV-Related Stigma Among Spanish-speaking Latinos in an Emerging Immigrant Receiving City.

Science.gov (United States)

Dolwick Grieb, Suzanne M; Shah, Harita; Flores-Miller, Alejandra; Zelaya, Carla; Page, Kathleen R

2017-08-01

HIV-related stigma has been associated with a reluctance to test for HIV among Latinos. This study assessed community HIV-related stigma within an emerging Latino immigrant receiving city. We conducted a brief survey among a convenience sample of 312 Spanish-speaking Latinos in Baltimore, Maryland. HIV-related stigma was assessed through six items. Associations between stigma items, socio-demographic characteristics, and HIV testing history were considered. Gender, education, and religiosity were significantly associated with stigmatizing HIV-related beliefs. For example, men were 3.4 times more likely to hold more than three stigmatizing beliefs than women, and were also twice as likely as women to report feeling hesitant to test for HIV for fear of people's reaction if the test is positive. These findings can help inform future stigma interventions in this community. In particular, we were able to distinguish between drivers of stigma such as fear and moralistic attitudes, highlighting specific actionable items.

Filial Therapy with Monolingual Spanish-Speaking Mothers: A Phenomenological Study

Science.gov (United States)

Sangganjanavanich, Varunee Faii; Cook, Katrina; Rangel-Gomez, Maria

2010-01-01

This article describes a phenomenological study of filial therapy with monolingual, Spanish-speaking mothers living in the United States. Four mothers participated in a 5-week training in filial therapy. Data from the interviews revealed four emergent themes. These include (a) challenges in integrating play therapy skills in everyday life, (b)…

Socio-economic modifications of the Universal Soil Loss Equation

Science.gov (United States)

Erol, A.; Koşkan, Ö.; Başaran, M. A.

2015-06-01

While social scientists have long focused on socio-economic and demographic factors, physical modelers typically study soil loss using physical factors. In the current environment, it is becoming increasingly important to consider both approaches simultaneously for the conservation of soil and water, and the improvement of land use conditions. This study uses physical and socio-economic factors to find a coefficient that evaluates the combination of these factors. It aims to determine the effect of socio-economic factors on soil loss and, in turn, to modify the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE). The methodology employed in this study specifies that soil loss can be calculated and predicted by comparing the degree of soil loss in watersheds, with and without human influence, given the same overall conditions. A coefficient for socio-economic factors, therefore, has been determined based on adjoining watersheds (WS I and II), employing simulation methods. Combinations of C and P factors were used in the USLE to find the impact of their contributions on soil loss. The results revealed that these combinations provided good estimation of soil loss amounts for the second watershed, i.e. WS II, from the adjoining watersheds studied in this work. This study shows that a coefficient of 0.008 modified the USLE to reflect the socio-economic factors as settlement influencing the amount of soil loss in the watersheds studied.

Shared Cultural History as a Predictor of Political and Economic Changes among Nation States.

Science.gov (United States)

Matthews, Luke J; Passmore, Sam; Richard, Paul M; Gray, Russell D; Atkinson, Quentin D

2016-01-01

Political and economic risks arise from social phenomena that spread within and across countries. Regime changes, protest movements, and stock market and default shocks can have ramifications across the globe. Quantitative models have made great strides at predicting these events in recent decades but incorporate few explicitly measured cultural variables. However, in recent years cultural evolutionary theory has emerged as a major paradigm to understand the inheritance and diffusion of human cultural variation. Here, we combine these two strands of research by proposing that measures of socio-linguistic affiliation derived from language phylogenies track variation in cultural norms that influence how political and economic changes diffuse across the globe. First, we show that changes over time in a country's democratic or autocratic character correlate with simultaneous changes among their socio-linguistic affiliations more than with changes of spatially proximate countries. Second, we find that models of changes in sovereign default status favor including socio-linguistic affiliations in addition to spatial data. These findings suggest that better measurement of cultural networks could be profoundly useful to policy makers who wish to diversify commercial, social, and other forms of investment across political and economic risks on an international scale.

Language Usage and Culture Maintenance: A Study of Spanish-Speaking Immigrant Mothers in Australia

Science.gov (United States)

Mejía, Glenda

2016-01-01

This article discusses the usage of the Spanish language by Hispanic mothers with their children, their views on language maintenance and culture within their bilingual families and their opinions on the benefits of bilingualism in a globalised world. Drawing upon detailed case studies of 16 native Spanish-speaking mothers married to…

Trust Development With the Spanish-Speaking Mexican American Patient: A Grounded Theory Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Sharon M

2018-06-01

Interpersonal trust between patient and nurse is important in patient-centered care. Trust development may be more difficult if the patient and nurse do not speak the same language. In this grounded theory study, Spanish-speaking Mexican American adults ( n = 20) hospitalized on a medical-surgical or obstetric unit in the Midwestern United States were interviewed. Through data analysis, a model of how trust develops between nurse and patient revealed eight categories and the core category Caring for Me Well Even When Not Understanding Me. The beginning phase had four categories: Asking for Help, Bothering, Communicating, and Understanding. The middle phase had two categories: Platicando (chatting) and Being Available. The end point category was Having Trust, and outcomes were Feeling Comfortable and Feeling Supported. The language barrier was a hindrance to trust development but the nurse's way of being (personality) was more important. Therefore, the patient did develop trust with nurses who did not speak Spanish.

Causal Coherence in the Oral Narratives of Spanish-Speaking Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Gutierrez-Clellen, Vera F.; Iglesias, Aquiles

1992-01-01

Forty-six Spanish-speaking children ages four, six, or eight years viewed a short silent film and told what happened in the film. The stories of older children included more narrative actions, more mental state/goal causes, more three-clause causal sequences, and a lower proportion of unrelated statements than those of younger children.…

Enticing Spanish-Speaking Adolescents: Recent Books in Spanish for Every Taste/Cautivar a los Adolescentes Hispanohablantes: Libros Recientes en Espanol Para Todos los Gustos.

Science.gov (United States)

Schon, Isabel

1999-01-01

Argues that books in Spanish can engage Spanish-speaking students in the reading process, and that fostering the love of reading is a necessary first step to reading proficiency in any language. Offers brief descriptions of 16 recently published books in Spanish, and describes a large database of recommended books for children and adolescents in…

National Institutes of Health Toolbox Emotion Battery for English- and Spanish-speaking adults: normative data and factor-based summary scores.

Science.gov (United States)

Babakhanyan, Ida; McKenna, Benjamin S; Casaletto, Kaitlin B; Nowinski, Cindy J; Heaton, Robert K

2018-01-01

The National Institutes of Health Toolbox Emotion Battery (NIHTB-EB) is a "common currency", computerized assessment developed to measure the full spectrum of emotional health. Though comprehensive, the NIHTB-EB's 17 scales may be unwieldy for users aiming to capture more global indices of emotional functioning. NIHTB-EB was administered to 1,036 English-speaking and 408 Spanish-speaking adults as a part of the NIH Toolbox norming project. We examined the factor structure of the NIHTB-EB in English- and Spanish-speaking adults and developed factor analysis-based summary scores. Census-weighted norms were presented for English speakers, and sample-weighted norms were presented for Spanish speakers. Exploratory factor analysis for both English- and Spanish-speaking cohorts resulted in the same 3-factor solution: 1) negative affect, 2) social satisfaction, and 3) psychological well-being. Confirmatory factor analysis supported similar factor structures for English- and Spanish-speaking cohorts. Model fit indices fell within the acceptable/good range, and our final solution was optimal compared to other solutions. Summary scores based upon the normative samples appear to be psychometrically supported and should be applied to clinical samples to further validate the factor structures and investigate rates of problematic emotions in medical and psychiatric populations.

Improving advance care planning for English-speaking and Spanish-speaking older adults: study protocol for the PREPARE randomised controlled trial

OpenAIRE

Sudore, RL; Barnes, DE; Le, GM; Ramos, R; Osua, SJ; Richardson, SA; Boscardin, J; Schillinger, D

2016-01-01

Introduction Advance care planning (ACP) is a process that allows patients to identify their goals for medical care. Traditionally, ACP has focused on completing advance directives; however, we have expanded the ACP paradigm to also prepare patients to communicate their wishes and make informed decisions. To this end, we created an ACP website called PREPARE (http://www.prepareforyourcare.org) to prepare diverse English-speaking and Spanish-speaking older adults for medical decision-making. H...

Neuropsychological test performance and prediction of functional capacities among Spanish-speaking and English-speaking patients with dementia.

Science.gov (United States)

Loewenstein, D A; Rubert, M P; Argüelles, T; Duara, R

1995-03-01

Neuropsychological measures have been widely used by clinicians to assist them in making judgments regarding a cognitively impaired patient's ability to independently perform important activities of daily living. However, important questions have been raised concerning the degree to which neuropsychological instruments can predict a broad array of specific functional capacities required in the home environment. In the present study, we examined 127 English-speaking and 56 Spanish-speaking patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and determined the extent to which various neuropsychological measures and demographic variables were predictive of performance on functional measures administered within the clinical setting. Among English-speaking AD patients, Block Design and Digit-Span of the WAIS-R, as well as tests of language were among the strongest predictors of functional performance. For Spanish-speakers, Block Design, The Mini-Mental State Evaluation (MMSE) and Digit Span had the optimal predictive power. When stepwise regression was conducted on the entire sample of 183 subjects, ethnicity emerged as a statistically significant predictor variable on one of the seven functional tests (writing a check). Despite the predictive power of several of the neuropsychological measures for both groups, most of the variability in objective functional performance could not be explained in our regression models. As a result, it would appear prudent to include functional measures as part of a comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation for dementia.

Preliminary Research on Discourse Markers and Politeness in the Spanish of the United States

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tania Constanza Gómez Ríos

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This preliminary study determines the dynamics of the discourse markers and politeness in sociolinguistic interviews among Spanish speakers living in the Chicago area. The analysis is based on theories of social relations and politeness strategies (Brown and Levinson, 1987 and Bravo, 1999. By analyzing the markers within the turn organization (i.e. beginning of the turn and during the turn development, this study revealed that speakers make use of three main types of markers: connectors, modals, and appellatives. The findings suggest that the selection of a marker maintains a close relationship with the speaker’s main goal in the conversation. Either, the speaker detaches himself/herself from the interlocutor or he/she gets close to him/her. Thus, the speaker employs mitigation or intensification strategies through various linguistic forms or pauses that appear with the marker or within the turn. This study with Spanish speakers living in the area of Chicago confirms, as other studies in Spanish, that the interaction between markers and politeness is conditioned to the context and the role of the speakers.

What Does Political Participation Mean to Spanish Students?

Science.gov (United States)

Sant, Edda

2014-01-01

This article explores how a group of Spanish students (aged 11-19) understand the meaning of "political participation" in society and discusses the implications of their views for debates and practices in citizenship education. The ways in which these students (n = 112) describe and interpret political participation are analysed using an…

Socio-Economic Development of Territorial Communities in the Context of Financial Decentralization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yaroshenko Igor V.

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The deep socio-political crisis in almost all areas of development of modern Ukraine have determined the importance and necessity of implementing the decentralization reform as an effective factor to stabilize the current socioeconomic situation, overcome the financial crisis, regulate the contradictions between power structures at different levels on the principles of efficient allocation of powers and resources, comprehensive responsibility, provision of citizens with all social benefits and improvement of the efficiency of using budgetary funds at all levels of government. Implementing the financial decentralization on the basis of the administrative-territorial reform and a new ideology of public administration in Ukraine creates opportunities for providing comfortable operating conditions and self-development of a selfsufficient community, establishing principles of sustainable socio-economic development, using modern infrastructure, obtaining the necessary highquality services and ensuring a high level of well-being of its own people.

Shared Cultural History as a Predictor of Political and Economic Changes among Nation States.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luke J Matthews

Full Text Available Political and economic risks arise from social phenomena that spread within and across countries. Regime changes, protest movements, and stock market and default shocks can have ramifications across the globe. Quantitative models have made great strides at predicting these events in recent decades but incorporate few explicitly measured cultural variables. However, in recent years cultural evolutionary theory has emerged as a major paradigm to understand the inheritance and diffusion of human cultural variation. Here, we combine these two strands of research by proposing that measures of socio-linguistic affiliation derived from language phylogenies track variation in cultural norms that influence how political and economic changes diffuse across the globe. First, we show that changes over time in a country's democratic or autocratic character correlate with simultaneous changes among their socio-linguistic affiliations more than with changes of spatially proximate countries. Second, we find that models of changes in sovereign default status favor including socio-linguistic affiliations in addition to spatial data. These findings suggest that better measurement of cultural networks could be profoundly useful to policy makers who wish to diversify commercial, social, and other forms of investment across political and economic risks on an international scale.

Associations between forest characteristics and socio-economic development: a case study from Portugal.

Science.gov (United States)

Ribeiro, Sónia Carvalho; Lovett, Andrew

2009-07-01

The integration of socio-economic and environmental objectives is a major challenge in developing strategies for sustainable landscapes. We investigated associations between socio-economic variables, landscape metrics and measures of forest condition in the context of Portugal. The main goals of the study were to 1) investigate relationships between forest conditions and measures of socio-economic development at national and regional scales, 2) test the hypothesis that a systematic variation in forest landscape metrics occurs according to the stage of socio-economic development and, 3) assess the extent to which landscape metrics can inform strategies to enhance forest sustainability. A ranking approach and statistical techniques such as Principal Component Analysis were used to achieve these objectives. Relationships between socio-economic characteristics, landscape metrics and measures of forest condition were only significant in the regional analysis of municipalities in Northern Portugal. Landscape metrics for different tree species displayed significant variations across socio-economic groups of municipalities and these differences were consistent with changes in characteristics suggested by the forest transition model. The use of metrics also helped inform place-specific strategies to improve forest management, though it was also apparent that further work was required to better incorporate differences in forest functions into sustainability planning.

Political Reform, Socio-Religious Change, and Stability in the African Sahel

Science.gov (United States)

2016-12-08

research project This project proposed to analyze the socio- political factors affecting stability and instability in a set of six African countries...AFRL-AFOSR-VA-TR-2016-0360 Political Reform, Socio-Religious Change, and Stability in the African Sahel Leonard Villalon UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA...STATEMENT DISTRIBUTION A: Distribution approved for public release. 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT 15. SUBJECT TERMS Political stability

Socio-Economic Conditions and Quality of Life in the Tribal Areas of Orissa with Special Reference to Mayurbhanj District

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dr N.C. Jana

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Odisha (previously known as Orissa, being socio-economically backward but culturally sound, is one of the important states in Eastern India. Out of 30 districts 9 are considered as tribal districts (according to Location Quotient value and of the total population (41,947,358 in 2011 a significant share (22.1% goes to tribal people (8,145,081in 2011. This tribal group of Odisha has special significance because they are one of the most backward and geographically isolated communities. That’s why their life style and economy is confined to the direct utilization of natural resources, pre-agricultural level of technology and specific indigenous type of work. But now with the emergence of industry and market economy, the age-old relationship between tribes and nature has disturbed. Keeping this in backdrop, the present study tried to explore the changing scenario of socio-economic condition in the tribal areas of Odisha. In this regard, various socio-economic indicators have been analyzed and compared for representing district-level patterns of quality of life and finding out the variation among the Primitive tribal households in the study area. In addition, Mayurbhanj has also been taken as a case study to represent the socio-economic condition and quality of life at the block level. It may be pointed out in this context that out of 30 districts in Odisha, according to Location Quotient value Mayurbhanj is the highest tribal concentrated district. The overall objective of this study is to obtain a better understanding of disparities and variations in socio-economic status in Odisha as well as in Mayurbhanj and also find out some remedial measures to overcome the problems to bring the Primitive tribal community in the main stream of the society. Maps have been prepared on the above-mentioned indicators based on secondary data using Arc-GIS 9.3. From the analysis of the health-related indicators it is clear from the analysis that the quality of life

Item analysis of the Spanish version of the Boston Naming Test with a Spanish speaking adult population from Colombia.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Stella H; Strutt, Adriana M; Olabarrieta-Landa, Laiene; Lequerica, Anthony H; Rivera, Diego; De Los Reyes Aragon, Carlos Jose; Utria, Oscar; Arango-Lasprilla, Juan Carlos

2018-02-23

The Boston Naming Test (BNT) is a widely used measure of confrontation naming ability that has been criticized for its questionable construct validity for non-English speakers. This study investigated item difficulty and construct validity of the Spanish version of the BNT to assess cultural and linguistic impact on performance. Subjects were 1298 healthy Spanish speaking adults from Colombia. They were administered the 60- and 15-item Spanish version of the BNT. A Rasch analysis was computed to assess dimensionality, item hierarchy, targeting, reliability, and item fit. Both versions of the BNT satisfied requirements for unidimensionality. Although internal consistency was excellent for the 60-item BNT, order of difficulty did not increase consistently with item number and there were a number of items that did not fit the Rasch model. For the 15-item BNT, a total of 5 items changed position on the item hierarchy with 7 poor fitting items. Internal consistency was acceptable. Construct validity of the BNT remains a concern when it is administered to non-English speaking populations. Similar to previous findings, the order of item presentation did not correspond with increasing item difficulty, and both versions were inadequate at assessing high naming ability.

Designer ecosystems, capitalism, and boom-bust economic cycles: linking political economy and hydroecology

Science.gov (United States)

Doyle, M. W.; Rigby, J.

2011-12-01

The basic premise of the term "anthropocene" is that human practices are becoming a primary force in shaping ecosystems even at the global scale. Ecohydrologists and hydroecologists often consider human effects to be a collective term that is culturally and politically invariant. "Anthropogenic change" is often cited regardless of whether these changes occur in liberal democracies or totalitarian autocracies. Yet there is potential for socio-politically driven variation in basic human impacts on the environment. Analyzing the anthropocene requires considering the rise in global population convolved with dramatically shifting political and economic conditions. How humans affect the environment, and how environmental change feedbacks operate, are likely highly dependent on cultural and political contexts. We posed the question, "Does capitalism leave a distinct signature on the hydroecological landscape?" We analyzed emerging designer ecosystems markets using Mankiw-Whinston free-entry equilibria model coupled with simple species-area curves and tested it with an extensive database of ecosystem service trades in North Carolina. Free-entry leads to a diffusion of small restored ecosystems whereas restricted entry leads to fewer, large sites; the difference in site locations and sizes in turn impact regional species distribution and water quality. We next analyzed the effect of deregulating electricity markets on river flow regimes in North Carolina; market deregulation increases potential profits derived from rapid power production in response to price changes on the spot market to which hydropower is uniquely able to respond. Results showed the potential for increased flow variability associated with price volatility in purely market-driven cases, but additional constraints required of infrastructure (e.g., flood control) restrict purely market-driven flow regimes. Changes in macro-economic conditions may also leave distinct signatures, often reflecting political

ECONOMIC, POLITICAL, AND CIVIL SOCIETIES AT PEMUTERAN VILLAGE, BALI IN COASTAL AND MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL PRESERVATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I Wayan Mudana

2013-02-01

Full Text Available This study was focused on questions (1 what factors caused the economic, political, and civil societies to invest their social capital in the preservation of marine and coastal environments at Pemuteran Village? (2 What was the social capital invested by the economic, political, and civil societies in the preservation of coastal and marine environments at Pemuteran Village like? (3 What was done to discipline the maintenance of the social capital invested in the preservation of the coastal and marine environments at Pemuteran Village? Some critical theories were used to analyze the answers to the problems. Qualitative research method with the approach of cultural studies was employed in this study. The data were collected through observation, in-depth interview, and library research. The data were qualitatively and descriptively analyzed. The result of the study showed that the cooperation among the economic, political, and civil societies to invest their social capital in the preservation of the marine and coastal environments at Pemuteran Village was based on the awareness of the condition of the natural environment, ecological smartness, meaningfulness which was economic, political, sociological, and socio-religious in nature, and developmental policy. The social capital invested by the economic, political and civil societies was in the forms of the ideologies of tri hita karana, nyegara-gunung, menyama braya, kinship system, neighborhood relation, traditional village, and administrative village. It was maintained through cultural socialization process, and physical and spiritual disciplining process.

Diffusion of Telecommunications Services in a Complex Socio-Economic Context

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ismail, Abdullah

This research aims at creating a detailed account on the diffusion of telecommunications services in a complex socio-economic context, taking Pakistan as a case study. The core research question of this thesis is to investigate why the successful experience of the rapid and an effective diffusion...... of mobile communications services in case of Pakistan couldn’t be replicated in the cases of fixed telephony and internet services. The book investigates those major attributes which play a significant role in the diffusion of telecommunications services in a complex socio-economic and political context...... of telecom services within a complex unit of adoption. The empirical part of the research includes a significantly high number of interviews that were conducted from the key players of the local telecom market, and they essentially represented all the five major domains i.e. the supplier, policy, regulatory...

Perception of audio-visual speech synchrony in Spanish-speaking children with and without specific language impairment.

Science.gov (United States)

Pons, Ferran; Andreu, Llorenç; Sanz-Torrent, Monica; Buil-Legaz, Lucía; Lewkowicz, David J

2013-06-01

Speech perception involves the integration of auditory and visual articulatory information, and thus requires the perception of temporal synchrony between this information. There is evidence that children with specific language impairment (SLI) have difficulty with auditory speech perception but it is not known if this is also true for the integration of auditory and visual speech. Twenty Spanish-speaking children with SLI, twenty typically developing age-matched Spanish-speaking children, and twenty Spanish-speaking children matched for MLU-w participated in an eye-tracking study to investigate the perception of audiovisual speech synchrony. Results revealed that children with typical language development perceived an audiovisual asynchrony of 666 ms regardless of whether the auditory or visual speech attribute led the other one. Children with SLI only detected the 666 ms asynchrony when the auditory component preceded [corrected] the visual component. None of the groups perceived an audiovisual asynchrony of 366 ms. These results suggest that the difficulty of speech processing by children with SLI would also involve difficulties in integrating auditory and visual aspects of speech perception.

Political and economic aspects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Neil, C.

1997-01-01

The political and socio-economic aspects of oil and gas exploration in Canada's Arctic and the Beaufort Sea were reviewed. The federal government was very interested in developing the North because they saw oil and gas development in the North as a means of strengthening sovereignty claims. The projected profits from Northern oil and gas development were also very attractive, and after dealing with environmental and social concerns, the government granted the necessary drilling permits. The federal government also made allowances for huge tax incentives for the oil and gas companies to encourage exploration. Although oil has been found, large-scale production in the Beaufort Sea never materialized. During the period from 1984 to 1988, world prices for oil fell and it was no longer economical to undertake frontier production. Beaufort Sea operation were shut down as the oil industry changed its focus to more cost-effective reservoirs in southern Canada. 1 fig

THE ILLUSION OF CATCHING UP THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC REGIONAL GAPS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eugen\tGHIORGHITA

2015-06-01

Full Text Available There is a sort of scientific bias in the way economics literature approaches the issues of general or regional economic growth and socio-economic backwardness. The term 'catching up of socio-economic gaps' appears to be rather a contradictio in adjecto, a sort of oxymoron, than a possible evolution of the world’s countries. The very idea of ‘catching-up’ or ‘recovery’ as a consequence of ‘lagging behind’ seems to be more specific to sports competitions or post-surgery periods. Transfering the idea of ‘backwardness’ to human communities (be it tribes, villages or political-administrative entities of higher dimensions is at least questionable. The contradiction is generated by the very establishment of the benchmarks for identifying ‘backwardness’. During the last 50 years, and after 1990 especially, the appeal to such indicators as GDP/capita, HDI, Gini coefficient, convergence criteria etc. became a common place. Nowadays it appears to anyone a matter-of-course, that any geopolitical entity can be "weighed" or "measured" by reference to a set of uniform criteria. Unfortunately, the global and regional efforts made after WW II towards an accelerated socio-economic growth of both developing and less developed countries succeded only for few countries to reduce the historically shaped gaps as against developed countries. On the contrary, for the bulk of the ‘lagged behind’ regions gaps seem to have risen. This is why many questions arose about the inefficiency of the steps made towards 'catching up of socio- economic gaps', such as: “Why after about 70 years of international welfare levelling efforts, gaps between development and living standards of the world regions are still so large?” “Why do economies have to grow at any price?” “Is the forced (artificial, accelerated development beneficial? And it if so, to whom?” “Are specific historical socio-economic structures negligible under the pressure of

The economic and quality of life impact of seasonal allergic conjunctivitis in a Spanish setting.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Andrew F; Pitt, Andrew D; Rodruiguez, Alejandra E; Alio, Jorge L; Marti, Nicolas; Teus, Miguel; Guillen, Santiago; Bataille, Laurent; Barnes, J Rod

2005-08-01

Seasonal allergic conjunctivitis (SAC) is a highly prevalent condition that exacts a range of costs from its sufferers. The aim of this study was to examine quality of life (QoL) and economic consequences of SAC amongst private health care patients in Spain. 201 sufferers of SAC and 200 controls were recruited from four private eye clinics and one public hospital in five Spanish cities: Alicante, Madrid, Albacete, Las Palmas de Gran Canarias and Valladolid. Participants were between 10 and 80 years of age and Spanish speaking. All potential participants were asked selected questions and sorted into one of the two groups or excluded. Sufferers were administered a set of four questionnaires by researchers consisting of the EQ-5D Health Questionnaire, the National Eye Institute (US) Visual Functioning Questionnaire 25 (VFQ-25), the Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (RQLQ) and a Health Economic and Demographic Questionnaire (HEDQ). Control participants self-administered the full EQ-5D and VFQ-25 and abbreviated versions of the RQLQ and HEDQ. The groups were comparable in terms of age and sex, but sufferers had a significantly higher hourly income than controls (p = 0.02). Sufferers exhibited a significantly higher incidence of asthma, nasal symptoms, perennial allergic conjunctivitis, food allergies and other allergies (p aspects of vision as a result of their SAC. In relative terms, the per-capita economic cost of the condition was higher than in a previous public health care study. This was ascribed to sufferers' willingness-to-pay for symptom alleviation. The unexpectedly high expenditure of the proportion of SAC sufferers who receive private health care serves to highlight the importance of SAC as a costly condition. It also illustrates the need to account for both private and public heath care modalities when attempting to ascribe a total cost to a medical condition.

Psychometric validation of the Columbia-Suicide Severity rating scale in Spanish-speaking adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Serrani Azcurra, Daniel

2017-12-30

Adolescent suicide is a major public health issue, and early and accurate detection is of great concern. There are many reliable instruments for this purpose, such as the Columbia-Suicide severity rating scale (C-SSRS), but no validation exists for Spanish speaking Latin American adolescents. To assess psychometric properties and cut-off scores of the C-SSRS in Spanish speaking adolescents. Exploratory assessment with principal component analysis (PCA) and Varimax rotation, and confirmatory analysis (CFA) were performed on two groups with 782 and 834 participants respectively (N=1616). Mean age was 24.8 years. A Receiver operator analysis was applied to distinguish between control and suicide-risk subgroups adolescents. Promax rotation yielded two 10-items factors, for suicide ideation and behavior respectively. C-SSRS was positively correlated with other suicide risk scales, such as Beck Depression Inventory-II, Suicidal Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised, or PHQ-9. Confirmatory factor analysis yielded a two-factor solution as the best goodness of fit model. C-SSRS showed adequate ability to detect suicide risk group with positive predictive value of 68.3%. ROC analyses showed cutoff scores of ≥ 6 and ≥ 4 for suicide ideation and behavior scales respectively. This research offers data supporting psychometric validity and reliability of C-SSRS in nonclinical Spanish-speaking students. Added benefits are flexible scoring and management easiness. This questionnaire yields data on distinct aspects of suicidality, being more parsimonious than separate administration of a bunch of questionnaires.

Argentina: Political and Economic Conditions and U.S. Relations

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Sullivan, Mark P

2006-01-01

Argentina's restructuring of over $100 billion in defaulted bond debt in June 2005 demonstrated the country's emergence from its 2001-2002 economic crisis that had caused severe stress on the political system...

Predicting English Word Reading Skills for Spanish-Speaking Students in First Grade.

Science.gov (United States)

Páez, Mariela; Rinaldi, Claudia

2006-10-01

This article describes the word reading skills in English and Spanish for a sample of 244 Spanish-speaking, English-learning (hence, bilingual) students in first grade and presents a predictive model for English word reading skills. The children in the study were assessed at the end of kindergarten and first grade, respectively. Data were gathered with 3 subtests of the Woodcock Language Proficiency Battery and a researcher-developed phonological awareness task. Results showed that, on average, children's English word reading skills were similar to monolingual norms whereas their Spanish word reading skills averaged 1 SD below the mean. English vocabulary, English phonological awareness, and Spanish word reading skills in kindergarten were found to be significant predictors of English word reading skills in first grade. Educational implications for screening language and reading skills and promising areas for targeted instruction for this population are discussed.

Understanding Critical Socio-political and Hydro-climatic drivers behind Water Management and Increasing Dengue Disease Burden in Arid Regions of Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Akanda, A. S.; Johnson, K.; Frost, M.; Serman, E. A.

2016-12-01

Dengue is a significant public health problem in Mexico, with distribution of dengue throughout the country. Mexico is characterized by a number of attributes likely to contribute to the spread of dengue, including population growth, poor water management, urbanization, significant seasonal migration, and concentrated poverty. Understanding the socio-political and hydro-climatic drivers behind the increasing dengue disease burden in the central arid regions of Mexico is a vital component for modeling the distribution and spread of Aedes aegypti vector borne infections such as Dengue and Zika as more parts of the Americas is affected. Here, we focus on the critical socio-economic and environmental drivers behind water management, urbanization, and population migration in the arid Oaxaca region, situated in the rain shadow of the Sierra Madre Mountains at an altitude of 5000 feet. In contrast to the Pacific Coastal region which hosts climactic conditions conducive to the survival of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes with a moist tropical environment, Oaxaca is arid and exists in a constant state of water insecurity. Within Oaxaca City, water is trucked in and stored in large roof tanks; many of which are failing, allowing for leaks or mosquito infestation. Alternate sources range from existing cisterns, sophisticated collection systems, to open-air rock pits. Few resources exist to improve water security, particularly in poor neighborhoods creating a disincentive to invite surveillance for disease or to move to safer and improved water systems. Meanwhile, the region has experienced significant socio-political and demographic shift including migration, economic reorganization and urbanization over the last decade. The rise in dengue incidence during the dry season suggests human intervention (through migration, water management, sanitation, cultural practices) as a potentially important predictive factor. In this study, we analyze associations of regional hydroclimatic

Political Investment in Economic Protection: A Note

OpenAIRE

Arsenio M. Balisacan

1987-01-01

This note presents some aspects of the neoclassical political economy of economic protection. It develops a conceptual framework which focuses on the costs and benefits of investment in political in?uence to certain conditions in the society and how the benefit-cost structure may affect the level of economic protection and the amount of what Bhagwati called "directly unproductive profit-seeking" activities.

Radical Right-Wing Parties in Former Communist Countries: Challenges to Liberal Democracy or a Socio-Economic Protest?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vedran Obućina

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Economic and social crises provide an opportunity for protest parties to raise their voices and to win new positions in the political arena. Many analysts deem that the parties of the radical Right gained momentum exactly with the protests by citizens against globalisation, economic deprivation and the impact of the economic crisis. A more detailed study of the radicalisation of politics reveals that the simplification of this thesis does not have a particularly strong justification. In the absence of clear methodologies, political scientists and other social scientists seek to formulate theories based on empirical research. One of the frequent theoretical frameworks is the attitude of populist parties toward the socio-economic situation in the country. According to this thesis, in the period of a global crisis, the percentage of voters of radical political options increases, mostly out of protest, and not as an anti-systemic phenomenon. This paper also examines the situation in Central Europe, as well as the outcomes of this year's elections in Hungary, Latvia and Slovakia as countries with a strong radical Right. By analysing the cases of these countries, the author seeks to establish whether the socio-economic theory can be applied, or whether these countries are facing greater challenges to liberal democracy posed by the far-right pole.

The Comparison of Politeness Strategies in Chinese Culture and in Eng-lish Speaking Context

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

李庆龄

2015-01-01

In contemporary society, as the development of globalization a growing tendency of how to communication effective⁃ly between different culture and languages has becoming a matter of fact. Even though a great number of communication strate⁃gies used to reduce the culture shock, obstacles in cultural exchanges still remains due to the culture differences. Politeness theory, as an important communication strategy, is still the most important and influential theory for cross-cultural communication. While there still has a few controversial arguments being conducted. It results in the issue of this article:Is there different compar⁃ing Chinese culture with English Speaking Culture in Terms of Politeness Strategies? In this paper, I will present a general review of classic politeness theories including Brown&Levinson, Leech’s research in English speaking culture and Gu and Xu’s findings in Chinese culture. Among their theories some specific politeness strategies such as face-saving strategy, politeness principle and its maxims will be used to give an image of the difference between Chinese culture and English speaking culture in terms of po⁃liteness strategies. In the definition of‘politeness’, two characteristics are worth mentioning:universality as well as culture-specif⁃ic. Therefore the article concludes by the arguing that, in spite of a few similarities, there are differences between in Chinese cul⁃ture and in English speaking context in politeness.

Socio-technical Spaces: Guiding Politics, Staging Design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Clausen, Christian; Yoshinaka, Yutaka

2005-01-01

This article addresses how insights from the social shaping tradition and political process theory may contribute to an understanding of the sociotechnical design and implementation of change. This idea is pursued through the notion of 'socio-technical spaces' and its delineation, with respect...... political concerns. The paper tentatively points to some analytical implications and to challenges and possibilities for the 'bridging' between spaces otherwise rendered distinct....

Socio-economic position, family demands and reported health in working men and women.

Science.gov (United States)

Regidor, Enrique; Pascual, Cruz; de la Fuente, Luis; Santos, Juana M; Astasio, Paloma; Ortega, Paloma

2011-02-01

This study evaluates the extent to which domestic workload explains socio-economic differences in poor self-reported health in women and men. In total, 6284 men and women who were employed and living with a partner were selected from the 2003 Spanish Health Interview Survey. The indicators of family demands investigated were person responsible for housework, number of persons in the household and the presence of at least one child under 15 years of age in the household. The measures of socio-economic position were educational level and household income, and the measures of health status were poor perceived health and limitation of activity due to disease. Household size and presence of a child under 15 in the home were not related with the measures of health status. The indicator about the person who does the housework was related with poor perceived health and with activity limitation. Specifically, the worst health status was seen in respondents who lived in homes where the partner or other family members did the housework. In general, the relation between indicators of socio-economic position and measures of health status was not modified after taking into account the person who does the housework. Among working people with a partner, persons who work and do their own housework do not have poorer perceived health than those living in homes where other people do the housework. This indicator of family demands does not explain the socio-economic differences in self-reported health.

Sustainability of socio-hydro system with changing value and preference to an uncertain future climate and economic conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Roobavannan, Mahendran; Kandasamy, Jaya; Vigneswaran, Saravanamuththu; Sivapalan, Murugesu

2016-04-01

Water-human systems are coupled and display co-evolutionary dynamics influenced by society's values and preference. This has been observed in the Murrumbidgee basin, Australia where water usage initially focused on agriculture production and until mid-1990's favoured agriculture. This turned around as society became more concerned about the degradation of ecosystems and ultimately water was reallocated back towards the environment. This new water management adversely impacted the agriculture sector and created economic stress in the basin. The basin communities were able to transform and cope with water allocation favouring the environment through sectoral transformation facilitated by movement of capital in a free economy, supported by appropriate strategies and funding. This was helped by the adaptive capacity of people through reemployment in other economic sectors of the basin economy, unemployment for a period of time and migration out of the basin, and crop diversification. This study looks to the future and focuses on how water managers could be informed and prepare for un-foreseen issues coming out of societies changing values and preferences and emerging as different systems in the basin interact with each other at different times and speed. The issues of this type that concern the Murray Darling Basin Authority include a renewed focus and priority on food production due to food scarcity; increased impact and frequency of natural disasters (eg. climate change); regional economic diversification due to the growth of peri-urban development in the basin; institutional capacity for water reform due to new political paradigms (eg. new water sharing plans); and improvement in science and technology (eg. farm practices, water efficiency, water reuse). To undertake this, the study uses a coupled socio-hydrological dynamical system that model the major drivers of changing economic conditions, society values and preference, climatic condition and science and

[Debating disease: the risk factor concept in political economic and scientific consideration, 1968 to 1986].

Science.gov (United States)

Madarász, Jeannette

2009-01-01

The risk factor concept was developed in American epidemiological studies ongoing since the 1940s researching the causes of chronic cardiovascular diseases. By looking at the depiction of this model in a variety of media in Germany between 1968 and 1986 we can put its close interaction with contemporary socio-political debates under scrutiny. Thereby, a strong connection between the various agents' political and economic interests on the one hand and the incorporation of the risk factor concept into their specific agendas will become apparent. The risk factor concept was not fundamentally changed in the process but it was adapted to contemporary conditions and political constellations. Thereby, so it will be argued, the medical uses of the model, especially regarding the prevention of chronic cardiovascular disease, were forced into the background of public debates.

An environmental, economical and socio-political analysis of a variety of urban air-pollution reduction policies for primary PM10 and NOx: The case study of the Province of Milan (Northern Italy)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chiesa, M.; Perrone, M.G.; Cusumano, N.; Ferrero, L.; Sangiorgi, G.; Bolzacchini, E.; Lorenzoni, A.; Ballarin Denti, A.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • PM10 and NO x emission reduction by different policies have been estimated. • Various actions have been considered, in the transport and residential sectors. • Environmental, economic and socio-political data were jointly evaluated. • Results are reported for the case study of the Province of Milan (Northern Italy). • Bike use fostering best matches cost–benefit results and socio-political acceptance. - Abstract: In the frame of urban air-pollution reduction policies, economic costs and environmental benefits of a variety of actions have been quantitatively assessed for the Province of Milan (Northern Italy), focusing on PM10 and NO x emission sources. Short-to-mid-term interventions that have been taken into consideration include reduction of inner temperature in residential buildings, banning of residential biomass heating systems, banning of diesel fuelled domestic boilers, night-time streets washing, speed limit reduction on highways, circulation restrictions of oldest EURO vehicles, conversion of diesel buses to natural gas, car sharing/biking promotion, DPF adoption in diesel vehicles, extension of road lanes for urban buses, energy efficiency refurbishment in residential buildings. Re*sults emerged from the cost–benefit analysis integrated with socio-political indicators obtained through direct surveys, will contribute, with an holistic and multidisciplinary approach, to drive the local administrators to implement the most suitable actions in one of the most polluted areas in west-Europe

Development of a Cognate Awareness Measure for Spanish-Speaking English Language Learners

Science.gov (United States)

Malabonga, Valerie; Kenyon, Dorry M.; Carlo, Maria; August, Diane; Louguit, Mohammed

2008-01-01

This paper describes the development and validation of the Cognate Awareness Test (CAT), which measures cognate awareness in Spanish-speaking English Language Learners (ELLs) in fourth and fifth grade. An investigation of differential performance on the two subtests of the CAT (cognates and noncognates) provides evidence that the instrument is…

Political motivations for intra-European migration.

Science.gov (United States)

Bygnes, Susanne; Flipo, Aurore

2017-08-01

Motivations for migrating within the European Union have mainly been attributed to economic, career and lifestyle choices. This article suggests that political dissatisfaction is also an important motivator of recent intra-European migration. In our analysis of in-depth interviews with Romanian migrants in Spain and with Spanish migrants in Norway, we found a common emphasis on the political dimensions of their decision to migrate. In the interviews, the economic component of migration was often related to bad governance and negative perceptions of the state. The similarities of Spanish and Romanian migration narratives are especially striking because Spain and Romania represent substantially different migratory, political and economic contexts. However, migration is more obviously intertwined with conventional acts of political protest in the Spanish case. We suggest that differences in democratic contexts are pivotal in people's reactions to and framing of their deep dissatisfaction with domestic politics, as found in many European countries today.

PERSPECTIVE DIRECTIONS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF UKRAINIAN ANTI-CRISIS STRATEGY IN MODERN CONDITIONS OF AGGRAVATION OF THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC SITUATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuriy Schedrin

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The article explores the prospects for the development of Ukraine’s anti-crisis strategy in the current conditions of aggravation of the socio-economic situation. The urgency of the researched subject – namely, the study of the potential directions for the development of the anti-crisis tools of Ukrainian state policy – is determined primarily by the seriousness of the problem, which should be overcome by means of these methods. The purpose of the article is to identify promising tools and mechanisms for an anti-crisis policy that can make a significant contribution to improving the current state of the socio-economic sphere in Ukraine. Its subject is anti-crisis tools and instruments, which could be used in Ukrainian scenario. It is noted that our state is at the stage of the permanent crisis and suffers from the consequences of both global and local crisis phenomena. The scientific novelty of the article is determined by the combination of economic, social, political, and legal approaches to the study of the current state of the Ukrainian economy. The methodology of the research is formed by the combination of economic and political methods of scientific activities, which are based on the principles of objectivism and systematic approach. The findings of scientific research and recommendations of some Ukrainian scientists regarding the necessary anti-crisis tools are considered as the sources for the article. The results of the study show that Ukraine suffers from a series of systemic problems and challenges, which are the main threat to the stability of the national economy. Among the most influential of them we can identify the low level of incomes of citizens, which is associated with the devaluation of the national currency and the increase in utility tariffs; high level of unemployment; shortage of foreign and domestic investments; the decline in production and exports, caused both by military operations in the Donbas and the loss

The economic effects of a Spanish trade boycott against Catalan products

OpenAIRE

Xavier Cuadras Morató; Modest Guinjoan

2011-01-01

We study the potential consequences of a hypothetical trade boycott against Catalan products organized by some sectors of the Spanish society mainly for political reasons. A symmetric trade boycott would have two effects: a reduction of Catalan exports to Spain and a partial process of import substitution in Catalonia. In order to quantify the economic impact of the boycott, we compare the "actual" Catalan economy, as described in the input-output table for 2005, with a "simulated" Catalan ec...

Socio-economic status, lifestyle and childhood obesity in Gombe ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Childhood obesity is a complex condition resulting from an interplay of genetic predisposition, environmental factors and socio-economic status. The prevalence has been increasing all over the world, probably due to economic transition and rapid urbanization as well as globalisation. This relationship should ...

Addressing the Impediments to the Realization and Enjoyment of Socio-Economic Rights under the ICESCR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abiodun Odusote

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The realization and enjoyment of socio-economic rights is crucial to overcoming the challenges of abject poverty. These rights offer those living in poverty access to the basic and essential things that are necessary to live a dignified life. However, it is generally agreed that the protection and enjoyment of socio-economic rights is accorded less importance amongst the comity of civilized nations. Majority of governments give priority to the protection of civil and political rights to the detriment of socio-economic rights. Despite the United Nations stance on the non-hierarchical structure within human rights classifications, there is general ambivalence towards the violation of socio-economic rights by those entrusted to protect them. Though many international and regional treaties protect socio-economic rights, which instruments have been domesticated by countries; the picture appears gloomy in terms of effective realisation and protection of socio-economic rights. Their enforcements still remain a challenge for this millennium. The impediments to the realization of these rights are the focus of this paper. Through a detailed analysis of international, regional and domestic legislative framework and jurisprudence, this study provides a systematic exposition of the obstacles that impact on the ability of states to fulfil their socio-economic rights obligations under the various and diverse instruments. The impediments that are discussed in this paper include: a proliferations of human rights; corruption and inept leadership in Africa; inadequate enforcement mechanism; poor and ineffective state reports; international sanctions; wars and conflicts; globalization; debt repayment by developing countries; difficulties of monitoring compliance by State Parties and conflict of laws. In conclusion, the paper proffers a panacea and alternative models for the realization and enjoyments of socio-economic rights.

Usability evaluation and adaptation of the e-health Personal Patient Profile-Prostate decision aid for Spanish-speaking Latino men.

Science.gov (United States)

Berry, Donna L; Halpenny, Barbara; Bosco, Jaclyn L F; Bruyere, John; Sanda, Martin G

2015-07-24

The Personal Patient Profile-Prostate (P3P), a web-based decision aid, was demonstrated to reduce decisional conflict in English-speaking men with localized prostate cancer early after initial diagnosis. The purpose of this study was to explore and enhance usability and cultural appropriateness of a Spanish P3P by Latino men with a diagnosis of prostate cancer. P3P was translated to Spanish and back-translated by three native Spanish-speaking translators working independently. Spanish-speaking Latino men with a diagnosis of localized prostate cancer, who had made treatment decisions in the past 24 months, were recruited from two urban clinical care sites. Individual cognitive interviews were conducted by two bilingual research assistants as each participant used the Spanish P3P. Notes of user behavior, feedback, and answers to direct questions about comprehension, usability and perceived usefulness were analyzed and categorized. Seven participants with a range of education levels identified 25 unique usability issues in navigation, content comprehension and completeness, sociocultural appropriateness, and methodology. Revisions were prioritized to refine the usability and cultural and linguistic appropriateness of the decision aid. Usability issues were discovered that are potential barriers to effective decision support. Successful use of decision aids requires adaptation and testing beyond translation. Our findings led to revisions further refining the usability and linguistic and cultural appropriateness of Spanish P3P.

Spanish-Language Community-Based Mental Health Treatment Programs, Policy-Required Language-Assistance Programming, and Mental Health Treatment Access Among Spanish-Speaking Clients

Science.gov (United States)

McClellan, Sean R.

2013-01-01

Objectives. We investigated the extent to which implementing language assistance programming through contracting with community-based organizations improved the accessibility of mental health care under Medi-Cal (California’s Medicaid program) for Spanish-speaking persons with limited English proficiency, and whether it reduced language-based treatment access disparities. Methods. Using a time series nonequivalent control group design, we studied county-level penetration of language assistance programming over 10 years (1997–2006) for Spanish-speaking persons with limited English proficiency covered under Medi-Cal. We used linear regression with county fixed effects to control for ongoing trends and other influences. Results. When county mental health plans contracted with community-based organizations, those implementing language assistance programming increased penetration rates of Spanish-language mental health services under Medi-Cal more than other plans (0.28 percentage points, a 25% increase on average; P language-related disparities. Conclusions. Mental health treatment programs operated by community-based organizations may have moderately improved access after implementing required language assistance programming, but the programming did not reduce entrenched disparities in the accessibility of mental health services. PMID:23865663

Spanish-language community-based mental health treatment programs, policy-required language-assistance programming, and mental health treatment access among Spanish-speaking clients.

Science.gov (United States)

Snowden, Lonnie R; McClellan, Sean R

2013-09-01

We investigated the extent to which implementing language assistance programming through contracting with community-based organizations improved the accessibility of mental health care under Medi-Cal (California's Medicaid program) for Spanish-speaking persons with limited English proficiency, and whether it reduced language-based treatment access disparities. Using a time series nonequivalent control group design, we studied county-level penetration of language assistance programming over 10 years (1997-2006) for Spanish-speaking persons with limited English proficiency covered under Medi-Cal. We used linear regression with county fixed effects to control for ongoing trends and other influences. When county mental health plans contracted with community-based organizations, those implementing language assistance programming increased penetration rates of Spanish-language mental health services under Medi-Cal more than other plans (0.28 percentage points, a 25% increase on average; P language-related disparities. Mental health treatment programs operated by community-based organizations may have moderately improved access after implementing required language assistance programming, but the programming did not reduce entrenched disparities in the accessibility of mental health services.

[Helicobacter pylori infection in children and socio-economic factors].

Science.gov (United States)

Maciorkowska, Elzbieta; Cieśla, Justyna Maria; Kaczmarski, Maciej

2006-01-01

The aim of the study was to find a correlation between the presence of Helicobacter pylori infection in children and their accommodation and socio-economic conditions. The results of questionnaire studies were analyzed and levels of IgG specific antibodies against H. pylori were assessed in children randomly chosen in the north-east of Poland at the level of a district, county and province city. The incidence of H. pylori infection in the studied children was varied and depended on the living place. The highest percentage of the infected was revealed in a district (40.4%) and the lowest in a province city (19.0%). There was a correlation between H. pylori infection and socio-economic conditions. The highest percentage of the infected children (59.7%) was found in families whose income was within the first income tax group. The incidence of the infection was also determined by the type of a flat, the number of members in a family, water intake and personal hygiene. 1) the highest incidence of H. pylori infection in children was found in a county, the lowest in a province city. 2) environmental and socio-economic conditions influence the presence of H. pylori infection in children.

Validation and Diagnostic Efficiency of the Mini-SPIN in Spanish-Speaking Adolescents.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

LuisJoaquín Garcia-Lopez

Full Text Available Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD is one of the most common mental disorders in adolescence. Many validated psychometric tools are available to diagnose individuals with SAD efficaciously. However, there is a demand for shortened self-report instruments that identify adolescents at risk of developing SAD. We validate the Mini-SPIN and its diagnostic efficiency in overcoming this problem in Spanish-speaking adolescents in Spain.The psychometric properties of the 3-item Mini-SPIN scale for adolescents were assessed in a community (study 1 and clinical sample (study 2.Study 1 consisted of 573 adolescents, and found the Mini-SPIN to have appropriate internal consistency and high construct validity. Study 2 consisted of 354 adolescents (147 participants diagnosed with SAD and 207 healthy controls. Data revealed that the Mini-SPIN has good internal consistency, high construct validity and adequate diagnostic efficiency.Our findings suggest that the Mini-SPIN has good psychometric properties on clinical and healthy control adolescents and general population, which indicates that it can be used as a screening tool in Spanish-speaking adolescents. Cut-off scores are provided.

Validation and Diagnostic Efficiency of the Mini-SPIN in Spanish-Speaking Adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Lopez, LuisJoaquín; Moore, Harry T A

2015-01-01

Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is one of the most common mental disorders in adolescence. Many validated psychometric tools are available to diagnose individuals with SAD efficaciously. However, there is a demand for shortened self-report instruments that identify adolescents at risk of developing SAD. We validate the Mini-SPIN and its diagnostic efficiency in overcoming this problem in Spanish-speaking adolescents in Spain. The psychometric properties of the 3-item Mini-SPIN scale for adolescents were assessed in a community (study 1) and clinical sample (study 2). Study 1 consisted of 573 adolescents, and found the Mini-SPIN to have appropriate internal consistency and high construct validity. Study 2 consisted of 354 adolescents (147 participants diagnosed with SAD and 207 healthy controls). Data revealed that the Mini-SPIN has good internal consistency, high construct validity and adequate diagnostic efficiency. Our findings suggest that the Mini-SPIN has good psychometric properties on clinical and healthy control adolescents and general population, which indicates that it can be used as a screening tool in Spanish-speaking adolescents. Cut-off scores are provided.

Translating Politeness in Bilingual English-Spanish Business Correspondence

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Sandro; Fuertes Olivera, Pedro

2008-01-01

which pragmatic information types are needed when translating business letters. The analysis focuses on a Spanish-English business dictionary and its treatment of politeness in special sections dealing with business correspondence. The findings show that the treatment is insufficient, because users......Politeness is an important element in interlingual business communication. Translators uae bilingual dictionaries as tools helping them in business discourse across cultures, but dictionaries do not contain the relevant pragmatic information. The functions of dictionaries are used to determine......' business-language competence does not enable them to express the right level of politeness. Bilingual dictionaries should offer a systematic treatment of cultural and genre-specific means of expressing politeness in contrastive, informative texts showing the specific uses of politeness in business...

Niger Republic, mineral planning (part one)-Mining industries in socio-political and national economy framework

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joo, Julien

1982-01-01

This document focus on Niger Republic mineral industries related points that are: socio-political and economical context; specific characters such as administrative, juridical and fiscal environment; citizens employment and training; actual situation and energy projects; transport; existing mining companies, construction materials enterprises and projects presentation; effect of mining sector and construction material on national economy and prior major problems to be solved [fr

History or histories of socio-economic rights?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christiansen, Christian O.

2016-01-01

The German historian Reinhart Koselleck was once described as a partisan for histories in the plural (as opposed to history in the singular). His point was that history has many different layers, logics, and temporalities and that the modernist idea of one, overarching history with one direction ......) at work in the histories and dynamics of socio-economic rights. More specifically, I propose a list of eight important variables that may help explain the dynamics of the histories of socio-economic rights - their failures as well as their successes....... (telos) – be it towards progress or decline – was inadequate for the multi-faceted geographies, rhythms and dynamics of life. In these reflections on a two-days research workshop in Paris, I argue that Koselleck’s point also applies to the field of the history of socio-economic rights. Instead of writing...... the history of socio-economic rights, I would propose thinking about the histories of socio-economic rights. There are three main reasons for this: the non-teleological histories of socioeconomic rights; the distinctiveness between different socio-economic rights; and the complexity (multiple variables...

Orthography-Induced Transfer in the Production of English-Speaking Learners of Spanish

Science.gov (United States)

Rafat, Yasaman

2016-01-01

This article reports on a study on the effect of orthography on L1-based phonological transfer in L2 production in 40 novice English-speaking learners of Spanish. In particular, the role of auditory-orthographic training and production and the influence of grapheme-to-phoneme correspondences are examined. Data elicited via a picture-naming task…

Diversity of Language Ideologies in Spanish-Speaking Youth of Different Origins in Catalonia

Science.gov (United States)

Trenchs-Parera, Mireia; Newman, Michael

2009-01-01

To explore language attitudes and ideologies in urban Catalonia, focus group structured interviews were conducted with two groups of adolescents of Spanish-speaking origins: the Autochthonous group, descendents of mid-late twentieth century immigrants from other parts of Spain, and the Immigrant group, who came from Latin America. The…

Political stability in conditions of overtaking modernisation: challenges and reference points

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. K. Mantashyan

2017-07-01

To sum up, compensatory mechanisms of the political stability in conditions of the ongoing modernization should accelerate the development of civil society within the absence of a stable and adaptive political community. Challenges to political stability should be compensated by creativity and optimality of the authorities’ activities. Prospects for further consideration of problems, being raised in this paper, are as following: to determine the socio-cultural constraints of the institutional adaptability of the political system.

Socio-Economic Position and Suicidal Ideation in Men

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jane Pirkis

2017-03-01

Full Text Available People in low socio-economic positions are over-represented in suicide statistics and are at heightened risk for non-fatal suicidal thoughts and behaviours. Few studies have tried to tease out the relationship between individual-level and area-level socio-economic position, however. We used data from Ten to Men (the Australian Longitudinal Study on Male Health to investigate the relationship between individual-level and area-level socio-economic position and suicidal thinking in 12,090 men. We used a measure of unemployment/employment and occupational skill level as our individual-level indicator of socio-economic position. We used the Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage (a composite multidimensional construct created by the Australian Bureau of Statistics that combines information from a range of area-level variables, including the prevalence of unemployment and employment in low skilled occupations as our area-level indicator. We assessed suicidal thinking using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9. We found that even after controlling for common predictors of suicidal thinking; low individual-level and area-level socio-economic position heightened risk. Individual-level socio-economic position appeared to exert the greater influence of the two; however. There is an onus on policy makers and planners from within and outside the mental health sector to take individual- and area-level socio-economic position into account when they are developing strategic initiatives.

A demographic-economic explanation of political stability: Mauritius as a microcosm.

Science.gov (United States)

Lempert, D

1987-06-01

"This paper examines current models of economic and political development--social modernization theory, political and economic characteristics of stable regimes, and cross country analysis of political stability--and tests them on the Indian Ocean Island of Mauritius. The analysis continues with a causal explanation for political stability in Mauritius' recent history, derived from an examination of economic policies and demographic patterns. Political change in Mauritius over the past sixty years seems to be explained best by a model for political stability which integrates specific economic and demographic factors. The model, applicable to development in other third world nations, revises Malthus' conclusion that population and economic conditions move in an oscillatory relationship and replaces it with a more comprehensive theory, suggesting that political stability is a function of both economic development and a repeating cyclical relationship between economics and population." excerpt

SOCIAL CAPITAL AS THE BASIS FOR THE FORMATION OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC SECURITY IN RURAL AREAS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrii Sukhostavets

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Social capital is the basis for the definition of the future concept of rural areas management. Therefore, one of the most important tasks is to determine the various factors of existence, development, and formation of social capital. One of these factors is the security of rural areas and the definition of how social capital affects it. The analysis of the available scientific works in various areas reveals the lack of consensus in the definition of the category “socio-economic security of rural areas”. This is due to the fact that the definition of social and economic security of rural areas is identified with such concepts as the ability to provide resistance to various internal and external environmental influences. The purpose of the study is to determine the nature of social capital, as well as to study its impact on the socio-economic security of the state. The methodology of the research is based on the monographic method, the method of dialectic cognition, the scenario methods used to find the optimal scenario implementation option; SWOT-analysis is used to assess the positive or negative impact of social capital on the socio-economic security of rural areas. Understanding the essence of socio-economic security has led to the conclusion that it consists of economic, social, environmental and other types of security. The term “social security” in the understanding of researchers usually has two interpretations: traditional (absence of threats to the society and alternative (absence of threats from the society. It is proved that the social security of the region should be focused on ensuring primarily human rights and freedoms, namely, personal, political, social, economic, cultural, environmental, and family ones. Social and economic security should also provide social standards and guarantees, as well as norms. The economic basis of the security of rural areas is manifested in the development of market relations, infrastructure

Note about socio-economic calculations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Landex, Alex; Andersen, Jonas Lohmann Elkjær; Salling, Kim Bang

2006-01-01

these effects must be described qualitatively. This note describes the socio-economic evaluation based on market prices and not factor prices which has been the tradition in Denmark till now. This is due to the recommendation from the Ministry of Transport to start using calculations based on market prices...... alternative. In socio-economic evaluations it is intended to describe the effects in economic terms whenever possible (”+” is used when it is positive for the society, and ”–” when it is negative for the society). However, not all the effects for the society can be described in economic terms, and instead...

Gender and socio-economic inequalities in health and living conditions among co-resident informal caregivers: a nationwide survey in Spain.

Science.gov (United States)

Abajo, María; Rodríguez-Sanz, Maica; Malmusi, Davide; Salvador, María; Borrell, Carme

2017-03-01

To explore the associations between social determinants, caregiver's network support, burden of care and their consequences in health and living conditions of informal caregivers. The socio-demographic trends regarding population ageing and changes in family models trigger an increased demand for care. Cross-sectional study based on the 2008 edition of the National Disability, Independence and Dependency Situations Survey (DIDSS-2008) conducted by the National Statistics Institute in Spain. Analyses focused on persons identified as primary caregivers who co-reside with the dependent person. The associations between social determinants of caregivers, burden of care, support network and problems attributed to informal care (impaired health, depression, professional, economic and personal issues) were estimated by fitting robust Poisson regression models. Analyses were conducted separately for women and men. The study sample included 6923 caregivers, 73% of women and 27% of men. Gender and socio-economic inequalities were found in assumption of responsibilities and burden of caring for dependents, which tend to fall more on women and persons of lower socio-economic level, who in turn have less access to formal support. These aspects translate into a higher prevalence of health, professional, economic and personal problems. The study highlights gender and socio-economic inequalities in informal caregiving and its negative consequences. These findings may be useful in the design of policies and support programmes targeting the most affected groups of informal caregivers. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Language of Instruction as a Moderator for Transfer of Reading Comprehension Skills among Spanish-Speaking English Language Learners

Science.gov (United States)

Carlo, María S.; Barr, Christopher D.; August, Diane; Calderón, Margarita; Artzi, Lauren

2014-01-01

This three-year longitudinal study investigated the role of language of instruction in moderating the relationships between initial levels of English oral language proficiency and Spanish reading comprehension and growth in English reading comprehension. The study followed Spanish-speaking English language learners in English-only literacy…

The Spanish Version of the Self-Statements during Public Speaking Scale: Validation in Adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Rivero, Raul; Garcia-Lopez, Luisjoaquin; Hofmann, Stefan G

2010-01-01

Contemporary theories of social anxiety emphasize the role of cognitive processes. Although social anxiety disorder is one of the most common mental health problems in adolescents, there are very few self-report instruments available to measure cognitive processes related to social anxiety in adolescents, let alone non-English instruments. The Self-Statements during Public Speaking Scale (SSPS; Hofmann & DiBartolo, 2000) is a brief self-report measure designed to assess self-statements related to public speaking, the most commonly feared social performance situation. In order to fill this gap in the literature, we translated the SSPS into Spanish and administered it to 1,694 adolescents from a community sample, a clinical sample composed of 71 subjects with a principal diagnosis of social anxiety disorder; and a clinical control group consisting of 154 patients. The scale showed good psychometric properties, supporting the use of the Spanish version of the SSPS in adolescents.

The Medicare Chronic Disease Dental Scheme: Historical, Scientific, Socio-political Origins.

Science.gov (United States)

Akers, Harry Francis; Weerakoon, Arosha Tania; Foley, Michael Anthony; McAuliffe, Andrew James

While evidence and expert opinion are the foundations of effective policy, the politics, economics, and timing of a proposal can affect outcome. Australian government involvement in the planning, funding and delivery of dental services has been minimal and inconsistent. Many believe that the hybrid dispersal model of shared constitutional power has intermittently led to poor administration of national health policy. Throughout the decade-long prelude to the introduction of the Chronic Disease Dental Scheme, a landmark health policy in Australia, Parliamentarians moved responsibility for public dental services of disadvantaged Australians into an impasse between the Federal, State, and Territorial Governments. Developments throughout the era confirm the influence of administrative intrigue, centralized authority, competing priorities, funding pressures, political strategy, public opinion, scientific evidence and the timing of a proposal on the formulation and implementation of oral health policy. Synchronized inter-governmental collaboration was also absent. Moreover, the impasse and its resolution immediately before a national election demonstrate the bipolar roles of centralized political authority and political resolve in either obstructing or implementing policy. The historical, scientific, and socio-political contexts undermining the preamble to the Chronic Disease Dental Scheme lend weight to concerns about the hybrid dispersal model of constitutional power. Copyright American Academy of the History of Dentistry.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PRACTICE AND THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONDITIONS: comparative study of children and adolescents of the municipality of Santa Cruz do Sul – RS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matheus Cezar Maria

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to verify possible differences in the levels of physical activity related to the socio-economic conditions of schoolchildren in the municipality of Santa Cruz do Sul-RS. It is of transversal-descriptive character, and its subjects are 350 schoolchildren, aged 7 to 17, of both genders. For data collection a previously validated and adapted questionnaire was used, while the chi-quadrat-test was used for statistical analysis. Significant statistical differences were detected in the manner of locomotion, with regard to the school level and socio-economic status, for both genders. The results showed that students from urban areas and of inferior socio-economic levels showed more active in this respect. In the practice of physical activities, the results pointed to a reverse relation of this variable with the socio-economic level. At school level, a prevalence of inactive subjects from the rural area was observed. The difference in the form of locomotion and the physical activities of the evaluated schoolchildren, both at school level and at their socio-economic level, demonstrates different profiles of schoolchildren, which should be considered in future intervention programs.

Symbol Digit Modalities Test: Normative data for Spanish-speaking pediatric population.

Science.gov (United States)

Arango-Lasprilla, J C; Rivera, D; Trapp, S; Jiménez-Pérez, C; Hernández Carrillo, C L; Pohlenz Amador, S; Vergara-Moragues, E; Rodríguez-Agudelo, Y; Rodriguez-Irizarry, W; García de la Cadena, C; Galvao-Carmona, A; Galarza-Del-Angel, J; Llerena Espezúa, X; Torales Cabrera, N; Flor-Caravia, P; Aguayo Arelis, A; Saracostti Schwartzman, M; Barranco Casimiro, R; Albaladejo-Blázquez, N

2017-01-01

To generate normative data for the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT) in Spanish-speaking pediatric populations. The sample consisted of 4,373 healthy children from nine countries in Latin America (Chile, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Puerto Rico) and Spain. Each participant was administered the SDMT as part of a larger neuropsychological battery. SDMT scores were normed using multiple linear regressions and standard deviations of residual values. Age, age2, sex, and mean level of parental education (MLPE) were included as predictors in the analyses. The final multiple linear regression models showed main effects for age in all countries, such that score increased linearly as a function of age. In addition, age2 had a significant effect in all countries, except in Honduras and Puerto Rico. Models indicated that children whose parent(s) had a MLPE >12 years of education obtained higher score compared to children whose parent(s) had a MLPE ≤12 years for Chile, Guatemala, Mexico, and Spain. Sex affected SDMT score for Paraguay and Spain. This is the largest Spanish-speaking pediatric normative study in the world, and it will allow neuropsychologists from these countries to have a more accurate interpretation of the SDMT with pediatric populations.

Decomposing socio-economic inequalities in leisure-time physical inactivity: the case of Spanish children.

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalo-Almorox, Eduardo; Urbanos-Garrido, Rosa M

2016-07-12

Physical inactivity is associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality and entails a substantial economic burden for health systems. Also, the analysis of inequality in lifestyles for young populations may contribute to reduce health inequalities during adulthood. This paper examines the income-related inequality regarding leisure-time physical inactivity in Spanish children. In this cross-sectional study based on the Spanish National Health Survey for 2011-12, concentration indices are estimated to measure socioeconomic inequalities in leisure-time physical inactivity. A decomposition analysis is performed to determine the factors that explain income-related inequalities. There is a significant socioeconomic gradient favouring the better-off associated with leisure-time physical inactivity amongst Spanish children, which is more pronounced in the case of girls. Income shows the highest contribution to total inequality, followed by education of the head of the household. The contribution of several factors (education, place of residence, age) significantly differs by gender. There is an important inequity in the distribution of leisure-time physical inactivity. Public policies aimed at promoting physical activity for children should prioritize the action into the most disadvantaged subgroups of the population. As the influence of determinants of health styles significantly differ by gender, this study points out the need of addressing the research on income-related inequalities in health habits from a gender perspective.

ICT reuse in socio-economic enterprises

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ongondo, F.O.; Williams, I.D.; Dietrich, J.; Carroll, C.

2013-01-01

Highlights: • We analyse ICT equipment reuse operations of socio-economic enterprises. • Most common ICT products dealt with are computers and related equipment. • In the UK in 2010, ∼143,750 appliances were reused. • Marketing and legislative difficulties are the common hurdles to reuse activities. • Socio-economic enterprises can significantly contribute to resource efficiency. - Abstract: In Europe, socio-economic enterprises such as charities, voluntary organisations and not-for-profit companies are involved in the repair, refurbishment and reuse of various products. This paper characterises and analyses the operations of socio-economic enterprises that are involved in the reuse of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) equipment. Using findings from a survey, the paper specifically analyses the reuse activities of socio-economic enterprises in the UK from which Europe-wide conclusions are drawn. The amount of ICT products handled by the reuse organisations is quantified and potential barriers and opportunities to their operations are analysed. By-products from reuse activities are discussed and recommendations to improve reuse activities are provided. The most common ICT products dealt with by socio-economic enterprises are computers and related equipment. In the UK in 2010, an estimated 143,750 appliances were reused. However, due to limitations in data, it is difficult to compare this number to the amount of new appliances that entered the UK market or the amount of waste electrical and electronic equipment generated in the same period. Difficulties in marketing products and numerous legislative requirements are the most common barriers to reuse operations. Despite various constraints, it is clear that organisations involved in reuse of ICT could contribute significantly to resource efficiency and a circular economy. It is suggested that clustering of their operations into “reuse parks” would enhance both their profile and their

ICT reuse in socio-economic enterprises

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ongondo, F.O., E-mail: f.ongondo@soton.ac.uk [Centre for Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, Lanchester Building, University of Southampton, University Rd., Highfield, Southampton, Hampshire SO17 1BJ (United Kingdom); Williams, I.D. [Centre for Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, Lanchester Building, University of Southampton, University Rd., Highfield, Southampton, Hampshire SO17 1BJ (United Kingdom); Dietrich, J. [Technische Universität Berlin, Centre for Scientific Continuing Education and Cooperation, Cooperation and Consulting for Environmental Questions (kubus) FH10-1, Fraunhoferstraße 33-36, 10587 Berlin (Germany); Carroll, C. [Centre for Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, Lanchester Building, University of Southampton, University Rd., Highfield, Southampton, Hampshire SO17 1BJ (United Kingdom)

2013-12-15

Highlights: • We analyse ICT equipment reuse operations of socio-economic enterprises. • Most common ICT products dealt with are computers and related equipment. • In the UK in 2010, ∼143,750 appliances were reused. • Marketing and legislative difficulties are the common hurdles to reuse activities. • Socio-economic enterprises can significantly contribute to resource efficiency. - Abstract: In Europe, socio-economic enterprises such as charities, voluntary organisations and not-for-profit companies are involved in the repair, refurbishment and reuse of various products. This paper characterises and analyses the operations of socio-economic enterprises that are involved in the reuse of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) equipment. Using findings from a survey, the paper specifically analyses the reuse activities of socio-economic enterprises in the UK from which Europe-wide conclusions are drawn. The amount of ICT products handled by the reuse organisations is quantified and potential barriers and opportunities to their operations are analysed. By-products from reuse activities are discussed and recommendations to improve reuse activities are provided. The most common ICT products dealt with by socio-economic enterprises are computers and related equipment. In the UK in 2010, an estimated 143,750 appliances were reused. However, due to limitations in data, it is difficult to compare this number to the amount of new appliances that entered the UK market or the amount of waste electrical and electronic equipment generated in the same period. Difficulties in marketing products and numerous legislative requirements are the most common barriers to reuse operations. Despite various constraints, it is clear that organisations involved in reuse of ICT could contribute significantly to resource efficiency and a circular economy. It is suggested that clustering of their operations into “reuse parks” would enhance both their profile and their

Community College Developmental Education Services: Perspectives of Spanish-Speaking Latino Early Childhood Educators

Science.gov (United States)

Eberly, John E.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this single-case study was to understand the perceptions of Latino Spanish-speaking English learners on the efficacy of developmental education services at a Western U.S. community college. The primary data collection method was in-depth individual interviews of a purposeful sample of nine successful students. Findings indicated…

The Monetary Roots of Political Breakdown in Nineteenth-Century Spanish America

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alejandra Irigoin

2010-01-01

Full Text Available After the Napoleonic invasion to Spain in 1808, the Empire's financialand monetary structure collapsed, and most colonies became independent. Regional rivalry over tax revenues, aggravated by military expenses and treasury deficits, led elites in regions with royal mints to carry out all sorts of menatary experiments in order to obtain revenues. Local interests  controlling the mints began to coin their own money, or to falsify colonial coins. Other regions, lacking silver, created unconvertible paper money  in order to cover their deficits. The Spanish silver peso's consistent quality thus dissappeared, and with it the pattern that had organized colonial economy ever since the sixteenth century. Such coin diversity within a highly integrated economic space made the so-called Gresham Law hasten after 1810 the conflicts between local and colonial elites. This led, in turn, during the nineteenth century, to the Empire's political fragmentation into a growing number of inancially, monetaryli, and politically sovereign entities.

IPCC Socio-Economic Baseline Dataset

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Socio-Economic Baseline Dataset consists of population, human development, economic, water resources, land...

Impact of employment instability on socio-economic position of employees

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vyacheslav Nikolaevich Bobkov

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The subject of the article is the relationships in labor utilization. The article analyzes the impact of employment instability on the socio-economic situation of employees in Russia. Questions revealing the concept content of employment instability, its real forms and socio-economic consequences for employees are considered. Methods of statistical and sociological data analysis are applied. Indicators to measure the scope and level of employment instability of employees are calculated. The dynamics in the time of the size of employment instability in Russia are analyzed. The obtained results can be applied within national economic and social policy. The findings indicate that employment instability is high, and it threatens socio-economic position of the great number of employees in Russia. It is argued that, in these conditions, the most appropriate in the fight against the spread of employment instability are the set of government initiatives, proactive position of the Russian society and the expansion of societal forms of control over the government.

Long-Range Socio-Economic Forecasting of World Development in the Works by IMEMO RAS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suslov D. V.

2011-12-01

Full Text Available A brief overview is given of papers by the Institute of World Economy and International Relations, Russian Academy of Sciences (IMEMO RAS on long-term socio-economic forecasting of global development. The forecasting methodology is shown, its capabilities and limitations, as well as the structure, main results and characteristics of the forecasts made by IMEMO RAS since early 2000s. The «Strategic Global Outlook for 2030» has acquired features of an interdisciplinary research, and has been developed based on a system analysis of objective socio-economic indicators, long-term global and regional socio-demographic trends, and expert assessment of the future dynamics of the political situation in individual countries and in intergovernmental relations. This methodology allowed the focus to be placed primarily on the stable trends of development in the world economy and the system of international relations, their actors, structures and institutions

Features structuring image of Ukraine in socio-political and socio-cultural discourse

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. O. Pocelujko

2015-08-01

Layers of socio-political discourse under defined-State officially and historically historiographical discourses. These discourses present the image of the state in the context of national history as the source, where by means of targeted public policy is formed and implemented state identity as the language of institutional communication. Images states that officially created in-state and historically historiographic discourses as a set of ethnic myths, frames, stereotypes intended to create mechanisms of perception and interpretation of the past of the country, used in educational policy as a tool for national identity with the corresponding identity discourse. Socio-cultural discourse and the corresponding image of the state is characterized by a strong plurality, conceptuality, multyparadyhmality. In the socio-cultural discourse is conceptualization image of the state as part of the living world as opposed to social and political discourse, in which the image of the state appears more like dogmatic ideological construct, which tends to uniqueness. In the scientific discourse in constructing the image of the state is dominated intellectual and conceptual component, while in the state mediadyskurs-image formed on the basis of emotional and social representations stained. Latest distributed in makroteksts designed to create appropriate social attitudes, sensatsion, mobilizing different social groups on a variety of events and more

Validation and Diagnostic Efficiency of the Mini-SPIN in Spanish-Speaking Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Lopez, LuisJoaquín; Moore, Harry T. A.

2015-01-01

Objectives Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is one of the most common mental disorders in adolescence. Many validated psychometric tools are available to diagnose individuals with SAD efficaciously. However, there is a demand for shortened self-report instruments that identify adolescents at risk of developing SAD. We validate the Mini-SPIN and its diagnostic efficiency in overcoming this problem in Spanish-speaking adolescents in Spain. Methods The psychometric properties of the 3-item Mini-SPIN scale for adolescents were assessed in a community (study 1) and clinical sample (study 2). Results Study 1 consisted of 573 adolescents, and found the Mini-SPIN to have appropriate internal consistency and high construct validity. Study 2 consisted of 354 adolescents (147 participants diagnosed with SAD and 207 healthy controls). Data revealed that the Mini-SPIN has good internal consistency, high construct validity and adequate diagnostic efficiency. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the Mini-SPIN has good psychometric properties on clinical and healthy control adolescents and general population, which indicates that it can be used as a screening tool in Spanish-speaking adolescents. Cut-off scores are provided. PMID:26317695

The comparison of socio-economic conditions and personal hygiene habits of neuro-Behçet's disease and multiple sclerosis patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Pehlivan, Münevver; Kürtüncü, Murat; Tüzün, Erdem; Shugaiv, Erkingül; Mutlu, Melike; Eraksoy, Mefküre; Akman-Demir, Gülşen

2011-07-01

The "hygiene hypothesis" suggests that a reduction in the exposure to infectious agents due to improved health conditions has contributed to the increased incidence of autoimmune disorders in developed countries. In keeping with the hygiene hypothesis, many autoimmune disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS) are more frequently observed in developed countries. To identify the relevance of hygiene hypothesis in neuro-Behçet's disease (NBD), another chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system, we developed and administered a multiple choice questionnaire to evaluate the hygiene conditions and practices of age and gender-matched NBD patients (n = 50) and control MS (n =5 0) and headache (n = 50) patients. Overall, MS patients had the highest socio-economic and hygiene features, whereas NBD patients displayed a lower socio-economic status group and showed poorer hygiene conditions than MS and headache controls. These poor hygiene conditions might be increasing the susceptibility of exposure to infectious agents that might, at least in part, trigger the inflammatory responses involved in NBD pathogenesis. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Early Oral Language and Later Reading Development in Spanish-Speaking English Language Learners: Evidence from a Nine-Year Longitudinal Study

Science.gov (United States)

Kieffer, Michael J.

2012-01-01

Using nationally-representative, longitudinal data on a cohort of Spanish-speaking English language learners in the U.S., this study investigated the extent to which early oral language proficiency in Spanish and English predicts later levels and rates of growth in English reading. Latent growth models indicated that both Spanish and English…

Microfinance Impact on Socio-Economic Empowerment: A special Reference to Andhra Pradesh

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V Vachya L

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The present study seeks to examine the role of microfinance and its impact on economic and social empowerment of women. There are great debates going on whether forming groups, membership for women, providing credit and imparting some business skills would change the social equations in the society or whether provision of credit may lead to pervasively entrenched political and economic relations among the genders. The proponents argue that providing credit, targeting women can prove to be a suitable mechanism in ameliorating poor women’s socio-economic conditions and thereby can alter the relations between gender and class. Undoubtedly, there have been significant advances in women empowerment in recent years and the concept and practice of SHG-based microfinance has now developed deep roots in many parts of the country. Impact assessment being rather limited so far, it is hard to measure and quantify the effect the Indian microfinance experience so far had on the poverty situation in rural India. The present study seeks to examine the process of women empowerment and changes in the economic status of SHG members in particular and rural women in general. For this study, multi-stage stratified proportionate random sampling technique was adopted for selecting the representative districts, mandals/talukas, villages and households. The primary data was collected from six villages in the three regions (Coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema and Telangana of Andhra Pradesh. Tabular and statistical analyses were applied for examining the data. Empirically acclaimed logistic regression model has been employed for analyzing significant impact of plausible socio-economic factors on women empowerment. The study found that the socio-economic indicators have changed. It also emerged that there has been an increase in women participation in the household decision making process. The study has suggested that the government should prepare suitable plans and programmes

Effect of economic recession on psychosocial working conditions by workers' nationality.

Science.gov (United States)

Torá, Isabel; Martínez, José Miguel; Benavides, Fernando G; Leveque, Katia; Ronda, Elena

2015-01-01

Several publications have documented the effects of economic recessions on health. However, little is known about how economic recessions influence working conditions, especially among vulnerable workers. To explore the effects of 2008 economic crisis on the prevalence of adverse psychosocial working conditions among Spanish and foreign national workers. Data come from the 2007 and 2011 Spanish Working Conditions Surveys. Survey year, sociodemographic, and occupational information were independent variables and psychosocial factors exposures were dependent variables. Analyses were stratified by nationality (Spanish versus foreign). Prevalence and adjusted prevalence ratios (aPRs) of psychological job demands, job control, job social support, physical demands and perceived job insecurity were estimated using Poisson regression. The Spanish population had higher risk of psychological and physical job demand (aPR = 1.07, 95% CI = [1.04-1.10] and aPR = 1.05, 95% CI = [1.01-1.09], respectively) in 2011 compared to 2007. Among both Spanish and foreign national workers, greater aPR were found for job loss in 2011 compared to 2007 (aPR = 2.47, 95% CI = [2.34-2.60]; aPR = 2.44, 95% CI = [2.15-2.77], respectively). The 2008 economic crisis was associated with a significant increase in physical demands in Spanish workers and increased job insecurity for both Spanish and foreign workers.

Assessing Working Memory in Spanish-Speaking Children: Automated Working Memory Assessment Battery Adaptation

Science.gov (United States)

Injoque-Ricle, Irene; Calero, Alejandra D.; Alloway, Tracy P.; Burin, Debora I.

2011-01-01

The Automated Working Memory Assessment battery was designed to assess verbal and visuospatial passive and active working memory processing in children and adolescents. The aim of this paper is to present the adaptation and validation of the AWMA battery to Argentinean Spanish-speaking children aged 6 to 11 years. Verbal subtests were adapted and…

Criticising with Foucault: Towards a Guiding Framework for Socio-Political Studies in Mathematics Education

Science.gov (United States)

Kollosche, David

2016-01-01

Socio-political studies in mathematics education often touch complex fields of interaction between education, mathematics and the political. In this paper I present a Foucault-based framework for socio-political studies in mathematics education which may guide research in that area. In order to show the potential of such a framework, I discuss the…

Political and economic factors of late transition in Serbia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Josifidis Kosta L.

2004-01-01

Full Text Available The transition in Serbia is late, from the aspects of both its start and course. The initial conditionality, strategy, sequentially, prospects and results shape transition profile. Key factors of the late transition are grouped within a complex of political and economic factors, which are themselves ambivalent - their external and internal effects are evident. An institutional vacuum is especially limiting complex, with a significant influence on the political and economic aspects of the transition. An analysis of the two groups of intertwined factors serves as a basis for making a projection of future course and reform dynamics in Serbia. Different scenarios are present. An increase or decrease in the transition dynamics is conditioned by elimination of negative impacts of political and economic factors, i.e. by promotion of positive aspects of the solutions.

Influence of Language and Culture in the Primary Care of Spanish-Speaking Latino Adults with Poorly Controlled Diabetes: A Qualitative Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Zamudio, Cindy D; Sanchez, Gabriela; Altschuler, Andrea; Grant, Richard W

2017-01-01

We examined the role of language and culture in the interactions between Spanish-speaking Latino patients with poorly controlled diabetes - a fast-growing population in the United States - and their primary care providers. We conducted four focus groups with 36 non-US born Spanish-speaking patients with elevated HbA1c. Participants were insured health plan members with either English-speaking (2 groups) or Spanish-speaking (2 groups) primary care providers. Moderated discussions focused on visit preparation, communication during visit, and role of other care team members. Key themes derived from these discussions were then linked to corresponding Latino cultural constructs. Patients had a mean age of 57.9 (±11.2) years and last measured HbA1c was 8.6% (1.5%). Two communication-related themes (reluctance to switch providers and use of intermediaries) and two visit-related themes (provider-driven visit agendas and problem-based visits) emerged from our analyses. These themes reflected the cultural constructs of confianza (trust), familismo (family), respeto (deference), and simpatía (harmonious relationship). Trust in the patient-provider relationship led many participants to remain with English-speaking providers who treated them well. Patients with either language concordant and discordant providers reported reliance on family or other intermediaries to close communication gaps. Deference to physician expertise and authority led to visit expectations that it is the doctor's job to know what to ask and that visits were intended to address specific, often symptom-driven problems. Spanish-speaking Latino patients' cultural expectations play an important role in framing their primary care interactions. Recognizing culturally influenced visit expectations is an important step toward improving patient-provider communication.

Multiple socio-economic circumstances and healthy food habits.

Science.gov (United States)

Lallukka, T; Laaksonen, M; Rahkonen, O; Roos, E; Lahelma, E

2007-06-01

To examine associations between seven indicators of socio-economic circumstances and healthy food habits, while taking into account assumed temporal order between these socio-economic indicators. Data were derived from cross-sectional postal questionnaires in 2000-2002. Socio-economic circumstances were assessed by parental education, childhood economic difficulties, own education, occupational class, household income, home ownership and current economic difficulties. Healthy food habits were measured by an index consisting of consumption of fresh vegetables, fruit or berries, rye bread, fish and choosing vegetable fats on bread and oil in cooking. Sequential logistic regression models were used, adjusting for age and marital status. Employees of the City of Helsinki, Finland (n=8960, aged 40-60 years). Healthy food habits were reported by 28% of women and by 17% of men. Own education, occupational class, household income, home ownership and current economic difficulties were associated with healthy food habits. These associations were attenuated but mainly remained after mutual adjustments for the socio-economic indicators. Among women, a pathway was found suggesting that part of the effects of education on food habits were mediated through occupational class. Employees in higher and lower socio-economic positions differ in their food habits, and those in lower positions and economically disadvantaged are less likely to report healthy food habits. Health promotion programmes and food policies should encourage healthier food choices among those in lower socio-economic positions and among those with economic difficulties in particular.

On worries, concerns and dangers among spanish population: a qualitative analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martinez, R.; Cebrian, A.L.; Menard, M.; Sola, R.; Prades, A.

1998-01-01

This paper presents qualitative findings on the principal worries, concerns and dangers surrounding risk perception extracted from the Cross-cultural Survey carried out within RISKPERCOM' research project (Risk Perception and Communication). A questionnaire was mailed to a random sample of the Spanish population allowing a study of amplification/attenuation with regard to the tenth anniversary as well as investigating management and communication issues related to radiological matters. The questionnaires were mailed to the adult population from 18 to 75 years of age, where 48.9% males and 51.1 % females. The number of questionnaires obtained for each wave were 490. The response rate was around 69%. At this paper we present the principal concerns, worries and dangers perceived by the Spanish population as identified through three open questions. The items were grouped in different categories; national political situation, economical concern, personal/social concerns, environmental concerns, global concerns... These categories are associated through correspondence analysis to socio-demographical variables as sex, age, education, political orientation an environmental attitude. (authors)

the enforcement of socio-economic rights | de Beer | Potchefstroom ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In recent years the South African legislature has made a very bold attempt to improve the socio-economic conditions of citizens. Amongst others, the Social Assistance Act 59 of 1992 provides for monthly payments to citizens under certain prescribed conditions. In situations where other legislation does not provide a remedy ...

Working Conditions of Agricultural Workers: A Reflection of Socio-economic Status

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B.R.K. Sinha

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Working conditions of agricultural workers, like industrial, are one of the burning issues in a developing region. It is related to agricultural activities of the workers and their socio-economic status. Working conditions may be both favourable and unfavourable. Those working conditions which are unfavourable to health may be considered as occupational hazards or as a part of occupational environment. It is generally observed that a large section of the agricultural workers remains engaged in agricultural practices at the time of hunger, thirst, pregnancy (women and even despite their unpleasant state of health, both mental and physical. They also continue to work for more than the prescribed standard hours and also having half-fed. These are not positive or favourable working conditions to their health as they normally cause general weakness, fatigue, stomach disorder, dizziness, headache, loss of energy and some other similar physical, mental and psychological problems. The major driving forces behind as such adverse working conditions and its consequences are the pressure of work, pressure of land owners and of timely completion of works, shortage of manpower, psychological attitude, ignorance, weather constraints, poverty, illiteracy, lack of work related health awareness, lower social and economic status, etc. Such forces compel the workers to be engaged in their agricultural practices under the above circumstance. Adverse working conditions of agricultural workers vary widely with reference to space, time, activities, demographics, society, economy and consequently affect both the mental and physical, social and psychological conditions of the agricultural workers. Persons in varying number in the age groups from 15-34 and 35-49 to 60 & + year were reported working under different types of undesirable working conditions. The people from the S.C. and S.T. categories are the major sufferers as most of them continue their work during

Ranking the adaptive capacity of nations to climate change when socio-political goals are explicit

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haddad, B.M.

2005-01-01

The typical categories for measuring national adaptive capacity to climate change include a nation's wealth, technology, education, information, skills, infrastructure, access to resources, and management capabilities. Resulting rankings predictably mirror more general rankings of economic development, such as the Human Development Index. This approach is incomplete since it does not consider the normative or motivational context of adaptation. For what purpose or toward what goal does a nation aspire, and in that context, what is its adaptive capacity? This paper posits 11 possible national socio-political goals that fall into the three categories of teleological legitimacy, procedural legitimacy, and norm-based decision rules. A model that sorts nations in terms of adaptive capacity based on national socio-political aspirations is presented. While the aspiration of maximizing summed utility matches typical existing rankings, alternative aspirations, including contractarian liberalism, technocratic management, and dictatorial/religious rule alter the rankings. An example describes how this research can potentially inform how priorities are set for international assistance for climate change adaptation. (author)

Measuring socio-economic position in dietary research: is choice of socio-economic indicator important?

Science.gov (United States)

Turrell, Gavin; Hewitt, Belinda; Patterson, Carla; Oldenburg, Brian

2003-04-01

To examine the association between socio-economic position (SEP) and diet, by assessing the unadjusted and simultaneously adjusted (independent) contributions of education, occupation and household income to food purchasing behaviour. The sample was randomly selected using a stratified two-stage cluster design, and the response rate was 66.4%. Data were collected by face-to-face interview. Food purchasing was examined on the basis of three composite indices that reflected a household's choice of grocery items (including meat and chicken), fruit and vegetables. Brisbane City, Australia, 2000. : Non-institutionalised residents of private dwellings located in 50 small areas (Census Collectors Districts). When shopping, respondents in lower socio-economic groups were less likely to purchase grocery foods that were high in fibre and low in fat, salt and sugar. Disadvantaged groups purchased fewer types of fresh fruits and vegetables, and less often, than their counterparts from more advantaged backgrounds. When the relationship between SEP and food purchasing was examined using each indicator separately, education and household income made an unadjusted contribution to purchasing behaviour for all three food indices; however, occupation was significantly related only with the purchase of grocery foods. When education and occupation were simultaneously adjusted for each other, the socio-economic patterning with food purchase remained largely unchanged, although the strength of the associations was attenuated. When household income was introduced into the analysis, the association between education, occupation and food purchasing behaviour was diminished or became non-significant; income, however, showed a strong, graded association with food choice. The food purchasing behaviours of socio-economically disadvantaged groups were least in accord with dietary guideline recommendations, and hence are more consistent with greater risk for the development of diet

Socio-Economic-Political-Cultural Aspects in Malaria Control Programme Implementation in Southern India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. K. Ghosh

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. A Socio-economic-political-cultural (SEPC study was undertaken under the Roll Back Malaria (RBM initiative to understand the process of programme implementation and how far in the changing malaria context, the broader environment has been understood and programme components have undergone changes. Material and Methods. Two studies were carried out; first in four villages under the primary health unit (PHU Banavaralu in Tiptur Taluka in September 2002 and the second one in April 2003 in four villages in Chitradurga district, namely, Kappagere, Kellodu in Hosadurga Taluka, and Vani Vilas Puram and Kathrikenhally in Hiriyur Taluka. Focus group discussion and key interviews were adopted to collect the qualitative data. Results. Gender discrimination and lack of empowerment of women came out strongly in social analysis. In the rural elected bodies called Panchayats, the concept of health committees was not known. Health committees as one of the important statutory committees under every Panchayat were nonexistent in reality in these villages. Financial difficulties at Grama Panchayat level and also meager budget allocation for health have led to indifferent attitude of Panchayat members towards health. It was observed that there were generally no specific cultural practices in relation to malaria cure. Cultural and traditional practices in malaria-related issues were not predominant in the community except for some sporadic instances. Conclusion and Recommendation. SEPC study is an important indicator in malaria control programme. It is ultimately the community that takes the major decision directly or indirectly and the health authority must guide them in right direction.

Socio-economic-political-cultural aspects in malaria control programme implementation in southern India.

Science.gov (United States)

Ghosh, S K; Patil, Rajan R; Tiwari, S N

2012-01-01

Objective. A Socio-economic-political-cultural (SEPC) study was undertaken under the Roll Back Malaria (RBM) initiative to understand the process of programme implementation and how far in the changing malaria context, the broader environment has been understood and programme components have undergone changes. Material and Methods. Two studies were carried out; first in four villages under the primary health unit (PHU) Banavaralu in Tiptur Taluka in September 2002 and the second one in April 2003 in four villages in Chitradurga district, namely, Kappagere, Kellodu in Hosadurga Taluka, and Vani Vilas Puram and Kathrikenhally in Hiriyur Taluka. Focus group discussion and key interviews were adopted to collect the qualitative data. Results. Gender discrimination and lack of empowerment of women came out strongly in social analysis. In the rural elected bodies called Panchayats, the concept of health committees was not known. Health committees as one of the important statutory committees under every Panchayat were nonexistent in reality in these villages. Financial difficulties at Grama Panchayat level and also meager budget allocation for health have led to indifferent attitude of Panchayat members towards health. It was observed that there were generally no specific cultural practices in relation to malaria cure. Cultural and traditional practices in malaria-related issues were not predominant in the community except for some sporadic instances. Conclusion and Recommendation. SEPC study is an important indicator in malaria control programme. It is ultimately the community that takes the major decision directly or indirectly and the health authority must guide them in right direction.

Telecommunications, politics, economics, and national sovereignty: A new game

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bugliarello, G.

1996-12-31

The impact of telecommunications on politics, economics and national sovereignty is creating a new game. Political and economic power may operate over the same territory, as in the now-rare case of isolated economies, but, more often, their domains do not coincide. Increasingly, telecommunications create major challenges for countries preoccupied with issues of national sovereignty because the national state has only a limited ability to control these intrinsic and at times potentially destabilizing powers of telecommunications and the {open_quotes}telecommunities{close_quotes} they make possible. As many traditional aspects of sovereignty are becoming weakened by telecommunications, and as the intense dynamics of networks and the expansion of telecommunities revolutionize business and politics, there is a need to prevent the situation from becoming chaotic and uncontrollable, even while recognizing the possibilities of enhanced opportunities. This requires focusing on a more flexible conception of sovereignty which can enhance the state`s attractiveness for telecommunications infrastructure, while addressing issues of ethics and morality in the new telecommications environment. A new, broad socio-technological research agenda needs to be developed - with the ultimate purpose of providing society with the tools to play the new game and thrive. 10 refs., 3 tabs.

Food purchasing selection among low-income, Spanish-speaking Latinos.

Science.gov (United States)

Cortés, Dharma E; Millán-Ferro, Andreina; Schneider, Karen; Vega, Rodolfo R; Caballero, A Enrique

2013-03-01

In the U.S., poverty has been linked to both obesity and disease burden. Latinos in the U.S. are disproportionately affected by poverty, and over the past 10 years, the percentage of overweight U.S. Latino youth has approximately doubled. Buying low-cost food that is calorie-dense and filling has been linked to obesity. Low-income individuals tend to favor energy-dense foods because of their low cost, and economic decisions made during food purchasing have physiologic repercussions. Diets based on energy-dense foods tend to be high in processed staples, such as refined grains, added sugars, and added fats. These diets have been linked to a higher risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. This pilot study conducted ethnographic qualitative analyses combined with quantitative analyses to understand grocery shopping practices among 20 Spanish-speaking, low-income Latino families. The purpose was to analyze food selection practices in order to determine the effect of nutrition education on changes in shopping practices to later develop educational tools to promote selection of healthier food options. Participants received tailored, interactive, nutrition education during three to five home visits and a supermarket tour. Grocery store receipts for grocery purchases collected at baseline and at the end of the project were analyzed for each family to extract nutritional content of purchased foods. Nutritional content was measured with these factors in mind: quantity, calories, fats, carbohydrates, fiber, protein, and percentage of sugary beverages and processed food. Data were collected in 2010-2011 and analyzed in 2011-2012. After receiving between three and five home-based nutrition education sessions and a supermarket tour over a 6-month period, many families adopted instructions on buying budget-friendly, healthier alternative foods. Findings indicate that participating families decreased the total number of calories and calories per dollar

Syntax in Spanish-speaking children with Williams syndrome.

Science.gov (United States)

Benítez-Burraco, Antonio; Garayzábal, Elena; Cuetos, Fernando

2016-01-01

The syntactic skills of Spanish-speaking children with Williams syndrome (WS) were assessed in different areas (phrase structure, recursion, and bound anaphora). Children were compared to typically-developing peers matched either in chronological age (CA-TD) or in verbal age (VA-TD). In all tasks children with WS performed significantly worse than CA-TD children, but similarly to VA-TD children. However, significant differences were observed in specific domains, particularly regarding sentences with cross-serial dependencies. At the same time, children with WS were less sensitive to syntactic constraints and exhibited a poorer knowledge of some functional words (specifically, of nonreflexive pronouns). A processing bottleneck or a computational constraint may account for this outcome. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Modelling regional cropping patterns under scenarios of climate and socio-economic change in Hungary.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Sen; Juhász-Horváth, Linda; Pintér, László; Rounsevell, Mark D A; Harrison, Paula A

2018-05-01

Impacts of socio-economic, political and climatic change on agricultural land systems are inherently uncertain. The role of regional and local-level actors is critical in developing effective policy responses that accommodate such uncertainty in a flexible and informed way across governance levels. This study identified potential regional challenges in arable land use systems, which may arise from climate and socio-economic change for two counties in western Hungary: Veszprém and Tolna. An empirically-grounded, agent-based model was developed from an extensive farmer household survey about local land use practices. The model was used to project future patterns of arable land use under four localised, stakeholder-driven scenarios of plausible future socio-economic and climate change. The results show strong differences in farmers' behaviour and current agricultural land use patterns between the two regions, highlighting the need to implement focused policy at the regional level. For instance, policy that encourages local food security may need to support improvements in the capacity of farmers to adapt to physical constraints in Veszprém and farmer access to social capital and environmental awareness in Tolna. It is further suggested that the two regions will experience different challenges to adaptation under possible future conditions (up to 2100). For example, Veszprém was projected to have increased fallow land under a scenario with high inequality, ineffective institutions and higher-end climate change, implying risks of land abandonment. By contrast, Tolna was projected to have a considerable decline in major cereals under a scenario assuming a de-globalising future with moderate climate change, inferring challenges to local food self-sufficiency. The study provides insight into how socio-economic and physical factors influence the selection of crop rotation plans by farmers in western Hungary and how farmer behaviour may affect future risks to agricultural

Sustainable Management of Natural Resources for Socio-Economic ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper studies sustainable management of natural resources for socio economic development in Imo state. This it does with the aim to determine the extent to which the exploration and exploitation of natural resources has affected the ecological and environmental conditions of the area. The research also tends to ...

Socio-economic factors influencing cassava production in Kuje and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study examined socio-economic factors influencing output level of cassava production in Kuje and Abaji Area Councils of Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The specific objectives were to:identify the socio-economic characteristics of sampled cassava farmers in the study area; determine the socio-economic factors ...

Physical-Socio-Economic Modeling of Climate Change

Science.gov (United States)

Chamberlain, R. G.; Vatan, F.

2008-12-01

Because of the global nature of climate change, any assessment of the effects of plans, policies, and response to climate change demands a model that encompasses the entire Earth System, including socio- economic factors. Physics-based climate models of the factors that drive global temperatures, rainfall patterns, and sea level are necessary but not sufficient to guide decision making. Actions taken by farmers, industrialists, environmentalists, politicians, and other policy makers may result in large changes to economic factors, international relations, food production, disease vectors, and beyond. These consequences will not be felt uniformly around the globe or even across a given region. Policy models must comprehend all of these considerations. Combining physics-based models of the Earth's climate and biosphere with societal models of population dynamics, economics, and politics is a grand challenge with high stakes. We propose to leverage our recent advances in modeling and simulation of military stability and reconstruction operations to models that address all these areas of concern. Following over twenty years' experience of successful combat simulation, JPL has started developing Minerva, which will add demographic, economic, political, and media/information models to capabilities that already exist. With these new models, for which we have design concepts, it will be possible to address a very wide range of potential national and international problems that were previously inaccessible. Our climate change model builds on Minerva and expands the geographical horizon from playboxes containing regions and neighborhoods to the entire globe. This system consists of a collection of interacting simulation models that specialize in different aspects of the global situation. They will each contribute to and draw from a pool of shared data. The basic models are: the physical model; the demographic model; the political model; the economic model; and the media

Cyclicality of Economic Development of Ukraine in the Context of its Political and Legal Transformations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stryzhychenko Kostyantyn A.

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The cyclicality in the development of the Ukrainian economy during the years of its independence under conditions of its political and legal transformations has been studied. On the basis of the analysis of worldwide research the problem of influence of political transformations on the socio-economic development of the state has been identified. There has been developed a methodological approach to studying the evolutionary development of the Ukrainian economy in the context of its European integration, which comprises three main blocks: Block 1 – studying the development of the legal field of Ukraine; Block 2 – studying the policy of development of Ukraine and orientation of its economic system; Block 3 – analyzing the evolutionary development of the Ukrainian economy and determining its cyclical nature. Within the developed approach there were used wavelet models, spectral analysis – Fourier expansion and Johanson test. The paper puts forward three hypotheses: hypothesis 1 – about the existence of short-term 5-year cycles of evolutionary development of the economy; hypothesis 2 – about the existence of a long-term cycle lasing 25 years and conditioned by political and legal processes in the society; hypothesis 3 – about the existence of cointegration relationships between the evolutionary development of the economy of Ukraine and the EU. On the basis of the modern political transformations the phases of development of the Ukrainian legal environment have been defined and comparison of these phases with the specifics of its economic development has been carried out. The analysis of the economic system of Ukraine and its policy made it possible to determine the vector of development of the Ukrainian economy. The approximating (trend and detailing (cyclic components of the economic development of Ukraine were determined with the help of wavelet expansion. Using Fourier analysis for the detailing components allowed to distinguish 5

Socio economic gender inequality in Nigeria: A review of theory and measurements

OpenAIRE

Odozi, John C.

2012-01-01

The aim of this article is to synthesize the various views of gender inequality and various indicators used to measure it. It argues that women lag behind men in most indicators of socio-economic development and they constitute the majority of the poor, the unemployed and the socially disadvantaged. Productive differences as espoused by the traditional neoclassical as well as the institutions and markets advancement are not sufficient to explain gender inequality. The political economy view o...

Reliability and validity of the Spanish Language Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (3rd Edition) in a sample of American, urban, Spanish-speaking Hispanics.

Science.gov (United States)

Renteria, Laura; Li, Susan Tinsley; Pliskin, Neil H

2008-05-01

The utility of the Spanish WAIS-III was investigated by examining its reliability and validity among 100 Spanish-speaking participants. Results indicated that the internal consistency of the subtests was satisfactory, but inadequate for Letter Number Sequencing. Criterion validity was adequate. Convergent and discriminant validity results were generally similar to the North American normative sample. Paired sample t-tests suggested that the WAIS-III may underestimate ability when compared to the criterion measures that were utilized to assess validity. This study provides support for the use of the Spanish WAIS-III in urban Hispanic populations, but also suggests that caution be used when administering specific subtests, due to the nature of the Latin America alphabet and potential test bias.

Systematic literature review on effectiveness of self-management support interventions in patients with chronic conditions and low socio-economic status

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Van Hecke, Ann; Heinen, Maud; Fernández-Ortega, Paz

2017-01-01

of patients with a low socio-economic status. No differences were found for interventions developed based on health behaviour theoretical models. CONCLUSION: Limited evidence was found for self-management support interventions in chronically ill patients with low socio-economic status. Essential......AIM: To assess the quality of evidence and determine the effect of patient-related and economic outcomes of self-management support interventions in chronically ill patients with a low socio-economic status. BACKGROUND: Integrated evidence on self-management support interventions in chronically ill...... people with low socio-economic status is lacking. DESIGN: Systematic literature review. DATA SOURCES: Cochrane database of trials, PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, PsycINFO and Joanna Briggs Institute Library were searched (2000-2013). Randomized controlled trials addressing self-management support...

Socio-economic exposure to natural disasters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marin, Giovanni; Modica, Marco

2017-01-01

Even though the correct assessment of risks is a key aspect of the risk management analysis, we argue that limited effort has been devoted in the assessment of comprehensive measures of economic exposure at very low scale. For this reason, we aim at providing a series of suitable methodologies to provide a complete and detailed list of the exposure of economic activities to natural disasters. We use Input-Output models to provide information about several socio-economic variables, such as population density, employment density, firms' turnover and capital stock, that can be seen as direct and indirect socio-economic exposure to natural disasters. We then provide an application to the Italian context. These measures can be easily incorporated into risk assessment models to provide a clear picture of the disaster risk for local areas. - Highlights: • Ex ante assessment of economic exposure to disasters at very low geographical scale • Assessment of the cost of natural disasters in ex-post perspective • IO model and spatial autocorrelation to get information on socio-economic variables • Indicators supporting risk assessment and risk management models

Socio-economic exposure to natural disasters

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Marin, Giovanni, E-mail: giovanni.marin@uniurb.it [Department of Economics, Society, Politics, University of Urbino ' Carlo Bo' , via Aurelio Saffi, 2, 61029 Urbino (Italy); IRCrES - CNR, Research Institute on Sustainable Economic Growth, Via Corti 12, 20133 - Milano (Italy); SEEDS, Ferrara (Italy); Modica, Marco, E-mail: marco.modica@ircres.cnr.it [IRCrES - CNR, Research Institute on Sustainable Economic Growth, Via Corti 12, 20133 - Milano (Italy); SEEDS, Ferrara (Italy)

2017-05-15

Even though the correct assessment of risks is a key aspect of the risk management analysis, we argue that limited effort has been devoted in the assessment of comprehensive measures of economic exposure at very low scale. For this reason, we aim at providing a series of suitable methodologies to provide a complete and detailed list of the exposure of economic activities to natural disasters. We use Input-Output models to provide information about several socio-economic variables, such as population density, employment density, firms' turnover and capital stock, that can be seen as direct and indirect socio-economic exposure to natural disasters. We then provide an application to the Italian context. These measures can be easily incorporated into risk assessment models to provide a clear picture of the disaster risk for local areas. - Highlights: • Ex ante assessment of economic exposure to disasters at very low geographical scale • Assessment of the cost of natural disasters in ex-post perspective • IO model and spatial autocorrelation to get information on socio-economic variables • Indicators supporting risk assessment and risk management models.

Socio-economic characteristics of patients with generalized retinal dystrophy in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bertelsen, Mette; Linneberg, Allan; Rosenberg, Thomas

2015-01-01

the Danish Retinitis Pigmentosa Registry and 228,500 control subjects matched by age and gender. Demographic and socio-economic data were retrieved from Statistics Denmark. Differences between cases and controls were estimated using conditional logistic regression. RESULTS: On 1 January 2012, 2285 patients......PURPOSE: To examine socio-economic characteristics of patients with generalized retinal dystrophy in Denmark. METHODS: Cross-sectional population-based study with analysis of socio-economic characteristics including income, education, employment status and civil status in 2285 patients from...... with a Danish civil registration number were registered as having a generalized retinal dystrophy. At the age of 40 years, less patients than controls had a high education (odds ratio (OR), 0.51; 95% confidence interval (CI95), 0.41-0.62), a high income (OR, 0.21; CI95, 0.17-0.26) and were married (OR, 0.39; CI...

Development and evaluation of an instrument to measure community pharmacists' self-efficacy beliefs about communicating with Spanish-speaking patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Henry N; Hwang, Monica J; Dilworth, Thomas J; Mott, David; Cox, Elizabeth D; Moreno, Megan A

2011-12-01

Hispanics are the largest growing population in the United States, and their use of prescription medications can be influenced by the education and counseling they receive from pharmacists. However, little is known about pharmacists' communication with patients who speak Spanish or factors that can influence such communication. The objective of the study was to develop and validate an instrument to measure pharmacists' self-efficacy in communicating with Spanish-speaking patients. An initial pool of 15 items developed from previous research and suggestions from communication experts and practicing pharmacists was subjected to cognitive interviewing. Nine retained items were administered to 1022 licensed pharmacists by mail survey. Summary statistics and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) were conducted. Retained factors were determined by the examination of eigenvalues and scree test results. Cronbach's alpha coefficients were calculated to assess internal consistency. A total of 540 community pharmacists completed the survey. Item means ranged from 2.93±1.47 to 1.58±0.88 based on a 5-point scale (1: not at all confident to 5: extremely confident). EFA resulted in a 2-factor solution, accounting for 71% of the variance. The 2 factors consisted of health and drug information (alpha=0.92) and opening the encounter (alpha=0.75). The alpha for the overall scale was 0.88. The results provide evidence to support the reliability and validity of an instrument to measure pharmacists' self-efficacy beliefs about communicating with Spanish-speaking patients in community practice. Practitioners and researchers may use this instrument to inform pharmacy education, pharmacy practice improvement, and research efforts around communicating with Spanish-speaking clients. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Relationship between Performance on Oral Narrative Retells and Vocabulary Assessments for Spanish-English Speaking Children

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Carla; Wofford, Mary Claire; Schatschneider, Christopher

2018-01-01

This project aimed to describe oral narrative retells of Spanish-English speaking dual language learners (DLLs) and examine relationships with standardized vocabulary assessments. Investigators described oral narrative retells of 145 DLLs in kindergarten and first grade by number of different words (NDW), words per minute (WPM), and…

PROMOTING LITERATURE TO BUILD COLLEGE STUDENTS’ SOCIO-POLITICAL AWARENESS IN THE EFL READING CLASS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dian Nurrachman

2011-03-01

Full Text Available The relationship of classroom to the outside world is a reciprocal one, meaning that classrooms are part of the world in which socio-politics is included. The students become successful literary readers as well as critical thinkers who have socio-political awareness if the classroom conducts an ‘extensive reading’ by ‘letting the students in’. The implication of these understandings for the work of EFL teachers is to give a vindication that literature can fully become the best authentic material in the teaching and learning of English, especially for reading class of the college students. In certain ways, this is also aimed to promote literature as a device to build students’ socio-political awareness, because literature, we are told, is vitally engaged with the living situations of men and women: it’s concrete rather than abstract, displays life in all its rich variousness. Keywords: socio-political awareness, literature, reading class

Socio-Economic Impact Of Onchocerciasis With Particular ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The socio-economic impact of onchocerciasis (river blindness) on humans is reviewed with special reference to females and children. The results of many studies reveal that onchocerciasis is usuallya serious threat to public health and an impediment to socio-economic development in areas wth high intensity and high ...

"La CLAve" to Increase Psychosis Literacy of Spanish-Speaking Community Residents and Family Caregivers

Science.gov (United States)

Lopez, Steven R.; Lara, Ma. Del Carmen; Kopelowicz, Alex; Solano, Susana; Foncerrada, Hector; Aguilera, Adrian

2009-01-01

The authors developed and tested a 35-min psychoeducational program with the goal of increasing Spanish-speaking persons' literacy of psychosis. The program uses popular cultural icons derived from music, art, and videos, as well as a mnemonic device--La CLAve (The Clue)--to increase (a) knowledge of psychosis, (b) efficacy beliefs that one can…

Education is the strongest socio-economic predictor of smoking in pregnancy.

Science.gov (United States)

Härkönen, Juho; Lindberg, Matti; Karlsson, Linnea; Karlsson, Hasse; Scheinin, Noora M

2018-06-01

To investigate socio-economic disparities in smoking in pregnancy (SIP) by the mother's education, occupational class and current economic conditions. Cross-sectional analysis with linked survey and register data. South-western Finland. A total of 2667 pregnant women [70% of the original sample (n = 3808)] from FinnBrain, a prospective pregnancy cohort study. The outcome was smoking during the first pregnancy trimester, measured from the Finnish Medical Birth Register. Education and occupational class were linked from population registers. Income support recipiency and subjective economic wellbeing were questionnaire-based measures of current economic conditions. These were adjusted for age, partnership status, residential area type, parental separation, parity, childhood socio-economic background, childhood adversities (the Trauma and Distressing Events During Childhood scale) and antenatal stress (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale). Logistic regressions and attributable fractions (AF) were estimated. Mother's education was the strongest socio-economic predictor of SIP. Compared with university education, adjusted odds ratios (aORs) of SIP were: 2.2 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.2-3.9; P = 0.011] for tertiary vocational education, 4.4 (95% CI = 2.1-9.0; P < 0.001) for combined general and vocational secondary education, 2.9 (95% CI = 1.4-6.1; P = 0.006) for general secondary education, 9.5 (95% CI 5.0-18.2; P < 0.001) for vocational secondary education and 14.4 (95% CI = 6.3-33.0; P < 0.001) for compulsory schooling. The total AF of education was 0.5. Adjusted for the other variables, occupational class and subjective economic wellbeing did not predict SIP. Income support recipiency was associated positively with SIP (aOR = 1.8; 95% CI = 1.1-3.1; P = 0.022). Antenatal stress predicted SIP (aOR = 2.0; 95% CI = 1.4-2.8; P < 0.001), but did not attenuate its socio-economic disparities. In Finland, socio-economic disparities in

Socio-Economic Characteristics of Registered Cocoa Farmers in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

PROF HORSFALL

ABSTRACT: This study examined the socio-economic characteristics of registered cocoa farmers in Edo State; ... Key words: socio-economics, characteristics, registered cocoa farmers. ... international exchange market in two world currencies ...

Socio-economic considerations of cleaning Greater Vancouver's air

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-08-01

Socio-economic considerations of better air quality on the Greater Vancouver population and economy were discussed. The purpose of the study was to provide socio-economic information to staff and stakeholders of the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) who are participating in an Air Quality Management Plan (AQMP) development process and the Sustainable Region Initiative (SRI) process. The study incorporated the following methodologies: identification and review of Canadian, American, and European quantitative socio-economic, cost-benefit, cost effectiveness, competitiveness and health analyses of changes in air quality and measures to improve air quality; interviews with industry representatives in Greater Vancouver on competitiveness impacts of air quality changes and ways to improve air quality; and a qualitative analysis and discussion of secondary quantitative information that identifies and evaluates socio-economic impacts arising from changes in Greater Vancouver air quality. The study concluded that for the Greater Vancouver area, the qualitative analysis of an improvement in Greater Vancouver air quality shows positive socio-economic outcomes, as high positive economic efficiency impacts are expected along with good social quality of life impacts. 149 refs., 30 tabs., 6 appendices

The politics of welfare state retrenchment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Starke, Peter

2006-01-01

Welfare state retrenchment is widely seen as a highly unpopular endeavour and, therefore, as politically difficult to pursue. This assumption has underpinned most of the political science research on this issue, notably Paul Pierson's seminal contributions about the 'new politics of the welfare...... state'. Yet, the question remains why and under what circumstances cutbacks take place in highly developed welfare states despite these formidable political obstacles. This article reviews the literature on the politics of retrenchment, namely on the impact of socio-economic problem pressure, political...... parties, political institutions, welfare state structures and ideas. Most authors agree that socio-economic problems - particularly domestic problems - contribute to an atmosphere of 'permanent austerity' which inspires cutbacks. Moreover, according to most scholars, the extent of retrenchment possible...

Survey of Native English Speakers and Spanish-Speaking English Language Learners in Tertiary Introductory Statistics

Science.gov (United States)

Lesser, Lawrence M.; Wagler, Amy E.; Esquinca, Alberto; Valenzuela, M. Guadalupe

2013-01-01

The framework of linguistic register and case study research on Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs) learning statistics informed the construction of a quantitative instrument, the Communication, Language, And Statistics Survey (CLASS). CLASS aims to assess whether ELLs and non-ELLs approach the learning of statistics differently with…

Assessing the state-level consequences of global warming: Socio-economic and energy demand impacts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rubin, B.M. Gailmard, S.; Marsh, D.; Septoff, A.

1996-01-01

The large body of research on climate change has begun to recognize a significant deficiency: the lack of analysis of the impact of climate change at a spatial level consistent with the anticipated occurrence of climate change. Climate change is likely to vary by region, while impact analysis has focused on much larger political units. Clearly, adaptation/mitigation strategies must be developed at a level consistent with political and policy-making processes. This paper specifically addresses this deficiency by identifying the potential socio-economic and energy demand consequences of climate change for subnational regions. This is accomplished via the development and application of a regional simultaneous equation, econometric simulation model that focuses on five states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin) in the Great Lakes region of the US. This paper presents a process for obtaining state-specific assessments of the consequences of climate change for the socio-economic system. As such, it provides an indication of which economic sectors are most sensitive to climate change for a specific state (Indiana), a set of initial mitigation/adaptation strategies for this state, and the results of testing these strategies in the policy analysis framework enabled by the model. In addition, the research demonstrates an effective methodology for assessing impacts and policy implications of climate change at a level consistent with policy making authority

Socio-economic influences on gender inequalities in child health in rural Bangladesh.

Science.gov (United States)

Rousham, E K

1996-08-01

To investigate gender inequalities in child growth and nutritional status in relation to socio-economic status in Bangladesh. A 16-month longitudinal study of child growth measuring anthropometric and socio-economic status. A rural area of Jamalpur district, northern Bangladesh. 1366 children from 2 to 6 years of age. Child height and weight were measured monthly. Morbidity, food intake and health-seeking behaviours were assessed fortnightly. Multivariable analyses were performed on the growth and nutritional status of male and female children in relation to socio-economic factors including father's occupation, parental education, birth order and family size. There was no evidence of gender bias in farming and trading/employee households but landless female children had significantly poorer height-for-age (P Bangladesh varied significantly according to occupational status, such that the effect of sex was dependent upon occupation. These effects were statistically significant during the period of natural disaster but became insignificant as local conditions improved. This demonstrates both temporal and socio-economic variation in gender inequalities in health.

Socio-economic and ethnic differences in the prevalence of overweight and obesity among school children.

Science.gov (United States)

Achat, Helen M; Stubbs, Joanne M

2014-10-01

To trial the collection of measurements to provide population-based prevalence of overweight and obesity in school children in western Sydney and examine the association between healthy weight and ethnicity and socio-economic status (SES) in a socio-economically and culturally diverse population. A cross-sectional population-based survey of 2341 children in Years 4 and 7 (mean ages 9 and 12 years, respectively) in 2007.   Nineteen percent of children were overweight and a further 6% were obese. The prevalence of combined overweight and obesity was similar for boys and girls (26% vs. 24%, P= 0.35). SES was significantly associated with the prevalence of unhealthy weight: the odds of being overweight or obese were 1.79 times (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.35 to 2.36) higher for children from the lowest quartile than for children from the highest quartile. Compared to children from an English speaking background, children from a non-English speaking background were significantly more likely to be overweight or obese (21% vs. 31%, P overweight and obesity was significantly higher for children from a Pacific Island (odds ratio (OR) 2.66, 95% CI 1.63 to 4.33), Middle Eastern (OR 1.63, 95% CI 1.22 to 2.17) or European (OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.12 to 2.49) background than for English speaking background children. Large jumps in the prevalence of overweight and obesity in children observed from the 1980s appear to be diminishing, with comparable prevalence reports in 2004 and 2007. Ethnicity and SES are each independently associated with the prevalence of unhealthy weight in children. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health © 2012 Paediatrics and Child Health Division (Royal Australasian College of Physicians).

socio-economic population

African Journals Online (AJOL)

not ideal, underscores the peculiarities of experience in a general hospital in a low socio-economic setting. In conclusion, hernia surgery in a general hospital setting can be safely performed with the judicious use of intravenous Kctamine in children and emergency adult surgery as long as awareness of its side-effects and.

Ranking the adaptive capacity of nations to climate change when socio-political goals are explicit

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haddad, B.M. [University of California, Santa Cruz, CA (United States)

2005-07-01

The typical categories for measuring national adaptive capacity to climate change include a nation's wealth, technology, education, information, skills, infrastructure, access to resources, and management capabilities. Resulting rankings predictably mirror more general rankings of economic development, such as the Human Development Index. This approach is incomplete since it does not consider the normative or motivational context of adaptation. For what purpose or toward what goal does a nation aspire, and in that context, what is its adaptive capacity? This paper posits 11 possible national socio-political goals that fall into the three categories of teleological legitimacy, procedural legitimacy, and norm-based decision rules. A model that sorts nations in terms of adaptive capacity based on national socio-political aspirations is presented. While the aspiration of maximizing summed utility matches typical existing rankings, alternative aspirations, including contractarian liberalism, technocratic management, and dictatorial/religious rule alter the rankings. An example describes how this research can potentially inform how priorities are set for international assistance for climate change adaptation. (author)

ICT reuse in socio-economic enterprises.

Science.gov (United States)

Ongondo, F O; Williams, I D; Dietrich, J; Carroll, C

2013-12-01

In Europe, socio-economic enterprises such as charities, voluntary organisations and not-for-profit companies are involved in the repair, refurbishment and reuse of various products. This paper characterises and analyses the operations of socio-economic enterprises that are involved in the reuse of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) equipment. Using findings from a survey, the paper specifically analyses the reuse activities of socio-economic enterprises in the U.K. from which Europe-wide conclusions are drawn. The amount of ICT products handled by the reuse organisations is quantified and potential barriers and opportunities to their operations are analysed. By-products from reuse activities are discussed and recommendations to improve reuse activities are provided. The most common ICT products dealt with by socio-economic enterprises are computers and related equipment. In the U.K. in 2010, an estimated 143,750 appliances were reused. However, due to limitations in data, it is difficult to compare this number to the amount of new appliances that entered the U.K. market or the amount of waste electrical and electronic equipment generated in the same period. Difficulties in marketing products and numerous legislative requirements are the most common barriers to reuse operations. Despite various constraints, it is clear that organisations involved in reuse of ICT could contribute significantly to resource efficiency and a circular economy. It is suggested that clustering of their operations into "reuse parks" would enhance both their profile and their products. Reuse parks would also improve consumer confidence in and subsequently sales of the products. Further, it is advocated that industrial networking opportunities for the exchange of by-products resulting from the organisations' activities should be investigated. The findings make two significant contributions to the current literature. One, they provide a detailed insight into the reuse operations

Availability and quality of cardiopulmonary resuscitation information for Spanish-speaking population on the Internet.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Kirsten Y; Haukoos, Jason S; Sasson, Comilla

2014-01-01

Bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a vital link in the chain of survival for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA); however, there are racial/ethnic disparities in the provision of bystander CPR. Approximately 32% of Hispanics perform CPR when confronted with cardiac arrest, whereas approximately 41% of non-Hispanics perform CPR. Public education, via the Internet, may be critical in improving the performance of bystander CPR among Hispanics. The objective of this study was to evaluate the availability and quality of CPR-related literature for primary Spanish-speaking individuals on the Internet. Two search engines (Google and Yahoo!) and a video-site (YouTube) were searched using the following terms: "resucitacion cardiopulmonar" and "reanimacion cardiopulmonar." Inclusion criteria were: education of CPR technique. Exclusion criteria were: instruction on pediatric CPR technique, failure to provide any instruction on CPR technique, or duplicated website. Data elements were collected on the content and quality of the websites and videos, such as assessing scene safety, verifying responsiveness, activating EMS, properly positioning hands on chest, performing accurate rate and depth of compressions. Of the 515 websites or videos screened, 116 met criteria for inclusion. The majority of websites (86%; 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 79-92%) educated viewers on traditional bystander CPR (primarily, 30:2 CPR), while only 14% (95% CI 9-21%) taught hands-only CPR. Of websites that used video (N=62), 84% were conducted in Spanish and 16% in English. The quality of CPR education was generally poor (median score of 3/6, IQR of 3.0). Only half of websites properly educated on how to check responsiveness, activate EMS and position hands on chest. Eighty-eight percent of websites failed to educate viewers on assessing scene safety. The majority of websites had improper or no education on both rate and depth of compressions (59% and 63%, respectively). Only 16% of

Political instability and economic growth: an empirical evidence from the Baltic states

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ladislava Grochová

2011-01-01

Full Text Available For more than last 20 decades, new political economics has been dealing with theories of economic growth (for example influential contributions by Mancur Olson, Dani Rodrik. However, less attention has been paid to their empirical verification. The new political economics growth theory defines some factors that are necessary for economic growth among which political stability. Our aim is to test the theory focused on political stability empirically in order to enrich the studies with recent European results. The paper uses a single-equation model to reject a hypothesis that political stability is a necessary condition for economic growth finding a relationship between economic growth and political instability. A demonstration that political stability is not a crucial factor for economic development in general then represents the main goal of the contribution. There are distinguished two types of political instability – elite and non-elite – in topical literature. While non-elite political instability concerns about violent coups, riots or civil wars, elite political instability is represented with “soft changes” such as government breakdowns, fragile majority or minority governments. A number of government changes is used as a proxy of elite political instability. The disproof of the hypothesis is demonstrated on data from the Baltic states where number of government changes takes place and still fast economic growth could be seen within last two decades. Since it is shown that political instability has almost no impact on economic growth, we consider the hypothesis regarding a necessity of political stability for economic development to be only a specific non-generalizable case.

Knowledge and Beliefs about Developmental Dyslexia in Pre-Service and In-Service Spanish-Speaking Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Soriano-Ferrer, Manuel; Echegaray-Bengoa, Joyce; Joshi, R. Malathesa

2016-01-01

The present study investigated knowledge, misconceptions, and lack of information about dyslexia among pre-service (PST) and in-service (IST) Spanish-speaking teachers in Spain and Peru. Two hundred and forty-six pre-service teachers and 267 in-service teachers completed the Knowledge and Beliefs about Developmental Dyslexia Scale (KBDDS).…

Association between individual-level and community-level socio-economic status and blood pressure among Inuit in Greenland

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Riva, Mylène; Larsen, C. V. L.; Bjerregaard, Peter

2016-01-01

and older participated. Blood pressure is measured using an automatic device, according to standardized protocol. Individual SES is measured by education. Community socio-economic conditions are measured using combined information on average disposable household income and settlement type. Results....... Education was not significantly associated with blood pressure. There was an inverse U-shape association between community socio-economic conditions and blood pressure with significantly lower SBP and DBP among participants living in remote traditional villages characterized by lower average disposable...... household income and in affluent more urbanized towns. Sex-stratified analyses demonstrate the salience of community conditions for men. Conclusions. The association observed between blood pressure and community-level socio-economic conditions suggests that public health and social policies, programmes...

Chile: Political and Economic Conditions and U.S. Relations

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-22

RN) and the rightist Independent Democratic Union (Unión Demócrata Independiente , UDI). A third coalition, the “Broad Party of the Socialist Left...independents and members of the Regionalist Party of Independents (Partido Regionalista de los Independientes , PRI), who are unaffiliated with either of the...Wilde, “Piñera Won. Will he uphold Chile’s post -Pinochet moral legacy?” Christian Science Monitor, January 18, 2010. Chile: Political and Economic

Socio-economic factors and suicide rates in European Union countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferretti, Fabio; Coluccia, Anna

2009-04-01

Are socio-economic factors valid determinants of suicide? The modern sociological theory of suicide is based on Durkheim's studies. In addition to these fundamental social determinants, modern theorists have put more attention on economic factors. The purpose of the research is to determine the relationship between suicide rates and socio-economic factors, such as demography, economic development, education, healthcare systems, living conditions and labour market. All data were collected from a Eurostat publication and they concern 25 European Union countries. In order to test this relationship, a discriminant analysis was performed using an ordinal dependent variable and a set of independent variables concerning socio-economic factors. A dataset of 37 independent variables was used. We estimated a model with five variables: annual growth rates for industry, people working in S&T (% of total employment), at-risk-of-poverty rate, all accidents (standardized rates), and healthcare expenditures (% of GDP). Highly significant values of Wilk's Lambda assess a good discriminating power of the model. The accuracy too is very high: all cases are correctly classified by the model. Countries with high suicide rate levels are marked by high levels of at-risk-of-poverty rates, high annual growth rates for industry and low healthcare expenditures.

Predicting First Grade Reading Achievement for Spanish-Speaking Kindergartners: Is Early Literacy Screening in English Valid?

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, Karen L.; Invernizzi, Marcia A.; Huang, Francis

2014-01-01

This study explored the viability of using kindergarten measures of phonological awareness, alphabet knowledge, and orthographic knowledge, administered in English, to predict first grade reading achievement of Spanish-speaking English language learners. The primary research question was: Do kindergarten measures of early literacy skills in…

Inhibitory Control of Spanish-Speaking Language-Minority Preschool Children: Measurement and Association With Language, Literacy, and Math Skills.

Science.gov (United States)

Lonigan, Christopher J; Allan, Darcey M; Goodrich, J Marc; Farrington, Amber L; Phillips, Beth M

Children's self-regulation, including components of executive function such as inhibitory control, is related concurrently and longitudinally with elementary school children's reading and math abilities. Although several recent studies have examined links between preschool children's self-regulation or executive function and their academic skill development, few included large numbers of Spanish-speaking language-minority children. Among the fastest growing segments of the U.S. school-age population, many of these children are at significant risk of academic difficulties. We examined the relations between inhibitory control and academic skills in a sample containing a large number of Spanish-speaking preschoolers. Overall, the children demonstrated substantial academic risk based on preschool-entry vocabulary scores in the below-average range. Children completed assessments of language, literacy, and math skills in English and Spanish, when appropriate, at the start and end of their preschool year, along with a measure of inhibitory control, the Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders task, which was administered at the start of the preschool year in the child's dominant conversational language. Scores on this last measure were lower for children for whom it was administered in Spanish. For both English and Spanish outcomes, those scores were significantly and uniquely associated with higher scores on measures of phonological awareness and math skills but not vocabulary or print knowledge skills.

The Influence of Household Socio-Economic Characteristics and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The Influence of Household Socio-Economic Characteristics and Awareness on Aflatoxin Contamination of Maize in Makueni County, Kenya. ... East African Medical Journal ... The results further showed significant associations of some socio-economic characteristics and awareness with aflatoxin contamination of maize.

Socio-economic drivers in implementing bioenergy projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Domac, J.; Richards, K.; Risovic, S.

2005-01-01

Within the international community there is considerable interest in the socio-economic implications of moving society towards the more widespread use of renewable energy resources. Such change is seen to be very necessary but is often poorly communicated to people and communities who need to accept such changes. There are pockets of activity across the world looking at various approaches to understand this fundamental matter. Typically, socio-economic implications are measured in terms of economic indices, such as employment and monetary gains, but in effect the analysis relates to a number of aspects which include social, cultural, institutional, and environmental issues. The extremely complex nature of bioenergy, many different technologies involved and a number of different, associated aspects (socio-economics, greenhouse gas mitigation potential, environment, ?) make this whole topic a complex subject. This paper is primarily a descriptive research and review of literature on employment and other socio-economic aspects of bioenergy systems as drivers for implementing bioenergy projects. Due to the limited information, this paper does not provide absolute quantification on the multiplier effects of local and or national incomes of any particular country or region. The paper intends to trigger a more in-depth discussion of data gaps, potentials, opportunities and challenges. An encouraging trend is that in many countries policy makers are beginning to perceive the potential economic benefits of commercial biomass e.g. employment/earnings, regional economic gain, contribution to security of energy supply and all others

The spanish nuclear choice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martin Blazquez, C.

1983-12-01

The aim of this thesis was to examine the present state and projections of the nuclear energy development in Spain, the limits and conditions of this development, as also the industrial and politic-economical stakes resulting. The analysis is considered through the evolution of the energetic balance up to 1990, taking into account the exceptional role of the nuclear energy: description of the various economic and social development plans since 1964, history of the energy consumption in Spain, structures of the nuclear sector (mining, production, and the private industry), importance of the electric energy in the spanish industry, structures of the electric sector in Spain, roles and interventions of the government in the nuclear electric subsector

Political institutions as substitute for democracy: a political economy analysis of economic growth

OpenAIRE

Pereira, Carlos; Teles, Vladimir Kühl

2009-01-01

This manuscript empirically assesses the effects of political institutions on economic growth. It analyzes how political institutions affect economic growth in different stages of democratization and economic development by means of dynamic panel estimation with interaction terms. The new empirical results obtained show that political institutions work as a substitute for democracy promoting economic growth. In other words, political institutions are important for increasing economic growth, ...

Why socio-political borders and boundaries matter in conservation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dallimer, Martin; Strange, Niels

2015-01-01

Acting to demarcate the spatial limits of decision-making processes, socio-political boundaries are an inevitable part of a human-dominated world. Rarely coincident with ecological boundaries, and thus having no ecological functional role by themselves, they nevertheless impose substantial costs ...

Economic crisis, institutional confidence and political leadership in Spain / Crisis económica, confianza institucional y liderazgos políticos en España

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Francisco Jiménez Díaz

2013-10-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the effects of the economic crisis in main political Spanish leaders in an exploratory way. For understanding the politics of the recent years is necessary to know the consequences of this crisis on leaders and political institutions that they manage. In representative democracies, political leaders have to maintain confidence with their followers to justify the political actions of the formers. Therefore, and according to theoretical interpretations and data presented in this paper, institutional confidence becomes a key factor to understand the effects of the economic crisis on the political leadership. Thus, the decline of institutional confidence is related with the increasing delegitimization of main political leaders and with the profound crisis of political legitimacy.

Predictors of Reading Comprehension for Struggling Readers: The Case of Spanish Speaking Language Minority Learners

Science.gov (United States)

Mancilla-Martinez, Jeannette; Lesaux, Nonie K.

2010-01-01

This longitudinal study examined the process of English reading comprehension at age 11 years for 173 low-achieving Spanish-speaking children. The influence of growth rates, from early childhood (age 4.5 years) to pre-adolescence (age 11 years), in vocabulary and word reading skills on this complex process were evaluated with structural equation…

Reaching Spanish-speaking smokers online: a 10-year worldwide research program

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ricardo Felipe Muñoz

2014-06-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To describe a 10-year proof-of-concept smoking cessation research program evaluating the reach of online health interventions throughout the Americas. METHODS: Recruitment occurred from 2002 - 2011, primarily using Google.com AdWords. Over 6 million smokers from the Americas entered keywords related to smoking cessation; 57 882 smokers (15 912 English speakers and 41 970 Spanish speakers were recruited into online self-help automated intervention studies. To examine disparities in utilization of methods to quit smoking, cessation aids used by English speakers and Spanish speakers were compared. To determine whether online interventions reduce disparities, abstinence rates were also compared. Finally, the reach of the intervention was illustrated for three large Spanish-speaking countries of the Americas-Argentina, Mexico, and Peru-and the United States of America. RESULTS: Few participants had utilized other methods to stop smoking before coming to the Internet site; most reported using no previous smoking cessation aids: 69.2% of Spanish speakers versus 51.8% of English speakers (P < 0.01. The most used method was nicotine gum, 13.9%. Nicotine dependence levels were similar to those reported for in-person smoking cessation trials. Overall observed quit rate for English speakers was 38.1% and for Spanish speakers, 37.0%; quit rates in which participants with missing data were considered to be smoking were 11.1% and 10.6%, respectively. Neither comparison was significantly different. CONCLUSIONS: The systematic use of evidence-based Internet interventions for health problems could have a broad impact throughout the Americas, at little or no cost to individuals or to ministries of health.

Political Ideonomy of Rostow’s Stages of Economic Growth Theory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Mozafarinia

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The conditions of success and reasons for failure of development strategies and plans, are among the most important “development studies” issues. This has been explained in different ways: for example, there is a strong relationship between the efficiency of development strategies and plans and development theories. Based on paradigmatic-implicative theory, which explains the relationship between development theories and political thought and considers the development theory as one of the practical implications of political thought, a condition for the success of development strategies and development plans can be found to be rooted in the political thought foundation. Therefore, in the present article we explore the political thought supporting Rostow’s Stages of Economic Growth theory, as one of the oldest and most important development theories which in the 1960s resulted in understanding development as “growth”. We use qualitative content analysis method to show that the political foundation of Rostow’s Stages of Economic Growth theory is based on the principle of “the most utility for the most people” in accordance with Bentham’s utilitarian political thought.

Associations of Work Stress, Supervisor Unfairness, and Supervisor Inability to Speak Spanish with Occupational Injury among Latino Farmworkers.

Science.gov (United States)

Clouser, Jessica Miller; Bush, Ashley; Gan, Wenqi; Swanberg, Jennifer

2017-06-22

Little is known about how psychosocial work factors such as work stress, supervisor fairness, and language barriers affect risk of occupational injury among Latino farmworkers. This study attempts to address these questions. Surveys were administered via interviews to 225 Latino thoroughbred farmworkers. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to calculate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of occupational injury in the past year in relation to occupational characteristics. Work stress (OR 6.70, 95% CI 1.84-24.31), supervisor unfairness (OR 3.34, 95% CI 1.14-9.73), longer tenure at farm (OR 2.67, 95% CI 1.13-6.34), and supervisor inability to speak Spanish (OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.05-5.00) were significantly associated with increased odds of occupational injury. Due to the associations between work stress, supervisor unfairness, supervisor inability to speak Spanish and injury, supervisor training to improve Spanish language ability and equitable management practices is merited. Future research is needed to understand the antecedents of work stress for Latino farmworkers.

Chile: Political and Economic Conditions and U.S. Relations

Science.gov (United States)

2009-12-10

pace to meet all eight of the United Nations ( UN ) Millennium Development Objectives by 2015.9 Recent Political and Economic Developments Bachelet...Front For Elections,” EFE News Service, June 15, 2009; “‘Hombres Fuertes’ de Las Campañas Analizan lo que Está en Juego en la Elección Presidencial...Enriquez-Ominami Paves Way For Younger Leaders,” Oxford Analytica, September 7, 2009. 42 “Marco Enríquez es, Políticamente, Hijo de Bachelet y Lagos

Socio-economic status and overall and cause-specific mortality in Sweden

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sundquist Jan

2008-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Previous studies have reported discrepancies in cause-specific mortality among groups of individuals with different socio-economic status. However, most of the studies were limited by the specificity of the investigated populations and the broad definitions of the causes of death. The aim of the present population-based study was to explore the dependence of disease specific mortalities on the socio-economic status in Sweden, a country with universal health care. Another aim was to investigate possible gender differences. Methods Using the 2006 update of the Swedish Family-Cancer Database, we identified over 2 million individuals with socio-economic data recorded in the 1960 national census. The association between mortality and socio-economic status was investigated by Cox's proportional hazards models taking into account the age, time period and residential area in both men and women, and additionally parity and age at first birth in women. Results We observed significant associations between socio-economic status and mortality due to cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, to cancer and to endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases. The influence of socio-economic status on female breast cancer was markedly specific: women with a higher socio-economic status showed increased mortality due to breast cancer. Conclusion Even in Sweden, a country where health care is universally provided, higher socio-economic status is associated with decreased overall and cause-specific mortalities. Comparison of mortality among female and male socio-economic groups may provide valuable insights into the underlying causes of socio-economic inequalities in length of life.

Turbulence in Bolivia's Normales: Teacher Education as a Socio-Political Battlefield

Science.gov (United States)

Lopes Cardozo, Mieke T. A.

2013-01-01

In line with broader politics of change at the national level, the Morales government aims at a radical restructuring of the governance mechanisms for the teacher education sector and a socio-political redirection of its curriculum, as teachers are perceived to be potential agents for decolonization and for developing social justice--or…

Socio-economic Inequalities and Healthcare Utilization in Ghana

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bashiru I.I. Saeed

2013-07-01

Full Text Available A socio-economic inequality in the use of healthcare services in Ghana is investigated in this paper. The data employed in the study were drawn from Global Ageing and Adult Health survey conducted in Ghana by SAGE and was based on the design for the World Health Survey (WHS, 2003. The survey was conducted in 2007 and collected data on socio-economic characteristics and other variables of the individuals interviewed. Using generalized logit model, the study found that health status is a very strong determinant of the type of healthcare services Ghanaians look for. In Ghana, there are still important socio-economic gradients in the use of some healthcare services. These differences may be due to socio-economic inequities but could also indicate that the existing health facilities are not always used in an optimal way. Patient factors may be more important than supply factors in explaining the differential use of health services.

ANALYSIS OF POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF GENDER EQUALITY

OpenAIRE

Khatuna BERISHVILI

2016-01-01

Term “gender” means socially constructed roles of man and woman, which are ascribed to them according to gender marker. Thus, gender roles depend on concrete socio-economic, political and culturological context and experience influence of various factors according to race, ethnic origin, class, sexual orientation and age. Gender roles widely differ within each culture and cultures. Unlike the individual’s biological gender, the gender role can be changed. This concept implies the views, cond...

Economic Integration and Political Disintegration

OpenAIRE

Alberto Alesina; Enrico Spolaore; Romain Wacziarg

1997-01-01

Trade liberalization and political separatism go hand in hand. In a world of trade restrictions, large countries enjoy economic benefits because political boundaries determine the size of the market. In a world of free trade and global markets even relatively small cultural, linguistic or ethnic groups can benefit from forming small and homogeneous political jurisdictions that trade peacefully and are economically integrated with others. This paper provides a formal model of the relationship ...

Childhood and adulthood socio-economic position and midlife depressive and anxiety disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Stansfeld, Stephen A; Clark, Charlotte; Rodgers, Bryan; Caldwell, Tanya; Power, Chris

2008-02-01

This paper investigates how childhood socio-economic position influences the risk for midlife depressive and anxiety disorders at 45 years of age, assessed by the Clinical Interview Schedule in 9377 participants of the 1958 British Birth Cohort. Socio-economic position was measured by Registrar General Social Class in childhood and adulthood. The association of paternal manual socio-economic position with any diagnosis at 45 years of age was accounted for after adjustment for adult socio-economic position. Manual socio-economic position in women at 42 years of age was associated with midlife depressive disorder and any diagnosis; these associations were diminished by adjustment for childhood psychological disorders. Effects of childhood socio-economic position on adult depressive disorders may be mediated through adult socio-economic position.

The Effect of Political and Economic Factors on Corporate Tax Rates

OpenAIRE

Hansson, Åsa; Porter, Susan; Perry Williams, Susan

2012-01-01

Economists and political scientists have long been interested in factors that affect the statutory tax rate on businesses set by federal governments. In this study, we examine the impact of political and economic factors on several measures of tax rates and tax incentives offered across 19 developed countries for the years 1979 through 2005. Our results indicate that while economic conditions such as openness, strategic interaction, budget constraints, economic downturns and an aging populati...

Using an iPad for Basic Communication Between Spanish-Speaking Families and Nurses in Pediatric Acute Care: A Feasibility Pilot Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Jackson, Kylie H; Mixer, Sandra J

2017-08-01

The growing number of Spanish speakers in the United States poses communication challenges for healthcare providers. Language barriers in pediatric acute care have been associated with an increased risk for adverse events, longer hospital stays, and decreased quality of care. In addition, clinicians' usage of interpreter services is inconsistent. In fact, nurses often lack interpreter support during daily bedside care. Nursing staff at a pediatric children's hospital in the southeastern United States identified bedside communication with Spanish-speaking patients and families as a clinical challenge. To address this challenge, a basic communication interface, UTalk version 1.0 (the author is the owner and proprietor), supported by an Apple iPad, was developed by the researcher with input from nursing staff, a certified medical interpreter, and Spanish-speaking community members. A feasibility pilot study of the interface's usability and engagement was conducted on the hospital's pediatric medical-surgical unit through qualitative interviews with nurse-family dyads. Three themes emerged from the data: UTalk-facilitated communication, UTalk needs improvement, and interpreter miscommunication. These findings indicate that a mobile digital device interface is a feasible method for augmenting bedside communication with Spanish-speaking patients and families. These results also may serve as a reference for the development of similar mobile device interfaces. Further research with a larger sample size is needed.

Louisiana Speaks Regional Plan Vision Special Economic Zones, UTM Zone 15N NAD83, Louisiana Recovery Authority (2007), [louisiana_speaks_vision_special_economic_zones

Data.gov (United States)

Louisiana Geographic Information Center — This GIS shapefile data illustrates special economic zones included in the Louisiana Speaks Regional Plan Vision. Special economic zones include existing national,...

The Impact of Politics 2.0 in the Spanish Social Media: Tracking the Conversations around the Audiovisual Political Wars

Science.gov (United States)

Noguera, José M.; Correyero, Beatriz

After the consolidation of weblogs as interactive narratives and producers, audiovisual formats are gaining ground on the Web. Videos are spreading all over the Internet and establishing themselves as a new medium for political propaganda inside social media with tools so powerful like YouTube. This investigation proceeds in two stages: on one hand we are going to examine how this audiovisual formats have enjoyed an enormous amount of attention in blogs during the Spanish pre-electoral campaign for the elections of March 2008. On the other hand, this article tries to investigate the social impact of this phenomenon using data from a content analysis of the blog discussion related to these videos centered on the most popular Spanish political blogs. Also, we study when the audiovisual political messages (made by politicians or by users) "born" and "die" in the Web and with what kind of rules they do.

Terrorism in Nigeria - Revisiting Nigeria’s Socio-Political Approach to Counterterrorism and Counterinsurgency

Science.gov (United States)

2015-06-12

Mustapha, and Stewards 2007). The distinct but obvious socio- cultural differences between the three major ethnic groups (Hausa-Fulani, Yoruba , and Igbo...Political Dimension ....................................................................................................... 53 Socio- cultural and...

The Socio-Economic Value of Teacher Salaries Rise

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elena Mikhailovna Avraamova

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The socio-economic results of the reform in teachers’ salary, which had a positive impact on the quality of school education, are considered. However, the economic difficulties that our country encounters, may jeopardize the achieved results. The results of the monitoring study of the Center of the Economics of Lifelong Education of RANEPA «Efficiency of the school education» conducted in 2015 in the Sverdlovsk, Voronezh, Ivanovo regions serve as information base. 2800 school teachers, 2800 households having a school student at family, 200 directors of the educational organizations are interviewed according to the survey method. Surveys are conducted on the representative selection including both urban and rural population. It is shown that the average teacher’s salary has reached the level of the average salary in the region in the 2013/2014 that met the requirements of the May Presidential Decree. This ratio was retained next year, and the size of the teachers’ salaries fully reflected the differentiation of the socio-economic indicators of the development of the Russian regions under consideration. The main positive effects of teachers’ salaries raise are: the rejuvenation of the teaching staff, professional development of teachers, their entering the Russian middle class. The authors study the impact of negative phenomena in the economy on the prospects of reproduction of the achieved socio-economic results of teachers’ salaries raise. The reduction of pupils’ parents’ incomes that can lead to a decrease in a request for paid educational services, which is one of the sources of extra-budgetary funding of school education are considered as such effects. From this perspective, the projective educational strategy of the parents of school students is considered. The analysis of the economic activities of school organizations, on the one hand, and educational strategies for the parents of schoolchildren in the conditions of

Ageing of power plants socio-economical, sanitary and environmental impact

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bataille, Ch.; Denner, M.; Vouilloux, F.; Foucher, L.; Serviere, M.; Vila d'Abadal Serra, M.

2005-01-01

The National Association of the local Commissions of Information (A.N.C.L.I.) presents a colloquium about the ageing of nuclear power plants. The different following points are presented. The life cycle of nuclear power plants and the new types of reactors. The ageing of power plants: stakes and perspectives for the French and world nuclear park. A power plant of 30 years is it sure? The role of the studies of ageing and the follow-up according to the age. Stop or continue to exploit a nuclear power plant: who decides, when and how. The socio-economic consequences of a stop of power plant: the Spanish experience. Ten-year visits of a power plant: the associative experience. 58 reactors today: how to assume their end of life and welcome equipments to come. (N.C.)

The Impact of Downsizing on the Socio-Economics Condition on Affected Employees. The Case of Pakistan International Airline

OpenAIRE

Naveed Saif; Khalid Rehman; Shafiq ur Rehman; Muh Saqib Khan; Zia-Ur-Rehman; Bakhtiar Khan

2013-01-01

This research study examines the process of downsizing and is impact on the socio-economic condition of affected employee. It was conducted in September 2008 in different areas of NWFP namely district Bannu, Tank, Lakki Marwat and D.I. Khan. A sample of 40 people was taken for this purpose. The average score of the respondent on the instruction of downsizing in the organization show s that mostly affected employees did not like the downsizing process. In particular they responded that downsiz...

The Problems of Tourist Sustainability in Cultural Cities: Socio-Political Perceptions and Interests Management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonio Alvarez-Sousa

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The aim of this article is to analyse the social and political capacity of cities affected by cultural tourism. An investigation is carried out into the state of the situation in saturated destinations, the problems this poses to tourist sustainability and the positions of the various different interest groups. In Europe, many cultural cities-cum-tourist hotspots have reached such high levels of socio-political saturation that the resident population’s capacity for carrying tourism has become overstretched. This has led to a state of irritation among the local population. Social movements now include this on their agenda but the various different interest groups (residents, political groups, entrepreneurs, management bodies all react differently. We present data relating to the case of Barcelona, with analyses of residents’ and tourists’ opinions, the actions of social mobilization carried out by pressure groups, media repercussion and the reactions of the business sector and political groups. We examine data collected from surveys and opinions carried in the media. The sustainability and management of interests indicate changes in both the number and the type of tourists, the occupation of public spaces, the distribution of profit among entrepreneurs, residents and the political and economic model of society in the future.

Gesture, Play, and Language Development of Spanish-Speaking Toddlers with Developmental Language Disorders: A Preliminary Study

Science.gov (United States)

Guiberson, Mark

2016-01-01

The purpose of this preliminary study was to (a) examine relationships between the symbolic and language skills of a mixed (developmental language disordered [DLD] and typical language [TL]) Spanish-speaking sample; (b) describe gesture, play, and language skills of DLD and TL groups; (c) compare the development between groups; and (d) explore…

Accessibility and socio-economic development of human settlements.

Science.gov (United States)

Hasan, Samiul; Wang, Xiaoming; Khoo, Yong Bing; Foliente, Greg

2017-01-01

Access to facilities, services and socio-economic opportunities plays a critical role in the growth and decline of cities and human settlements. Previous attempts to explain changes in socio-economic indicators by differences in accessibility have not been convincing as countries with highly developed transport infrastructure have only seen marginal benefits of infrastructure improvements. Australia offers an ideal case for investigating the effects of accessibility on development since it is seen as home to some of the most liveable cities in the world while, at the same time, it also has some of the most isolated settlements. We investigate herein the connectivity and accessibility of all 1814 human settlements (population centers exceeding 200 persons) in Australia, and how they relate to the socio-economic characteristics of, and opportunities in, each population center. Assuming population as a proxy indicator of available opportunities, we present a simple ranking metric for a settlement using the number of population and the distance required to access all other settlements (and the corresponding opportunities therein). We find a strikingly unequal distribution of access to opportunities in Australia, with a marked prominence of opportunities in capital cities in four of the eight states. The two largest cities of Sydney and Melbourne have a dominant position across all socio-economic indicators, compared to all the other cities. In general, we observe across all the settlements that a decrease in access to opportunities is associated with relatively greater socio-economic disadvantage including increased median age and unemployment rate and decreased median household income. Our methodology can be used to better understand the potential benefits of improved accessibility based on infrastructure development, especially for remote areas and for cities and towns with many socio-economically disadvantaged population.

[Intelligence and the explanation for socio-economic inequalities in health].

Science.gov (United States)

Huisman, M; Mackenbach, J P

2007-05-12

Attention is increasingly being paid to the role of cognitive ability to explain socio-economic inequalities in health. The universal socio-economic gradient in health, where each rung lower on the socio-economic ladder implies worse health, has still not been satisfactorily explained scientifically. Because cognitive ability is related to a multitude of social outcomes in a similarly graded manner, hypothesising that cognitive ability plays a major role in health inequalities by socio-economic status is appealing. Recent empirical studies have shown that at least part of socio-economic health inequalities can indeed be explained by differences in cognitive ability. However, this does not imply that we should be pessimistic about future attempts to break the chain that links socio-economic status and cognitive ability with health. During some life stages, environmental factors may be able to influence cognitive ability. Interventions may therefore be targeted in order to optimize these effects. In addition, there is evidence that cognitive ability is correlated with health-related behaviours such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and obesity. Therefore, another opportunity for reducing health inequalities related to cognitive ability and socio-economic status would be to develop tailored interventions to improve health-related behaviours in disadvantaged groups. However, the first priority is to further investigate the role of cognitive ability in health inequalities by examining various health outcomes, different age groups and variations across the life course.

Socio-economic conditioning as a determinant of rural development in the Opole voivodeship – an attempt to diagnose

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna Mijal

2012-04-01

Full Text Available The issue of multidimensional changes taking place in rural areas has become a subject of interest to both sociologists, gerontoeducators, economists and management experts. The detailed analysis of rural areas under conditions of ambiguity and clear differences in their characteristic features (depopulation, suburbanization enables taking into consideration not only trends of alterations, but also their causes, consequences and corrective measures in the development strategy. In this context, the analysis of the changes that have occurred in rural areas in the Opole voivodeship in 2000-2010 in the perspective of 2035 seems to be especially interesting. The main aim of the article is to draw attention to the impact of socio-economic conditioning (demography, migration, economic and professional activity on contemporary and authentic view of the fine, but clearly aging country in the Opole voivodeship, burdened with adverse population growth and high net migration rate.

How does Socio-Economic Factors Influence Interest to Go to Vocational High Schools?

Science.gov (United States)

Utomo, N. F.; Wonggo, D.

2018-02-01

This study is aimed to reveal the interest of the students of junior high schools in Sangihe Islands, Indonesia, to go to vocational high schools and the affecting factors. This study used the quantitative method with the ex-post facto approach. The population consisted of 332 students, and the sample of 178 students was established using the proportional random sampling technique applying Isaac table’s 5% error standard. The results show that family’s socio-economic condition positively contributes 26% to interest to go to vocational high schools thus proving that family’s socio-economic condition is influential and contribute to junior high school students’ interest to go to vocational high schools.

English- and Spanish-speaking Latina mothers' beliefs about food, health, and mothering.

Science.gov (United States)

Gomel, Jessica N; Zamora, Angela

2007-10-01

Parent beliefs regarding food, health, and child feeding behaviors among Latinos have not been well-documented. A series of eight focus groups were conducted with English-speaking and Spanish-speaking low-income Latina mothers of preschoolers to investigate their beliefs regarding how food and food preparation are related to their children's health and to their own roles as mothers. Systematic content analysis using NUDIST 6 revealed seven themes discussed by the focus groups. Integration of these themes revealed three major areas of consideration: (1) a lack of connection between the domains of eating, overweight, and health outcomes; (2) the role of parent modeling of eating behaviors; and (3) the use of feeding strategies that may not be conducive to the development of healthy eating behaviors. Furthermore, the data suggest that there are important distinctions among Latinos based on language preference, and that a "one-size-fits-all" approach to modeling Latino mothers' feeding beliefs may not be appropriate.

Difficulties in translation of socio-political texts

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Артур Нарманович Мамедов

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Belonging of Russian socio-political texts to publicistic style assumes being guided by functional approach in order to find most adequate linguistic means by transfer of pragmatic meaning of the source text. Intralinguistic meaning can slightly remain by the interpretation of German texts. Lexical and grammatical transformations help preserving semantic-syntactic structure of the target text which means achievement of the same communicative effect by the translate which is being achieved by the source text.

The Health Literacy and ESL study: a community-based intervention for Spanish-speaking adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Soto Mas, Francisco; Ji, Ming; Fuentes, Brenda O; Tinajero, Josefina

2015-04-01

Although Hispanics have a documented high risk of limited health literacy, there is a scarcity of research with this population group, and particularly with Hispanic immigrants who generally confront language barriers that have been related to low health literacy. The National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy identified community-based English-language instruction as a strategy that can facilitate a health literate society. However, the literature lacks discussion on this type of intervention. This randomized control trial aimed to test the feasibility of using conventional English-as-a-second-language (ESL) instruction for improving health literacy among Spanish-speaking adults. Objectives included the development, implementation, and evaluation of a health literacy/ESL curriculum. The Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (TOFHLA) in English was used to assess health literacy levels. Analyses included independent sample t test, chi-square, and multiple linear regression. A total of 155 people participated. Results showed a significantly higher increase in the TOFHLA posttest score in the intervention group (p = .01), and noticeable differences in health literacy levels between groups. Results indicate that ESL constitutes a promising venue for improving health literacy among Spanish-speaking adults. Incorporating health literacy-related content may provide additional benefits.

The Health Literacy and ESL Study: A Community-Based Intervention for Spanish-Speaking Adults

Science.gov (United States)

MAS, FRANCISCO SOTO; JI, MING; FUENTES, BRENDA O.; TINAJERO, JOSEFINA

2015-01-01

Although Hispanics have a documented high risk of limited health literacy, there is a scarcity of research with this population group, and particularly with Hispanic immigrants who generally confront language barriers that have been related to low health literacy. The National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy identified community-based English-language instruction as a strategy that can facilitate a health literate society. However, the literature lacks discussion on this type of intervention. This randomized control trial aimed to test the feasibility of using conventional English-as-a-second-language (ESL) instruction for improving health literacy among Spanish-speaking adults. Objectives included the development, implementation, and evaluation of a health literacy/ESL curriculum. The Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults (TOFHLA) in English was used to assess health literacy levels. Analyses included independent sample t test, chi-square, and multiple linear regression. A total of 155 people participated. Results showed a significantly higher increase in the TOFHLA posttest score in the intervention group (p = .01), and noticeable differences in health literacy levels between groups. Results indicate that ESL constitutes a promising venue for improving health literacy among Spanish-speaking adults. Incorporating health literacy-related content may provide additional benefits. PMID:25602615

Supplement for Curriculum Guide for Mathematics: Spanish-Speaking Students, Grades 4-6 = Supplemento de la guia didactica de matematicas para los estudiantes de habla hispana, cuatro-sexto grados. Field Test.

Science.gov (United States)

Chicago Board of Education, IL.

This supplementary math curriculum guide for use with Spanish-speaking, fouth through sixth grade students in Chicago public schools employs a contrastive analysis approach. Lessons are presented for objectives for which the instructional strategies used in the United States differ from those used in Spanish-speaking countries. (Objectives for…

The Socio-Political Crisis of the Siberian Region in the Post-February Period of the 1917 Revolution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mikhail I. Vtorushin

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The paper considers the problem of the Siberian region general crisis of the 1917 spring. The internal and external contradictions of the transformation process of socio-economic and political relations in Siberia are examined in terms of the post-February all- Russian revolutionary crisis development. The understanding of the socio-political Russian crisis in the spring of 1917, emerging after the February political coup, is essential in studying the revolutionary соnversion process of the early twentieth century Russian society, as this crisis has generally become the turning point in the country’s history and objectively led to the October political coup. The Russian revolutionary crisis constituents, its foreign and domestic manifestations require careful investigation in the issue formulation presented in the paper. The development specifics of the revolutionary crisis in the spring of 1917 in the trans-Uralian agricultural colony of the Russian Empire is of scientific interest, as well as the finding of its anti-crisis development scenarios in the paper presented period. The development of the nationwide crisis in Russia in the early twentieth century, due to the complex and contradictory processes of Russian society modernization in completing the industrial civilization and transition to the imperialist development stage, was complicated by the “Siberian historical issues” in the Siberian region. A set of these issues include the incompleteness of the regional peasantry land management, the contradictions between the old peasantry and Stolypin migrants, and also between the peasantry and the privileged regional Cossacks, the agricultural products export problems from Siberia to domestic and foreign markets, or marketing crisis, the contradictions between the regional and metropolis bourgeoisie, or the issue of the Siberians economic inequality, the local industry underdevelopment and the complete dependence of the local

Does parents' socio-economic status matter in intentions of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

) socio-economic status are significantly stronger than the moderate (4.56) in deciding to purchase the HPV vaccination. Socio-economic factor has a slightly negative impact (B= -0.08), and attitude (0.68), subjective norms (0.16), and behavior ...

A Longitudinal Investigation of Reading Development from Kindergarten to Grade Eight in a Spanish-Speaking Bilingual Population

Science.gov (United States)

Grimm, Ryan P.; Solari, Emily J.; Gerber, Michael M.

2018-01-01

This longitudinal study used latent growth curve modeling to investigate English literacy development in a sample of Spanish-speaking language minority students from third through eighth grade. This study also compared the sample's literacy development to the entire population of California students using state standardized test data. Second, this…

Personality and Creativity: A Study in Spanish-Speaking Children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriela Krumm

2018-02-01

Full Text Available This work aimed at studying the relationship between personality from the Big Five Personality model and creativity through different techniques (i.e., a paper and pencil task, and scales and informants (i.e., the child and parents. We evaluated a sample of 359 Spanish-speaking school children of both genders, aged 9 to 13 years. Personality was assessed with the Argentine Questionnaire of children’s Personality (CAPI. Creativity was evaluated using the following instruments: The Torrance Test of Creative Thinking-Figural Form B; and the Creative Personality Scale (EPC. Pearson correlations and multiple linear regressions consistently showed that Neuroticism related negatively to creativity while competence has a positive relation. The results suggested that more creative children presented less vulnerability, irritability and psychological distress, eventually becoming more independent, competent and emotionally self-regulated in coping with environmental demands.

Latin-American writing initiatives in engineering from Spanish-speaking countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth Narváez-Cardona

2016-09-01

Full Text Available This article analyzes Latin-American publications from Spanish Speaking countries to map programs pursued in the Region and then provide a context to envision further research agendas for Latin-American Writing Studies in engineering. The analysis of 22 publications suggests that initiatives and studies in engineering are recent (as of 2009. The sample reveals an emphasis on pedagogically-oriented publications focused on engineering as one field. The trends suggest that the Latin-American writing advocates in engineering might benefit by incorporating theoretical frameworks for a exploring and understanding different roles of writing across time and curriculum in student learning and by engineering subfields and, b exploring theoretical approaches to understand genres beyond individual texts (i.e., genre repertoires and genre systems.

Economics, socio-ecological resilience and ecosystem services

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Farley, J.; Voinov, A.

2016-01-01

The economic process transforms raw materials and energy into economic products and waste. On a finite planet, continued economic growth threatens to surpass critical socio-ecological thresholds and undermine ecosystem services upon which humans and all other species depend. For most systems,

Socio-economic impacts of nuclear generating stations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weisiger, M.L.; Pijawka, K.D.

1982-07-01

This report documents a case study of the socio-economic impacts of the construction and operation of the St. Lucie nuclear power station. It is part of a major post-licensing study of the socio-economic impacts at twelve nuclear power stations. The case study covers the period beginning with the announcement of plans to construct the reactor and ending in the period, 1980-1981. The case study deals with changes in the economy, population, settlement patterns and housing, local government and public services, social structure, and public response in the study area during the construction/operation of the reactor. A regional modeling approach is used to trace the impact of construction/operation on the local economy, labor market, and housing market. Emphasis in the study is on the attribution of socio-economic impacts to the reactor or other causal factors. As part of the study of local public response to the construction/operation of the reactor, the effects of the Three Mile Island accident are examined

Socio-compatible energy policies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Renn, O.; Albrecht, G.; Kotte, U.; Peters, H.P.; Stegelmann, H.U.

1985-01-01

The socio-compatibility project comprises three central analytical elements: 1) The arborescent value analysis: Eminent social groups (such as the trade-unions or the ecological institutes) were questioned on their values and criteria applied to evaluate different energy systems. 2) The energy system and scenario impact analysis: Indicators deduced from the arborescent value analysis serve to approximately cover the value dimensions affected by above criteria. 3) Impact analysis weighing executed by a group of arbitrarily chosen citizens. All reflections considered, it is evident that none of the energy policies discussed may claim the title 'socio-compatible'. The individual, i.e. neither scientist nor politician, cannot decide upon the socio-compatibility of one or the other concept. An altogether socially compatible solution accepted and classified as such by different social groups may only crystallize and be set against different options by the political formation of opinion. The studys' primary concern lies in furnishing information, i.e. aids for politicians having to decide on energy policies. Above all the study aimed at finding out about reactions, social protest, opposition or approval to be coped with by those who, having the say in political matters, want to speak up for one of the energy policies under public discussion. (orig./HSCH) [de

Stroop Color-Word Interference Test: Normative data for Spanish-speaking pediatric population.

Science.gov (United States)

Rivera, D; Morlett-Paredes, A; Peñalver Guia, A I; Irías Escher, M J; Soto-Añari, M; Aguayo Arelis, A; Rute-Pérez, S; Rodríguez-Lorenzana, A; Rodríguez-Agudelo, Y; Albaladejo-Blázquez, N; García de la Cadena, C; Ibáñez-Alfonso, J A; Rodriguez-Irizarry, W; García-Guerrero, C E; Delgado-Mejía, I D; Padilla-López, A; Vergara-Moragues, E; Barrios Nevado, M D; Saracostti Schwartzman, M; Arango-Lasprilla, J C

2017-01-01

To generate normative data for the Stroop Word-Color Interference test in Spanish-speaking pediatric populations. The sample consisted of 4,373 healthy children from nine countries in Latin America (Chile, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Puerto Rico) and Spain. Each participant was administered the Stroop Word-Color Interference test as part of a larger neuropsychological battery. The Stroop Word, Stroop Color, Stroop Word-Color, and Stroop Interference scores were normed using multiple linear regressions and standard deviations of residual values. Age, age2, sex, and mean level of parental education (MLPE) were included as predictors in the analyses. The final multiple linear regression models showed main effects for age on all scores, except on Stroop Interference for Guatemala, such that scores increased linearly as a function of age. Age2 affected Stroop Word scores for all countries, Stroop Color scores for Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Spain; Stroop Word-Color scores for Ecuador, Mexico, and Paraguay; and Stroop Interference scores for Cuba, Guatemala, and Spain. MLPE affected Stroop Word scores for Chile, Mexico, and Puerto Rico; Stroop Color scores for Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Spain; Stroop Word-Color scores for Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Spain; and Stroop-Interference scores for Ecuador, Mexico, and Spain. Sex affected Stroop Word scores for Spain, Stroop Color scores for Mexico, and Stroop Interference for Honduras. This is the largest Spanish-speaking pediatric normative study in the world, and it will allow neuropsychologists from these countries to have a more accurate approach to interpret the Stroop Word-Color Interference test in pediatric populations.

Oral health in children and adolescents with different socio-cultural and socio-economic backgrounds

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Lisa Bøge; Twetman, Svante; Sundby, Annette

2010-01-01

OBJECTIVES: To describe the occurrence and severity of dental caries in children and adolescents and to relate these findings to the subject's socio-cultural and socio-economic backgrounds. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study in 12 706 children aged 5, 7, 12 and 15 years was conducted...... in 2006. Data on children's caries experience were collected from public oral health registers and pooled with socio-cultural and socio-economic data obtained from official statistics. The study population represented 76% of all registered inhabitants. RESULTS: Among 5- and 7-year-old children with non...... preventive strategy is proposed to meet the needs of children in risk of caries, and appropriate oral health-promotion programmes should be organized in collaboration with leaders from different ethnic minorities....

Incentive schemes in development of socio-economic systems

Science.gov (United States)

Grachev, V. V.; Ivushkin, K. A.; Myshlyaev, L. P.

2018-05-01

The paper is devoted to the study of incentive schemes when developing socio-economic systems. The article analyzes the existing incentive schemes. It is established that the traditional incentive mechanisms do not fully take into account the specifics of the creation of each socio-economic system and, as a rule, are difficult to implement. The incentive schemes based on the full-scale simulation approach, which allow the most complete information from the existing projects of creation of socio-economic systems to be extracted, are proposed. The statement of the problem is given, the method and algorithm of the full-scale simulation study of the efficiency of incentive functions is developed. The results of the study are presented. It is shown that the use of quadratic and piecewise linear functions of incentive allows the time and costs for creating social and economic systems to be reduced by 10%-15%.

Nursing as a career choice: perceptions of school students speaking Arabic, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish, Turkish or Vietnamese at home.

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, K C; Duffield, C; Chen, X C; Choucair, S; Creegan, R; Mak, C; Lesley, G

1999-01-01

Australia is a multicultural society and nowhere is this more evident than in Sydney where 25% of the population speaks a language other than English. In one of the largest area health services in New South Wales, the five most frequently spoken languages at home are Arabic, Serbo-Croatian, Spanish, Turkish or Vietnamese, with these language groups comprising 12% of Sydney's population. Yet nurses speaking one of these five languages comprise less than 1% of the nursing workforce. A cost-effective method of addressing the shortage of nurses speaking languages other than English is to recruit students who already speak another language into the profession. This study examined high school students' perceptions of nursing in order to determine appropriate methods of recruiting students speaking one of these languages. Implications for the design of recruitment campaigns are also discussed.

The Unified Language Testing Plan: Speaking Proficiency Test. Spanish and English Pilot Validation Studies. Report Number 1.

Science.gov (United States)

Thornton, Julie A.

This report describes one segment of the Federal Language Testing Board's Unified Language Testing Plan (ULTP), the validation of speaking proficiency tests in Spanish and English. The ULTP is a project to increase standardization of foreign language proficiency measurement and promote sharing of resources among testing programs in the federal…

ANALYSIS OF THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF UKRAINIAN REGIONS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Оlena Kozyreva

2017-11-01

Full Text Available For a long period of time from 1991 to 2016, the socio-economic development of Ukrainian regions was characterized by enhanced differentiation and persistent inequality. Permanent preservation of the gap between the maximum and minimum values of indicators of socio-economic development of regions, in particular, the GRP per capita (8.8 times in 2014; disposable income of populace (10.3% in 2015; unemployment rate according to ILO methodology (in 2.8 times in January-September 2016, the volume of realized industrial products (38,9 times in January-September 2016 indicate the persistence of centre-periphery relations between regions in the economic space of the country. This situation reduces the overall efficiency of the economy, which is reflected by the decline of Ukraine’s position in the rankings of international organizations. According to the global competitiveness index in 2015, Ukraine has shifted from 76 to 79 place compared with 2014, according to the Index of Human Development, there was a slight increase from 83 to 81 place. To crown it all, taking into account the complexity of modern processes of Ukrainian regions’ socio-economic development, the total assessment of determination of Ukrainian regions’ levels of socio-economic development is required. The purpose of the article implies prompting the research results of determining the problem concerning the consolidated assessment of the socio-economic development of Ukrainian regions. Methodology. The article examines the processes of socio-economic development of Ukrainian regions and offers an analytical scheme of identification stage of problematic of the regions’ socioeconomic development. The article justifies a system of partial indicators and on its basis calculates the integral and generalizing indicators of economic and social development of Ukrainian regions. Analysis of recent researches and publications. Issues of spatial development of the country’s regions

Socio-economic factors affecting the participation of women in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Tools for the analyses were percentages and Chi-Square (χ2), used to test existence of relationships between level of participation and socio-economic characteristics of respondents, and correlation analysis, used to test cause-effect relationship between socio-economic variables and some indicators of cooperative ...

Supplement for Curriculum Guide for Mathematics: Spanish-Speaking Students, Grades 7-8 = Supplemento de la guia didactica de matematicas para los estudiantes de habla hispana, septimo y octavo grados. Field Test.

Science.gov (United States)

Chicago Board of Education, IL.

This supplementary math curriculum guide for use with Spanish-speaking students in Chicago public schools' seventh and eighth grade classes employs a contrastive analysis approach. Lessons are presented for objectives for which the instructional strategies used in the United States differ from those in Spanish-speaking countries. (Objectives for…

SOCIO-ECONOMIC BACKGROUND BELT THE ORGANIZATION OF COTTON PRODUCTION-RAW

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Juraev

2016-01-01

Full Text Available An important requirement imposed; to the strategy of creating a new cotton complex of Tajikistan is its scientific basis in regional – territorial aspect, reflecting the diversity of natural, socio - economic, demographic, geographic and other conditions of the country. If you save the backlog of the industry that is currently taking place, the formation of the basic foundations of the national economy which includes the "Cotton Complex", will be less effective and risky in the socio-economic terms, and would not be achievable conditions for solving a class of useful employment of the rural population. Building a cotton complex objective requires historical – economic approach, ie methodological basis of the values of the industry and its place in the structure of the national economy, which is based on the following scientific – practical approaches: the use of storage still scientific and – technical knowledge; restoring the level of mechanization of agriculture – economic activities; recovery of hydraulic structures; evidence – based delivery of balanced fertilizer elemental based standards; functioning of agrochemical service; the Organization of the introduction of high-yielding seed varieties of cotton resistant to disease; meet the needs of manufacturers of bank loans; the creation of agricultural service workers, taking into account the world practice; create a system of state support for rural enterprise including a system of benefi ts and privileges.

Assessing biodiversity risks with socio economic methods: the ALARM experience

OpenAIRE

2009-01-01

Humans play an undeniable role in the acceleration of threats to the diversity of ecosystems, species and genes. This book is a response to the urgent need of policy oriented socio-ecological research, profoundly based on empirical evidence. Socio-environmental patterns and political responses are compared through the use of case studies analyzing a range of pressures to biodiversity. Aquatic bioinvasions in the Ebro River and Lake Izabal exemplify socio-environmental processes linked to rive...

Socio-economic impact of nuclear reactor decommissioning at Vandellos I NPP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liliana Yetta Pandi

2013-01-01

Currently nuclear reactors in Indonesia has been outstanding for more than 30 years, the possibility of nuclear reactors will be decommissioned. Closure of the operation or decommissioning of nuclear reactors will have socio-economic impacts. The socioeconomic impacts occur to workers, local communities and wider society. In this paper we report on socio-economic impacts of nuclear reactors decommissioning and lesson learned that can be drawn from the socio-economic impacts decommissioning Vandellos I nuclear power plant in Spain. Socio-economic impact due to decommissioning of nuclear reactor occurs at installation worker, local community and wider community. (author)

Chronic suppurative otitis media: Socio-economic implications in a ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Chronic suppurative otitis media: Socio-economic implications in a tertiary hospital in Northern Nigeria. ... This paper highlights the socio-economic burden of chronic suppurative otitis media on a ... minimum wage for individuals in our environment where the cost of health care is the sole responsibility of the patient.

Socio-economic and cultural determinants of human african trypanosomiasis at the Kenya - Uganda transboundary.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jane Jemeli Rutto

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Kenya and Uganda have reported different Human African Trypanosomiasis incidences in the past more than three decades, with the latter recording more cases. This cross-sectional study assessed the demographic characteristics, tsetse and trypanosomiasis control practices, socio-economic and cultural risk factors influencing Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense (T.b.r. infection in Teso and Busia Districts, Western Kenya and Tororo and Busia Districts, Southeast Uganda. A conceptual framework was postulated to explain interactions of various socio-economic, cultural and tsetse control factors that predispose individuals and populations to HAT. METHODS: A cross-sectional household survey was conducted between April and October 2008. Four administrative districts reporting T.b.r and lying adjacent to each other at the international boundary of Kenya and Uganda were purposely selected. Household data collection was carried out in two villages that had experienced HAT and one other village that had no reported HAT case from 1977 to 2008 in each district. A structured questionnaire was administered to 384 randomly selected household heads or their representatives in each country. The percent of respondents giving a specific answer was reported. Secondary data was also obtained on socio-economic and political issues in both countries. RESULTS: Inadequate knowledge on the disease cycle and intervention measures contributed considerable barriers to HAT, and more so in Uganda than in Kenya. Gender-associated socio-cultural practices greatly predisposed individuals to HAT. Pesticides-based crop husbandry in the 1970's reportedly reduced vector population while vegetation of coffee and banana's and livestock husbandry directly increased occurrence of HAT. Livestock husbandry practices in the villages were strong predictors of HAT incidence. The residents in Kenya (6.7% applied chemoprophylaxis and chemotherapeutic controls against trypanosomiasis to a

Supplement for Curriculum Guide for Mathematics: Spanish-Speaking Students, Grades 2-3 = Supplemento de la guia didactica de matematicas para los estudiantes de habla hispana, segundo y tercer grados. Field Test.

Science.gov (United States)

Chicago Board of Education, IL.

A contrastive analysis approach is used in this supplementary math curriculum guide for Spanish-speaking second and third grade students in Chicago public schools. Lessons are presented for those objectives for which the instructional strategies used in the United States differ from those used in Spanish-speaking countries. (Objectives for which…

Traditional foods and practices of Spanish-speaking latina mothers influence the home food environment: Implications for future interventions

Science.gov (United States)

The goal of this study was to obtain in-depth information from low income, Spanish-speaking Latino families with young children to guide the development of culturally appropriate nutrition interventions. Focus groups were used to assess parent’s knowledge about healthful eating, the home food enviro...

Economic Theory, Economic Reality And Economic Policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dmitry Evgenievich Sorokin

2015-03-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the opposition between the «liberals» and «statists» in the Russian political and economic thought. It demonstrates that the economic liberalization is an absolute prerequisite for the transition to sustainable socio-economic development. Such development must rely on investment activities of the state, which in the current circumstances is a necessary but not sufficient measure for reversing the negative trends. The negative developments can be prevented only through implementation, along with the institutional changes in the economic area that form a strata of economically independent entrepreneurs-innovators, of no less profound transformation in political institutions aimed at democratization of public life

Maternal life course socio-economic position and offspring body composition at birth in a multi-ethnic population.

Science.gov (United States)

Sletner, Line; Jenum, Anne Karen; Mørkrid, Kjersti; Vangen, Siri; Holme, Ingar M; Birkeland, Kåre I; Nakstad, Britt

2014-09-01

Size and body composition at birth may affect long-term health. Mean birthweight and body composition differ between ethnic groups living in Europe. We wanted to explore if this relates to differences in socio-economic conditions in country of origin and over the maternal life course. This is a population-based cohort study of healthy pregnant women living in Oslo, Norway. Data on maternal early life and present socio-economic position (SEP) were collected in early gestation, and SEP scores were extracted through two separate principal components analyses. The associations between maternal present SEP and four different offspring anthropometric measures at birth were assessed separately, stratified by maternal early life SEP (dichotomised score) and Human Development Index (HDI, a country-level socio-economic indicator) in the country of origin [high HDI (Reference), n = 287 and low HDI, n = 250]. A strong positive association between maternal present SEP and offspring birthweight was observed if maternal early life SEP was high, but not if maternal early life SEP was low (P countries had smaller abdominal circumference, possibly indicating less fat-free mass, regardless of maternal life course SEP. Our results suggest that there are transgenerational effects of maternal past socio-economic conditions on offspring size and body composition at birth that modify the associations with present socio-economic factors. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Association between individual-level and community-level socio-economic status and blood pressure among Inuit in Greenland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mylène Riva

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Despite abundant evidence that socio-economic status (SES is a fundamental determinant of health, there is a dearth of research examining association between SES, measured at the individual and community levels, and cardiovascular risk factors and morbidity among indigenous populations. Objectives: To examine the influence of individual-level and community-level SES on systolic and diastolic blood pressure among Greenlandic Inuit. Methods: Multilevel analysis of cross-sectional data from the Inuit Health in Transition – Greenland Survey, to which 3,108 Greenlandic Inuit aged 18 years and older participated. Blood pressure is measured using an automatic device, according to standardized protocol. Individual SES is measured by education. Community socio-economic conditions are measured using combined information on average disposable household income and settlement type. Results: Education was not significantly associated with blood pressure. There was an inverse U-shape association between community socio-economic conditions and blood pressure with significantly lower SBP and DBP among participants living in remote traditional villages characterized by lower average disposable household income and in affluent more urbanized towns. Sex-stratified analyses demonstrate the salience of community conditions for men. Conclusions: The association observed between blood pressure and community-level socio-economic conditions suggests that public health and social policies, programmes and interventions aiming to improve living conditions might improve cardiovascular health in Greenland. Studies are required to further examine social gradients in cardiovascular risk factors and morbidity among indigenous populations using different measures of SES.

Association between individual-level and community-level socio-economic status and blood pressure among Inuit in Greenland.

Science.gov (United States)

Riva, Mylène; Larsen, Christina Viskum Lytken; Bjerregaard, Peter

2016-01-01

Despite abundant evidence that socio-economic status (SES) is a fundamental determinant of health, there is a dearth of research examining association between SES, measured at the individual and community levels, and cardiovascular risk factors and morbidity among indigenous populations. To examine the influence of individual-level and community-level SES on systolic and diastolic blood pressure among Greenlandic Inuit. Multilevel analysis of cross-sectional data from the Inuit Health in Transition - Greenland Survey, to which 3,108 Greenlandic Inuit aged 18 years and older participated. Blood pressure is measured using an automatic device, according to standardized protocol. Individual SES is measured by education. Community socio-economic conditions are measured using combined information on average disposable household income and settlement type. Education was not significantly associated with blood pressure. There was an inverse U-shape association between community socio-economic conditions and blood pressure with significantly lower SBP and DBP among participants living in remote traditional villages characterized by lower average disposable household income and in affluent more urbanized towns. Sex-stratified analyses demonstrate the salience of community conditions for men. The association observed between blood pressure and community-level socio-economic conditions suggests that public health and social policies, programmes and interventions aiming to improve living conditions might improve cardiovascular health in Greenland. Studies are required to further examine social gradients in cardiovascular risk factors and morbidity among indigenous populations using different measures of SES.

Socio-economic disparities in health system responsiveness in India.

Science.gov (United States)

Malhotra, Chetna; Do, Young Kyung

2013-03-01

To assess the magnitude of socio-economic disparities in health system responsiveness in India after correcting for potential reporting heterogeneity by socio-economic characteristics (education and wealth). Data from Wave 1 of the Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (2007-2008) involving six Indian states were used. Seven health system responsiveness domains were considered for a respondent's last visit to an outpatient service in 12 months: prompt attention, dignity, clarity of information, autonomy, confidentiality, choice and quality of basic amenities. Hierarchical ordered probit models (correcting for reporting heterogeneity through anchoring vignettes) were used to assess the association of socio-economic characteristics with the seven responsiveness domains, controlling for age, gender and area of residence. Stratified analysis was also conducted among users of public and private health facilities. Our statistical models accounting for reporting heterogeneity revealed socio-economic disparities in all health system responsiveness domains. Estimates suggested that individuals from the lowest wealth group, for example, were less likely than individuals from the highest wealth group to report 'very good' on the dignity domain by 8% points (10% vs 18%). Stratified analysis showed that such disparities existed among users of both public and private health facilities. Socio-economic disparities exist in health system responsiveness in India, irrespective of the type of health facility used. Policy efforts to monitor and improve these disparities are required at the health system level.

Local power production at the end consumer - legal, political and economical external conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grinden, Bjoern; Hunnes, Arngrim; Naesje, Paal; Wangensteen, Ivar; Morch, Andrei Z.

2002-12-01

The report deals with the external conditions for local power production, suggested as a production close to or at the end consumer. The political, legal and economical frame conditions for such production including rating are discussed. The report shall together with a technical report regarding appropriate technologies for such production (A5712), serve as a basis for case studies and monitors later in the project. Through the case studies it will be uncovered how the external conditions are functioning which will make foundations for recommendations concerning possible alterations in the conditions in order to make the local power production more profitable. In the discussion on the political and legal external conditions the system of today is studied. From the political area the general development is described and a short analysis is made of what to expect from case handling procedures, and some challenges are pointed out At present there is a simplified handling of cases of minor and smaller power plants. In order to obtain a more realistic construction of such plants the requirements of license handling may need sharpening. The tariffing of energy deliverance is studied. The regulations for tariffing and income regulation in the distribution network is mainly designed with the consumer and the central power production in mind. A study is made of how the regulations work, to what extent precessions and additional rules are needed and to what extent alterations in the regulations are needed in order to incorporate the local power production in a rational way. While a local power producer at best, will want a price for power which is sold at the power market of the size of 20 oere/kWh, the power will increase in value further down in the voltage level. At the 230 V level the power price will be of the size of 60 oere/kWh all expenses included and the network rent (during normal precipitation conditions). Therefore the production for own consumption will be met

Psychometric properties of the Plutchik´s Violence Risk Scale on adolescent sample of Spanish-speaking population.

Science.gov (United States)

Alcázar-Córcoles, Miguel Á; Verdejo-García, Antonio; Bouso-Sáiz, José C

2016-01-01

The objective of the present study was the validation and scaling of the Plutchik's Violence Risk Scale (EV) in adolescent Spanish-speaking population. For this purpose, a sample of adolescents from El Salvador, Mexico and Spain was obtained. The sample consisted of 1035 participants with a mean age of 16.2. There were 450 adolescents from forensic population (those who committed crime) and 585 adolescents from normal population (no crime committed). The internal consistency of the EV was estimated by Cronbach's alpha coefficient and with a value of 0.782. As for validity, the factorial structures found explain a large proportion of the variance (53.385%); the convergent validity was estimated by the correlation between the dimensions found, the EV and sociodemographic, criminological and personality variables. The developed scales are presented, for the first time in a cross-cultural sample, differentiating between gender and continent. Consequently, the obtained results suggest that the EV is a valid and reliable instrument within adolescent Spanish-speaking population. Furthermore, it is a quick scale, easy to apply, which is something valuable in forensic assessment.

Developing Sustainable and Impactful Mobile Phone HIV Testing Interventions for Spanish-Speaking Men Who Have Sex With Men in the United States: Lessons Learned From Informative Interviews.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Jason; Torres, Maria Beatriz; Asmar, Lucy; Danh, Thu; Horvath, Keith J

2018-04-24

Although many men who have sex with men (MSM) test for HIV at least once in their lifetime, opportunities to improve regular HIV testing, particularly among Hispanic or Latino MSM, is needed. Many mHealth interventions in development, including the ones on HIV testing, have primarily focused on English-speaking white, black, and MSM of other races. To date, no studies have assessed app use, attitudes, and motivations for downloading and sustaining use of mobile apps and preferences with respect to HIV prevention among Spanish-speaking, Hispanic MSM in the United States. The primary aims of this study were to determine what features and functions of smartphone apps do Hispanic, Spanish-speaking MSM believe are associated with downloading apps to their smartphones, (2) what features and functions of smartphone apps are most likely to influence men's sustained use of apps over time, and (3) what features and functions do men prefer in a smartphone app aimed to promote regular testing for HIV. Interviews (N=15) were conducted with a racially diverse group of sexually active, HIV-negative, Spanish-speaking, Hispanic MSM in Miami, Florida. Interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed verbatim, translated back to English, and de-identified for analysis. A constant-comparison method (ie, grounded theory coding) was employed to examine themes that emerged from the interviews. Personal interest was the primary reason associated with whether men downloaded an app. Keeping personal information secure, cost, influence by peers and posted reviews, ease of use, and functionality affected whether they downloaded and used the app over time. Men also reported that entertainment value and frequency of updates influenced whether they kept and continued to use an app over time. There were 4 reasons why participants chose to delete an app-dislike, lack of use, cost, and lack of memory or space. Participants also shared their preferences for an app to encourage regular HIV testing by

The Prospects of Modernization of the Mechanism for Budgetary Regulation of the Socio-Economic Development of Lviv City

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pidkhomnyi Oleg M.

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The socio-economic development of country and its individual territories depends on the efficiency of both accumulation and allocation of financial resources, which is determined by the effectiveness of budget process. Therefore the purpose of the article is theoretical and practical substantiation of prospects for modernization of the mechanism for budgetary regulation of the socio-economic development on the example of Lviv. Features and the main instruments of budgetary regulation of the socio-economic development of the city were researched. The efficiency of allocation and accumulation of budgetary funds, including through tax policy and the inter-budget transfers, was analyzed. Tendencies of changes of indicators of the socio-economic condition of Lviv and influence on them of three main elements of the budget regulation mechanism have been determined. Shortcomings of the existing mechanism for budgetary regulation of socio-economic development of the city have been defined, prospective directions of its modernization have been suggested.

Economic Growth as a Factor of Political Stability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Анна Олеговна Ярославцева

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The article analyzes actual problems of the impact of economic growth on the political stability of different state. The author shows that despite the undoubted correlation of the level of economic development and political stability, economic growth by itself is not a panacea for destabilization risks because of the effects of inflated expectations and transformations of social consciousness. The author argues that the impact of economic growth on political stability is largely ambivalent. On the basis of “Tocqueville's law” and the range of theories of “relative deprivation”, the author makes a conclusion about the principal limitations of predictive and interpretive capabilities of economic indicators (primarily economic growth for the analysis of political stability.

Dynamic motifs in socio-economic networks

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xin; Shao, Shuai; Stanley, H. Eugene; Havlin, Shlomo

2014-12-01

Socio-economic networks are of central importance in economic life. We develop a method of identifying and studying motifs in socio-economic networks by focusing on “dynamic motifs,” i.e., evolutionary connection patterns that, because of “node acquaintances” in the network, occur much more frequently than random patterns. We examine two evolving bi-partite networks: i) the world-wide commercial ship chartering market and ii) the ship build-to-order market. We find similar dynamic motifs in both bipartite networks, even though they describe different economic activities. We also find that “influence” and “persistence” are strong factors in the interaction behavior of organizations. When two companies are doing business with the same customer, it is highly probable that another customer who currently only has business relationship with one of these two companies, will become customer of the second in the future. This is the effect of influence. Persistence means that companies with close business ties to customers tend to maintain their relationships over a long period of time.

Ageing of power plants socio-economical, sanitary and environmental impact; Veillissement des centrales Impacts socio-economiques, sanitaires et environnementaux

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bataille, Ch. [Depute du nord (France); Denner, M. [EDF pour la Region Bourgogne (France); Vouilloux, F. [Institut de Radioprotection et de Surete Nucleaire, 92 - Fontenay-aux-Roses (France); Foucher, L. [Direction Generale de la Surete Nucleaire et de la Radioprotection, 75 - Paris (France); Serviere, M. [Electricite de France (EDF), 75 - Paris (France); Vila d' Abadal Serra, M

2005-07-01

The National Association of the local Commissions of Information (A.N.C.L.I.) presents a colloquium about the ageing of nuclear power plants. The different following points are presented. The life cycle of nuclear power plants and the new types of reactors. The ageing of power plants: stakes and perspectives for the French and world nuclear park. A power plant of 30 years is it sure? The role of the studies of ageing and the follow-up according to the age. Stop or continue to exploit a nuclear power plant: who decides, when and how. The socio-economic consequences of a stop of power plant: the Spanish experience. Ten-year visits of a power plant: the associative experience. 58 reactors today: how to assume their end of life and welcome equipments to come. (N.C.)

Socio-economic analysis of CCS/EOR in Denmark; Samfundsoekonomisk analyse af CCS/EOR i Danmark

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2012-12-15

The Danish Energy Agency has initiated an analysis of the socio-economic sustainability of a CCS / EOR system based on CO{sub 2} capture from Danish sources and injected into selected Danish North Sea oil fields. The analysis shall assess the socioeconomic consequences of such a project as well as highlight the budgetary economic effects for the parties involved. Taking into account a realistic time frame for conversion of the cogeneration power plants and for the extent of the possible capture of CO{sub 2} in each of these plants, it has been chosen only to presuppose the establishment of CCS in three plants, namely Studstrupvaerket, Fynsvaerket and Nordjyllandsvaerket. Only the oil fields Dan, Halfdan and Gorm were selected for the analysis. The analysis shows that in the selected oil fields it is possible to increase the oil production by approx. 151 million. barrels of oil to the year 2049, which corresponds to approx. 40% of the estimated potential in these fields. The increased oil production requires that approx. 95 million. tonnes of CO{sub 2} is captured in the three power plants, which are subsequently transported and injected in the oil fields in the North Sea. The transport of CO{sub 2} from the CHP plants to the North Sea are assumed to be done by ship, since this solution is economically favorable and also offers logistical advantages and increased flexibility. The analysis shows that both the budget economic and the socio-economic analysis as a whole provide a positive economic net present value over a 30-year period. The socio-economic benefit is expected to be about. 3.5 billion DKK higher. This difference is due to especially the following conditions: a) CO{sub 2} emissions of CO{sub 2} transport are only included in the socio-economic analysis, since shipping is outside the quota system. In the socio-economic analysis, the estimated value of damage impact on the environment is included; b) The value of the oil produced after 2049 is included in

A Socio-Economic Portrait of Foreign Students in Poland – as Exemplified by Students from Former CIS Studying at WSB University in Wroclaw

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Majkut Robert

2016-12-01

Full Text Available A noticeably increased intensity of migration becomes a very important issue with regard to economic, socio-cultural and political matters. Broader flow of people results in the occurrence of numerous threats, but also provides opportunities and benefits for both the participants of migration flows, and the areas to which the flow is directed. An important role in this process is played by the students, who con stitute a special category of immigrants. The article contains a socio-economic characteristics of foreign students from countries of the former CIS, with the emphasis on their reasons for immigration, organizing their new life abroad, life plans and in particular their economic activity. The core purpose of the article is to identify the mechanisms of adaptation of foreign students as a specific category of immigrants to functioning in the new socioeconomic environment. The article, in addition to its cognitive merit, also has a practical purpose. The problems and obstacles faced by foreign students in Poland form a basis for general recommendations for actions aimed at improving the conditions of functioning of foreign students in the new realities.

Socio-economic differences in health risk behavior in adolescence : Do they exist?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tuinstra, J; Groothoff, JW; Van den Heuvel, WJA; Post, D

Socio-economic differences in risk behaviors in adolescence can be seen as a prelude to the re-emergence of socio-economic health differences in adulthood. We studied whether or not socio-economic differences in health risk behaviors are present in male and female adolescents in The Netherlands. The

To what extent does IQ 'explain' socio-economic variations in function?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

van Eijk Jacques

2007-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The aims of this study were to examine the extent to which higher intellectual abilities protect higher socio-economic groups from functional decline and to examine whether the contribution of intellectual abilities is independent of childhood deprivation and low birth weight and other socio-economic and developmental factors in early life. Methods The Maastricht Aging Study (MAAS is a prospective cohort study based upon participants in a registration network of general practices in The Netherlands. Information was available on 1211 men and women, 24 – 81 years old, who were without cognitive impairment at baseline (1993 – 1995, who ever had a paid job, and who participated in the six-year follow-up. Main outcomes were longitudinal decline in important components of quality of life and successful aging, i.e., self-reported physical, affective, and cognitive functioning. Results Persons with a low occupational level at baseline showed more functional decline than persons with a high occupational level. Socio-economic and developmental factors from early life hardly contributed to the adult socio-economic differences in functional decline. Intellectual abilities, however, took into account more than one third of the association between adult socio-economic status and functional decline. The contribution of the intellectual abilities was independent of the early life factors. Conclusion Rather than developmental and socio-economic characteristics of early life, the findings substantiate the importance of intellectual abilities for functional decline and their contribution – as potential, but neglected confounders – to socio-economic differences in functioning, successful aging, and quality of life. The higher intellectual abilities in the higher socio-economic status groups may also underlie the higher prevalences of mastery, self-efficacy and efficient coping styles in these groups.

Applied Developmental Science, Social Justice, and Socio-Political Well-Being

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, Celia B.; Busch-Rossnagel, Nancy A.; Jopp, Daniela S.; Brown, Joshua L.

2012-01-01

In this article we present a vision of applied developmental science (ADS) as a means of promoting social justice and socio-political well-being. This vision draws upon the field's significant accomplishments in identifying and strengthening developmental assets in marginalized youth communities, understanding the effects of poverty and racial…

Breastfeeding : Gender and Socio-Economic Dimensions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yogi Pasca Pratama

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This study aims to examine breastfeeding behavior from a gender perspective and socio-economic dimension. The legal basis and internal and external factors of breastfeeding behavior are the main issues. Breastfeeding views are also studied in terms of working women, in response to the increasingly expensive economic needs of women to help the family economy by entering the labor market, while women also have an obligation to engage in breastfeeding activities. This study uses literature method, by collecting all the literature related to the breastfeeding process, the legal basis that supports, and the factors that can inhibit and the way to succeed exclusive breastfeeding issues. This study found the fact that there is a misconception of society about breastfeeding that the breastfeeding process is not optimal, the modernization also makes women who should breastfeed to make new choices instead of breastfeeding obligations for their children.   Keywords: breastfeeding, gender, socio-economic JEL Classification: I15, Z10

The impact of socio-political environment on the perception of science - a comparative study of German and Israeli approaches to science education

Science.gov (United States)

Schneider, S.; Rabinowitz, D.

2017-12-01

At the interface of environmental anthropology, social science, education research, and Earth Sciences, this presentation will look at Earth science education in school and out-of-school settings in Germany and Israel. We will focus on divergent cultural concepts of nature and science within the four-columned societal system in Israel: the secular Israeli community, which is oriented on western standards and concepts, the orthodox community with a stronger focus on merging scientific and religious approaches to understanding the Earth system, the Arabian community in Israel, which is strongly influenced by the Arabian science tradition as well as by confined monetary resources, and the ultra-orthodox community where science education seems to be totally abandoned in favor of Thora-studies. These environments, alongside a more homogeneous Germany educational system, resample an experimental setting with differences in a manageable number of parameters. We will analyze educational material used by the different communities in terms of the presented functions and services of the Earth sciences as well as in respect to the image of Earth sciences constructed by educational material of the observed communities. The aim of this project is to look for evidence that allows to attribute significant differences in education concepts to formal socio-political settings in the observed communities. The term Socio-political environment as used in this project proposal describes the context that is predetermined by cultural, political, and religious traditions. It described the pre-conditions in which communication takes place. Within this presentation, we will discuss the concept of socio-political environments. One of our hypothesis is, that the intensity of differences in Earth science community will be associated with differences in the socio-political environment. Influences of cultural, political, and religious boundary conditions will provide an insight into alterations

Moving forward socio-economically focused models of deforestation

OpenAIRE

DEZÉCACHE CAMILLE; SALLES JEAN-MICHEL; VIEILLEDENT GHISLAIN; HÉRAULT BRUNO

2017-01-01

While high resolution spatial variables contribute to a good fit of spatially-explicit deforestation models, socio-economic processes are often beyond the scope of these models. Such a low level of interest in the socio-economic dimension of deforestation limits the relevancy of these models for decision making and may be the cause of their failure to accurately predict observed deforestation trends in the medium term. This study aims to propose a flexible methodology for taking into account ...

Socio-Economic and Cultural Factors Influencing Access and Success of Women in Political Leadership in Kenya

Science.gov (United States)

Kaluyu, Veronicah

2015-01-01

In the 21st century, women and leadership have been a global topical issue, especially with countries trying to interpret and implement the millennium development goals, and with increased awareness of human rights. In Africa, political leadership among women has had its own challenges that range from social, cultural and even economic factors. In…

A globalization-oriented perspective on health, inequality and socio-economic development.

Science.gov (United States)

Tausch, Arno

2012-01-01

There has been an attention to inequality as a causal factor for deficient health in the medical journals over the last decades (Richard G. Wilkinson et al. and Schnell et al.); however, the reasons for inequality and the interactions of the underlying causes of inequality at the level of the world economy have not yet been properly explored in this kind of literature. The aim of this article is to provide a new, globalization-oriented, multi-disciplinary perspective on life expectancy, under-five mortality, inequality and socio-economic development in the world system, compatible with the advances in international sociological research on the subject over the last three decades. Taking up the traditions of quantitative sociology to study the effects of multinational corporation (MNC) penetration as a key determining variable for development outcomes such as socio-economic inequality and infant mortality, this article analyzes from the perspective of quantitative political science and economics this particular role of MNC penetration as the key variable for the determination of health, inequality and socio-economic development in 183 countries of the world system, using international social science standard data. As correctly predicted by quantitative sociology, but largely overlooked by the medical profession, the development style, implied by a high MNC penetration of their host countries, reflects the oligopolistic power, which transnational corporations wield over local economies. We took up an idea from Austro-American economist Joseph Alois Schumpeter (1883-1950), which states that the long-term effects of oligopolistic power are negative and lead toward economic and social stagnation. Our data show that although MNC penetration indeed led to certain short-term growth effects after 1990, today, social polarization and stagnation increase as a consequence of the development model, based on high MNC penetration. There is a negative trade-off between MNC

Integrating global socio-economic influences into a regional land use change model for China

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Xia; Gao, Qiong; Peng, Changhui; Cui, Xuefeng; Liu, Yinghui; Jiang, Li

2014-03-01

With rapid economic development and urbanization, land use in China has experienced huge changes in recent years; and this will probably continue in the future. Land use problems in China are urgent and need further study. Rapid land-use change and economic development make China an ideal region for integrated land use change studies, particularly the examination of multiple factors and global-regional interactions in the context of global economic integration. This paper presents an integrated modeling approach to examine the impact of global socio-economic processes on land use changes at a regional scale. We develop an integrated model system by coupling a simple global socio-economic model (GLOBFOOD) and regional spatial allocation model (CLUE). The model system is illustrated with an application to land use in China. For a given climate change, population growth, and various socio-economic situations, a global socio-economic model simulates the impact of global market and economy on land use, and quantifies changes of different land use types. The land use spatial distribution model decides the type of land use most appropriate in each spatial grid by employing a weighted suitability index, derived from expert knowledge about the ecosystem state and site conditions. A series of model simulations will be conducted and analyzed to demonstrate the ability of the integrated model to link global socioeconomic factors with regional land use changes in China. The results allow an exploration of the future dynamics of land use and landscapes in China.

The study of socio economic factors’ influence on the capacity dynamics of the pharmaceutical market in contracting conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

А. А. Kotvitska

2017-12-01

Full Text Available For the effective functioning of pharmaceutical companies in the current economic conditions it is necessary to carry out product policy aimed to expanding the range of medicines that are most popular. In order to make the efficient product range of drugs in the pharmaceutical industrial enterprises the aim of our research was an analysis of the socio economic factors affecting the quantitative potential of the pharmaceutical market on the example of a group of dexketoprofen. Materials and methods. During the research we used retrospective, logical, correlation-regression methods, mathematical modeling and methods of factor analysis. In order to determine the dependence of the influence of socio economic factors on the quantitative potential of the pharmaceutical market and prediction of its development, we developed and tested on the example of a group of dexketoprofen the method of predicting the capacity of the pharmaceutical market with the definition of factors influencing its size, which is based on the correlation-regression method of analysis and which consists of eight main stages. Results. The article presents the results of the study of the impact of various socio economic factors on the development of quantitative potential of the pharmaceutical market. Considered twenty three factors combined into six groups. According to the results of correlation analysis, 14 factors that have the greatest impact on sales are selected. Using a step-by-step regression method, a regression model was developed, which included such factors as the average monthly wage and household expenditure on healthcare. The prediction of the quantitative potential of the pharmaceutical market for 2018 is carried out on the basis of extrapolation of the values of the factors that have the most effect on the resultant variable. Conclusions. A method for predicting the size of the potential of market of dexketoprofen based on multiple regression was developed. This

Time trends in socio-economic inequalities for women and men with disabilities in Australia: evidence of persisting inequalities.

Science.gov (United States)

Kavanagh, Anne M; Krnjacki, Lauren; Beer, Andrew; Lamontagne, Anthony D; Bentley, Rebecca

2013-08-29

The socio-economic circumstances and health of people with disabilities has been relatively ignored in public health research, policy and practice in Australia and internationally. This is despite emerging evidence that the socio-economic circumstances that people with disabilities live in contributes to their poorer health. Compared to other developed countries, Australians with disabilities are more likely to live in disadvantaged circumstances, despite being an economically prosperous country; it is therefore likely that the socio-economic disadvantage experienced by Australians with disabilities makes a significant contribution to their health. Despite the importance of this issue Australia does not routinely monitor the socio-economic inequalities for people with disabilities. This paper addresses this gap by describing time trends in socio-economic conditions for Australians with and without disabilities according to the severity of the disability and sex. Cross-sectional analyses of the Australian Bureau of Statistics Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers were carried out at three time points (1998, 2003 and 2009) to estimate the proportions of women and men (aged between 25 and 64 years) who were living on low incomes, had not completed year 12, were not in paid work, living in private rental and experiencing multiple disadvantage (three or more of the indicators). People with disabilities are less likely to have completed year 12, be in paid work and are more likely to be living on low incomes and experiencing multiple disadvantage. These conditions worsened with increasing severity of disability and increased or persisted over time, with most of the increase between 1998 and 2003. While women with milder disabilities tended to fare worse than men, the proportions were similar for those with moderate and severe/profound disabilities. People with disabilities experience high levels of socio-economic disadvantage which has increased or persisted over time

National economic interests of Russia in modern geopolitical conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elena Leonidovna Andreeva

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The article considers national economic interests that form the basis of national security (food, raw materials, finance, infrastructure including transport and set the priorities for the development of economic sectors (industry, scientific and technological development, entrepreneurship, social sector and innovation development. The authors carry out brief analysis for each type of national economic interests and find out how they are reflected in the national documents on socio-economic development and in international documents on economic cooperation with Russia’s participation. These interests in the national aspect are reflected in the Concept for long-term socio-economic development, and in the strategies and state programs for development of economic sectors. As for the international economic aspect, the authors consider Russia’s contracts with individual countries on trade and/or cooperation, the Agreement on the Eurasian Economic Union, the Declaration and agreements of the BRICS countries, the Program for Trade and Economic cooperation between the SCO countries, and international standards relating to socio-economic ratings and indexes. The analysis shows that the country requires the development of a unified conceptual project that would link strategic priorities of socio-economic development of the Russian Federation with changing geoeconomic conditions. This independent project should represent a set of system strategic guidelines on different levels, enhancing the role and increasing the importance of Russia in the new architecture of the geo-economic world order, the country’s participation in the joint strategies implemented by the Russian Federation together with other interested countries and new integration groups, and also defending conceptual interests of national development

ECONOMIC, POLITICAL AND SOCIOCULTURAL CONDITIONS OF FORMATION OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN MODERN RUSSIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Walter A.

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The paper examines the ambiguous contextual manifestations that accompany the process of formation of Russian entrepreneurial community. The work presents the research results of the specifics of these manifestations derived based on the analysis of various materials from Russian official, scientific and sociopolitical as well as international sources. "Attitude towards entrepreneurship" is regarded as the most important sociocultural component of the development of the entrepreneurship as a social practice. The identified economic and political as well as sociocultural trends that accompany the formation of the modern Russian entrepreneurship reflect the incompleteness stage of the market reforms in Russia. The creation of the modern ethical basis of the development of the entrepreneurship and its interaction with the society is assumed as one of the ways to accelerate these reforms. The outcome of the present interdisciplinary work - which is in its own way “a view from the outside” - in the author’s opinion, indicates the equivalence of sociocultural and economic and political range of problems for the modern stage of development of the entrepreneurship in Russia.

Eight Hundred Years of Modern Language Learning and Teaching in the German-Speaking Countries of Central Europe: A Social History

Science.gov (United States)

Schröder, Konrad

2018-01-01

The paper gives an overview of FLT in the German-speaking regions of Europe from medieval times to the present day, within a framework of language politics, communicative needs and educational ideologies. The languages addressed are French, Italian, Spanish, English, Russian and Turkish. Basic social and professional data of the various groups of…

Building community in international politics: A study of political press conferences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aditi Bhatia

2011-04-01

Full Text Available In today’s increasingly globalised yet disconnected world, especially in the contemporary context of a turbulent political landscape, there has been an increasing effort made by socio-political leaders at solidifying alliances and drawing support from different corners of the world in order to neutralize policies. Drawing on a multidimensional framework, in particular, critical discourse analysis and membership categorization analysis, this paper explores the various strategies employed by political leaders, attempting to reconcile disparate perspectives in the face of increasing socio-economic inter-connection and political dependence. More often than not, it was discovered, political leaders drew upon the somewhat “illusory” notion of “international community”, turning it into a tool of persuasion and membership category. In doing so, this paper aims to illustrate how the creation of illusive categories and perceptions are intended as a means of drawing support from diverse political leaders and projecting a united front before scrutinizing press and public.

Environmental Impact Assessment for Socio-Economic Analysis of Chemicals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Calow, Peter; Biddinger, G; Hennes, C

This report describes the requirements for, and illustrates the application of, a methodology for a socio-economic analysis (SEA) especially as it might be adopted in the framework of REACH.......This report describes the requirements for, and illustrates the application of, a methodology for a socio-economic analysis (SEA) especially as it might be adopted in the framework of REACH....

"Mi Bebé y Yo": A Primary Care Group for Latina/o Infants and Their Spanish-Speaking Caregivers

Science.gov (United States)

Margolis, Kate L.; Dunn, Dena M.; Herbst, Rachel Becker; Bunik, Maya; Buchholz, Melissa; Martinez, Dailyn; Talmi, Ayelet

2015-01-01

Culturally informed health interventions for linguistic minorities are crucial in promoting optimal child development. "Mi Bebé y Yo" is a primary care group for Spanish-speaking, Latina/o caregivers and their babies during their first year. Group visits occur in conjunction with well-baby checks and are designed to support families with…

Recent Economic Perspectives on Political Economy, Part II*

Science.gov (United States)

Dewan, Torun; Shepsle, Kenneth A.

2013-01-01

In recent years some of the best theoretical work on the political economy of political institutions and processes has begun surfacing outside the political science mainstream in high quality economics journals. This two-part paper surveys these contributions from a recent five-year period. In Part I, the focus is on elections, voting and information aggregation, followed by treatments of parties, candidates, and coalitions. In Part II, papers on economic performance and redistribution, constitutional design, and incentives, institutions, and the quality of political elites are discussed. Part II concludes with a discussion of the methodological bases common to economics and political science, the way economists have used political science research, and some new themes and arbitrage opportunities. PMID:23606754

The Latino Physician Shortage: How the Affordable Care Act Increases the Value of Latino Spanish-Speaking Physicians and What Efforts Can Increase Their Supply.

Science.gov (United States)

Daar, David A; Alvarez-Estrada, Miguel; Alpert, Abigail E

2018-02-01

The United States Latino population is growing at a rapid pace and is set to reach nearly 30% by 2050. The demand for culturally and linguistically competent health care is increasing in lockstep with this growth; however, the supply of doctors with skills and experience suited for this care is lagging. In particular, there is a major shortage of Latino Spanish-speaking physicians, and the gap between demand and supply is widening. The implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has increased the capacity of the US healthcare system to care for the growing Latino Spanish-speaking population, through health insurance exchanges, increased funding for safety net institutions, and efforts to improve efficiency and coordination of care, particularly with Accountable Care Organizations and the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program. With these policies in mind, the authors discuss how the value of Latino Spanish-speaking physicians to the healthcare system has increased under the environment of the ACA. In addition, the authors highlight key efforts to increase the supply of this physician population, including the implementation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Act, premedical pipeline programs, and academic medicine and medical school education initiatives to increase Latino representation among physicians.

Cognitive Processing Therapy for Spanish-speaking Latinos: A Formative Study of a Model-Driven Cultural Adaptation of the Manual to Enhance Implementation in a Usual Care Setting.

Science.gov (United States)

Valentine, Sarah E; Borba, Christina P C; Dixon, Louise; Vaewsorn, Adin S; Guajardo, Julia Gallegos; Resick, Patricia A; Wiltsey Stirman, Shannon; Marques, Luana

2017-03-01

As part of a larger implementation trial for cognitive processing therapy (CPT) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in a community health center, we used formative evaluation to assess relations between iterative cultural adaption (for Spanish-speaking clients) and implementation outcomes (appropriateness and acceptability) for CPT. Qualitative data for the current study were gathered through multiple sources (providers: N = 6; clients: N = 22), including CPT therapy sessions, provider fieldnotes, weekly consultation team meetings, and researcher fieldnotes. Findings from conventional and directed content analysis of the data informed refinements to the CPT manual. Data-driven refinements included adaptations related to cultural context (i.e., language, regional variation in wording), urban context (e.g., crime/violence), and literacy level. Qualitative findings suggest improved appropriateness and acceptability of CPT for Spanish-speaking clients. Our study reinforces the need for dual application of cultural adaptation and implementation science to address the PTSD treatment needs of Spanish-speaking clients. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Russian Socio-Economic Geography: Status, Challenges, Perspectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martynov Vasilii

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The socio-economic geography studies the processes, characteristics and patterns of spatial development. In the recent decades, however, this area of scientific investigation has failed its promise, which happened for a number of external and internal reasons. The main external reason is the development of "consumer society", which does not require the search of new space and therefore ignores the "spatial" science, geography. Internal reason is the blurring of socio-economic geography along the variety of new lines of research. The discipline was, in many ways, redundant, and unselective in the application of theoretical and methodological tools liberally borrowed from other branches of both geography and economics. The only way this discipline can return to its former glory is by going all the way back to doing proper spatial research.

nalysis of the criminalization of cybercrime in Spanish-speaking countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rojas Parra, Jaime Hernán

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This article proposes an analysis of the criminalization and prosecution of criminal conduct related to cybercrime in each of the 20 spanish-speaking countries worldwide, as well as the description of the normalization of its laws regarding instruments and international agreements related to the regulation of the use of information technology. This analysis is done from the following three perspectives: study of existing criminal law and force, identification of established computer crime, selection of computer crime with greater penalties and participation of each of the countries investigated in the agreement cybercrime Budapest (as a world reference in this field. It also, offered the tables and graphs comparisons between the countries being studied, whereby countries with major and minor amount of established computer crime and the range of maximum and minimum in each of the same penalty are identified countries.

Latin-American writing initiatives in engineering from Spanish-speaking countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth Narváez-Cardona

2016-09-01

Full Text Available http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/2175-8026.2016v69n3p223 This article analyzes Latin-American publications from Spanish Speaking countries to map programs pursued in the Region and then provide a context to envision further research agendas for Latin-American Writing Studies in engineering. The analysis of 22 publications suggests that initiatives and studies in engineering are recent (as of 2009. The sample reveals an emphasis on pedagogically-oriented publications focused on engineering as one field. The trends suggest that the Latin-American writing advocates in engineering might benefit by incorporating theoretical frameworks for a exploring and understanding different roles of writing across time and curriculum in student learning and by engineering subfields and, b exploring theoretical approaches to understand genres beyond individual texts (i.e., genre repertoires and genre systems.

Economic and Other Determinants of Political Trust

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

William R. DiPietro

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Political trust is important for the effective functioning of government. This paper uses cross country regression analysis to see whether three different measures of economic performance matter for political trust. The results lend support to the hypothesis that political trust is influenced by economic growth, the standard of living, and the appropriate use of government spending. In addition, the paper considers two institutional variables, perceived independence of the judiciary and the degree of democracy to assess their effect on political trust. It finds that perceived judicial independence has a positive effect on political trust, but democracy has a negative effect.

Socio-Economic Analysis Of Cooperative Business Management In ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

groups. Given the high relevance of cooperatives as instruments of economic self reliance and empowerment, policy initiatives that would strengthen these groups are recommended.. Keywords: Economic rationality, Socio-economic differential, Group formation. Journal of Agriculture and Food Sciences Vol. 5 (1) 2007: pp.

Formation components of socio-economic potential of the region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stoyanets Nataliia Valeriivna

2015-10-01

Full Text Available In the article the content category “socio-economic system of the region” through coherent, equilibrated integrity objects of economic and social purposes in the territory, which includes including resource component and designed for the production of environmentally friendly products and services are provided. A typical signs of socio-economic potential of the region through the hierarchy, complexity, emergence, dynamism, commitment, synerhichnist, uniqueness and openness components. The economic potential of the region as the maximum capacity of the region to achieve its strategic goals through the use of existing resources, manufacturing, natural – resource, research, information and social sub region.

Ethical Implications in the Socio-Economical Life

OpenAIRE

Ion Hirghiduş

2009-01-01

Concern for the morality of economic life is relatively recent and involves the need to implement ethical codes that prevent violation of rules of conduct. The Socio-economical sphere is marked by profound transformations that shape a particular kind of rationality. The ethical rules can also be found under this kind of rationality. Apparently these rules hinder the economical processes, but in reality respecting the economical rule, leads to the increase of trust between economical actors. H...

On the Question of Studying the Role of Social Capital under the Conditions of the Socio-Economic Crisis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dmitrii Vladimirovich Afanas’ev

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The concept of social capital has gained considerable popularity in the social sciences, as well as in practical politics on a national and international scale. Its heuristic potential is confirmed by numerous studies demonstrating the positive impact of the level and types of social capital on a wide range of economic, social and political phenomena, and especially the use of the concept of social capital to study economic growth and development issues. However, there is no universally accepted definition of social capital, and there is no unanimous opinion concerning the ways of measuring it. The paper contains a review of the current status of the theoretical field of the concept; it shows that researchers from different countries are interested in the impact of social capital on economic growth and development at the regional level. Specific comparative studies in different countries and regions strongly support the presence of a correlation that proves social capital is one of the powerful driving forces of development. However, since the majority of studies on the effects of social capital on economic development are concentrated in the developed countries of Western Europe and the USA, it is important to evaluate the potential of this approach in the countries of post-Communist development that have different experience, in particular, in Russia. In this regard, the article points out that there is a clear lack of such studies with regard to Russia’s regions, where there are only occasional fragmentary attempts to study social capital. The aim of the paper is to substantiate on the theoretical basis and to indicate the prerequisites for empirical studies on the effects of social capital of regions on their economic growth and development, especially under the conditions of the general economic and structural crisis

Economic, Socio-Political and Environmental Risks of Road Development in the Tropics.

Science.gov (United States)

Alamgir, Mohammed; Campbell, Mason J; Sloan, Sean; Goosem, Miriam; Clements, Gopalasamy Reuben; Mahmoud, Mahmoud I; Laurance, William F

2017-10-23

It is projected that 25 million km of new paved roads will be developed globally by 2050 - enough to encircle the planet more than 600 times. Roughly 90% of new roads will be built in developing nations, frequently in tropical and subtropical regions with high biodiversity and environmental values. Many developing nations are borrowing from international lenders or negotiating access to their natural resources in order to expand their transportation infrastructure. Given the unprecedented pace and extent of these initiatives, it is vital to thoroughly assess the potential consequences of large-scale road and highway projects. In appropriate contexts and locales, new roads can promote sizeable economic and social benefits. If poorly planned or implemented, however, new roads can provoke serious cost overruns, corruption and environmental impacts, while generating sparse economic benefits and intense social and political conflict. Using examples from developing nations, we identify risks that can hinder road projects in wet and dry tropical environments. Such risks, we assert, are often inadequately considered by project proponents, evaluators and the general public, creating a systematic tendency to overestimate project benefits while understating project risks. A more precautionary approach is needed to reduce risks while maximizing benefits of new road projects in the tropics. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Economic anglicisms: adaptation to the Spanish linguistic system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paloma López Zurita

2005-10-01

Full Text Available The enormous number of anglicisms used everyday in Spanish language generates lexical interference between both languages. This paper provides a semantic analysis of the changes in lexis this language contact brings about, through the different linguistic mechanisms of inter-language adaptation involved. When these anglicisms come from the current trend to include English words in Spanish discourse, we also add appropriate equivalents which could avoid the excess of redundant neologisms. A glossary of the most habitual terms derived from interference in English and Spanish in the economic field is included as a result of this study.

Socio-economic and cultural aspecrs of changes in the Greenland Ice Sheet

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Moshøj, Charlotte Margaret

2009-01-01

! is chapter evaluates the possibility for projecting socio-economic and cultural impacts on Greenland’s society caused directly or indirectly by changes in the Greenland Ice Sheet. ! ere are, as yet, no well-documented direct causative links between the conditions for a society dictated by nature...

Socio-Economic Status, Time Spending, and Sleep Duration in Indian Children and Adolescents

OpenAIRE

Bapat, Radhika; van Geel, Mitch; Vedder, Paul

2016-01-01

In this article physical activity, screen time, and academic work are studied as mediators between socio-economic status and sleep duration among school children in India. Participants were 268 school children aged 10?15 from Pune, India. They were sampled from private schools and impoverished public schools. We found that the highest socio-economic status children reported almost an hour and a half less sleep than their lowest socio-economic status counterparts. The lower socio-economic stat...

Comparing the democratic value of Facebook discussions across the profiles of Spanish political candidates during the 2011 General Election

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lidia Valera Ordaz

2017-03-01

Full Text Available This article examines the democratic value of user-generated comments on the Facebook profiles of three Spanish candidates during the Spanish General Election campaign of 2011 through a content analysis that operationalizes deliberative democracy. The findings show that these online spaces do not meet deliberative standards, but that they still serve democratic functions, such as citizen self-expression, democratic socialization and reinforcement of social cohesion among party activists and sympathizers. Moreover, results indicate that democratic value might vary depending on the size of the party where talk takes place. Political conversation on the walls of hegemonic candidates who belong to big consolidated political parties is mostly oriented towards self-expression and features some ideological diversity, so that individuals are sporadically confronted with diversity. For its part, talk on the Facebook profile of the minor candidate lacks fundamental disagreement but includes more in-group interaction, allowing minority ideological spheres for the cultivation of social cohesion and the construction of collective narratives in favorable discursive conditions.

Child restraint use in low socio-economic areas of urban Sydney during transition to new legislation.

Science.gov (United States)

Keay, Lisa; Hunter, Kate; Brown, Julie; Bilston, Lynne E; Simpson, Judy M; Stevenson, Mark; Ivers, Rebecca Q

2013-01-01

Child restraints protect a young child against injury in crashes but best practice child restraint use is low in Australia, particularly among lower socio-economic groups. We investigated factors associated with restraint use to inform the development of education and distribution programmes to support new Australian legislation on child passengers among families in low socio-economic areas of metropolitan Sydney. We interviewed a parent or carer of 1160 children aged 2-5 years enrolled at one of 28 early childhood centres in low socio-economic areas of urban Sydney. Appropriate child restraint use was defined as a forward facing child restraint (FFCR) for 2-3 year olds and a FFCR or booster seat for children aged 4 years or more. Predictors of self-reported appropriate use were explored using logistic regression. Analysis was conducted on one child from each family in the target age range (2-5 years): 586 (51%) were male and the mean age was 3.5 (Standard Deviation 0.8) years. There were 432 (45%) families with annual income below $60,000, 248 (22%) spoke a language other than English at home and 360 (33%) had 3 or more children. Fifty-four percent of carers indicated that their 2-3 year old children travelled in a FFCR. Inappropriate use among children in this age group was more likely when the carer was law and poorer knowledge of safety benefits of child restraints. They also had lower household incomes and more concerns about cost of child restraints and booster seats. These findings can inform development of interventions to promote best practice child restraint use, which will reach non-English speaking families in this region. They also confirm the importance of economic and logistic barriers to best practice child restraint use. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Socio-Economic Environment as the Basis for Innovation Economy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marina Akhmetova

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The authors carried out a correlation analysis of the socio-economic environment factors, which have a decisive influence on the territorial innovative development according to data for the year 2012. The paper discloses socio-economic determinants that provide to reinforce territory’s innovative development. These determinants are higher education development, improving of social and transport infrastructure, growth in small business and trade. The paper also carried out a dynamic analysis according to data for period of 2012 - 2014 in the group of regions (Russian Federation "Generators of Innovations" and disclosed the positive impact of selected key determinants on the regional innovative development. The results of this research may be used in the government practice of different territories (countries, regions for decision-making in the field of socio-economic development.

Review of existing studies and unresolved problems associated with socio-economic impact of nuclear powerplants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hendrickson, P.L.; King, J.C.; O'Connell, M.S.

1975-07-01

Preparation of socio-economic impact statements for nuclear powerplants began only a few years ago. The number of these statements is increasing, and some states, such as Washington, now require them as a condition to state approval for thermal powerplants. The major purpose of this paper was to review existing socio-economic impact statements to identify where additional research to improve the impact analysis process would be useful and appropriate. A second purpose was to summarize the type of information included in existing statements. Toward this end a number of socio-economic impact statements were reviewed. Most of the statements are for nuclear power plants; however, some are for other large construction projects. The statements reviewed are largely predictive in nature; i.e., they attempt to predict socio-economic impacts based on the existing knowledge. A few of the reports contain retroactive case studies of plants already completed. One describes an ongoing monitoring analysis of plants under construction. As a result of this preliminary study, a need was identified for a better-defined impact statement methodology and for guidelines identifying appropriate areas for analysis and analytical techniques

Neighbourhood Socio Economic Disadvantage Index’s Analysis of the Flood Disasters Area at East Jakarta in 1996 and 2016

Science.gov (United States)

Ranti Ristiani, Christina; Rokhmatuloh; Hernina, Revi

2017-12-01

Flood is one of natural disasters that have often happened in East Jakarta. Flood can give several negative impacts and it can affect all aspects of society lives such as economics, political, cultural, socials and others. East Jakarta is an urban area which continuously grows and establishes to become a rapid area. It can be seen from the highest population density in East Jakarta (BPS, 2016) and categorized into a region prone to flooding based on data Prone Flood Map in 1996 and 2016. The higher population exists in East Jakarta, the bigger possibility of the negative effects of disaster it gets. The negative impacts of flood disaster can affect societies especially with socio-economic disadvantage. One of the index to measure socio-economic disadvantage is NSDI (Neighbourhood socio-economic disadvantage index). However, to adjust indicators used in NSDI with Indonesia statistical data compatibility, it needs further assessment and evaluation. Therefore, this paper evaluates previous main indicators used in previous NSDI studies and improves with indicators which more suitable with statistical records in Indonesia. As a result, there will be improved 19 indicators to be used in NSDI, but the groups of indicators remain the same as previous namely; income, education, occupation, housing, and population.

Effect of daily temperature range on respiratory health in Argentina and its modification by impaired socio-economic conditions and PM_1_0 exposures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carreras, Hebe; Zanobetti, Antonella; Koutrakis, Petros

2015-01-01

Epidemiological investigations regarding temperature influence on human health have focused on mortality rather than morbidity. In addition, most information comes from developed countries despite the increasing evidence that climate change will have devastating impacts on disadvantaged populations living in developing countries. In the present study, we assessed the impact of daily temperature range on upper and lower respiratory infections in Cordoba, Argentina, and explored the effect modification of socio-economic factors and influence of airborne particles We found that temperature range is a strong risk factor for admissions due to both upper and lower respiratory infections, particularly in elderly individuals, and that these effects are more pronounced in sub-populations with low education level or in poor living conditions. These results indicate that socio-economic factors are strong modifiers of the association between temperature variability and respiratory morbidity, thus they should be considered in risk assessments. - Highlights: • Daily temperature range is a strong risk factor for respiratory infections. • Low education level and poor living conditions are strong modifiers of this relationship. • In Cordoba city higher risk for respiratory infections were observed during summertime. - Daily temperature range is a strong risk factor for respiratory infections, particularly for populations with low educational level or poor living conditions.

Socio-Economic Factors Affecting the Marketing of Garri in Port ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Socio-Economic Factors Affecting the Marketing of Garri in Port Harcourt City of ... recommended ways of improving the marketing system of garri in the study area. ... socio economic characteristic of the traders, purchases and sales transaction, ... 78% had basic education which help them in keeping proper record and in ...

The accusation of 'world disturbers' (Acts 17:6 in socio-political context

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeremy Punt

2016-03-01

Full Text Available �Acts 17:1�9 presents a narrative of the consequences of Paul�s engagements in Thessalonica�s synagogue. Following Paul and Silas� reported successful 3-week mission, some Jews hauled Paul and Silas� host, Jason, and a number of Jesus followers before the authorities. The threefold accusation was that Paul and Silas turned the world upside down, acted against Caesar�s decrees and claimed another king, Jesus. This incident is investigated from the perspective of Acts� presentation of competing missions, in the context of the intersectionality of religion and politics in the 1st century CE. The article challenges a narrow theological interpretation of Acts 17, insisting on the need for and value of a socio-political interpretive lens to make sense of the rhetoric of this chapter.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The article challenges a narrow theological interpretation of Acts 17, insisting on the need for and value of a socio-political interpretive lens to make sense of the rhetoric of this chapter.

Climate change. Socio-economic impacts and violent conflict

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Ierland, E.C.; Klaassen, M.G.; Nierop, T.; Van der Wusten, H.

1996-01-01

The results of a literature study on the socio-economic impacts of climate change and the possibilities of violent conflicts enhanced by the greenhouse effect are presented. The socio-economic impacts are classified according to the economic sectors agriculture, forestry, fishery, energy, water, construction, transport, tourism and recreation and discussed in Chapter 2. The impacts on property, ecosystems and human well being are outlined in chapter 3. Chapter 4 deals with climate change and environmental security, and discusses the most important concepts of security and their relation to climate change. Chapter 5 deals with already existing and potential conflicts, that may be enhanced by the greenhouse effect as a result of resource scarcity, particularly related to availability of food and water. On the basis of the literature study and an analysis of research gaps propositions are made on new areas of research to be undertaken. The study emphasizes the need to further study the impact on agriculture in semi-arid zones, the impact on water availability in sensitive regions, a further analysis of the consequences of sea level rise particularly in sensitive areas and with regard to forced migration. Also further studies are required into the socio-economic impacts of changes in human health and mortality due to climate change, in relation to diseases. Special attention should be paid to migration because of environmental degradation and flooding. Extreme weather events have already been studied, but there still is a need for further insights into how extreme weather events will affect society, taking into account adaptive behaviour. Finally, in the area of socio-economic impacts, the implications of changes in ecosystems and biodiversity require further attention as these effects may be large but, at the same time, difficult to assess in economic terms. 175 refs

AN IMPACT OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROCESSES OF THE REGION ON THE ENVIRONMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Larisa B. Kalmykova

2013-01-01

Full Text Available An approach to assessment of a stability of socio-economic development of the region with use of elasticity coefficients is given in the article. On the basis of correlation and regression analysis the author constructs the dependence equations between the indicators of the region’s development and environment’s conditions. That makes it possible to evaluate the influence of social and economic processes on the ecosystem of the region.

PROBLEMS OF FORMATION OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT IN RUSSIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. V. Lyasnikov

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The dynamic socio-economic development of Russia, the long-term competitiveness in the global economy involves the formation of a new socio-economic institute of management – an active subject of modern innovative economy.

Empirical measurement of socio-economic status of farm families in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A universe of 106 socio-economic status indicators was collated. The t-test and point-biserial correlation were used in the item analysis of quantitatively measured and dichotomous items respectively. Forty items were found valid across all the ethnic groups in the state. The 40 items were standardized into a socio-economic ...

Evaluation of socio-economic inequalities in the use of maternal health services in rural western China.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, C; Zeng, L; Dibley, M J; Wang, D; Pei, L; Yan, H

2015-09-01

To describe the use of maternal health services according to the standards of the Chinese Ministry of Health, and assess socio-economic inequalities in usage in rural Shaanxi province, western China. Cross-sectional survey. Principal components analysis was used to measure the economic status of households. A concentration index (CI) approach was used as a measure of socio-economic inequalities in the use of maternal health services, and a decomposable CI was used to identify the factors that contributed to the socio-economic inequalities in usage. In total, 4760 women who had given birth in the preceding three years were selected at random to be interviewed in the five counties. Household wealth index was calculated by constructing a linear index from asset ownership indicators using principal components analysis to derive weights. The CI approach is a standard measure in the analysis of inequalities in health. If the CI for the use of maternal health services is positive, it is pro-rich; if it is negative, it is pro-poor. The decomposition method was used to estimate the contributions of individual factors to CI. The overall CI for five or more prenatal visits was 0.075. The household wealth index was found to make the greatest contribution to socio-economic inequalities for five or more prenatal visits (35.5%), followed by maternal education (28.8%), receipt of a health handbook during pregnancy (12.1%), age group (11.0%), distance from health facility (10.5%), family members (1.5%) and district of residence (0.6%). Socio-economic inequalities in the use of prenatal health services were pro-rich in rural western China. Socio-economic inequalities in hospital delivery and postnatal health check-ups were not evident. Improving household economic status, providing prenatal health services for women with low income and low educational level, providing health handbooks and improving traffic conditions should be promoted as methods to eliminate socio-economic

SOCIO-ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF ITALY: CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR COOPERATION WITH THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu. Agapov

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The economic crisis in Italy after 2008 fully revealed the complexity of the socio-economic model of the country, which in our time is formed not only at national level but also at European and global levels. All these factors should also be taken into account in the analysis of Russian-Italian relations. Italy has traditionally been considered one of the main partners / allies of Russia in Europe / the West, which emphasizes the active economic ties.Socio-economic diffi culties in Italy, creating both challenges and opportunities for the world, Europe and Russia. One of the major challenges for the global economy is the impact of the crisis in Italy for the EU, as one of the world's economic centers.The challenge for the EU crisis in Italy can be the stability of the EU, the challenge for Russia could be the eff ect of reducing the role of the traditional economic and political partner of the EU. Regarding the new features are: the global level – the transformation of one of the major economies of the West and building relationships with updated economic leader of the Mediterranean on a new basis, the regional level - the further development of one of the other German centre’s of the EU, which could serve as a new "stimulus" for the further integration of the Union , national - improve the socio-economic standards of living of citizens in Italy, as well as creating additional opportunities for the development of mutually benefi cial cooperation with other countries, particularly with Russia. The article discusses the causes of the Italian crisis and the challenges and opportunities that are opened at the same time for the world, the EU and Russia. Subject articles relevant due to the perception of the impact of the crisis in Italy for the world economy, the economy of the EU and Russia.The goal / task. The main purpose of the presentation material in this article is to analyze the causes of the crisis in Italy using a three-level model of

Predictors of Reading Comprehension for Struggling Readers: The Case of Spanish-speaking Language Minority Learners.

Science.gov (United States)

Mancilla-Martinez, Jeannette; Lesaux, Nonie K

2010-08-01

This longitudinal study examined the process of English reading comprehension at age 11 for 173 low achieving Spanish-speaking children. The influence of growth rates, from early childhood (age 4.5) to pre-adolescence (age 11), in vocabulary and word reading skills on this complex process were evaluated using structural equation modeling. Standardized measures of word reading accuracy and productive vocabulary were administered annually, in English and Spanish, and English reading comprehension measures were administered at age 11. Latent growth curve analyses revealed that English skills accounted for all unique variance in English reading comprehension outcomes. Further, expected developmental shifts in the influence of word reading and vocabulary skills over time were not shown, likely on account of students' below grade level reading comprehension achievement. This work underscores the need for theoretical models of comprehension to account for students' skill profiles and abilities.

Urban Socio-economic Development and Intra-city travel in Ogun ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study is on influence of socio-economic development of urban centers on intra-city trip generation in Ogun state, Nigeria. The proportion of the aggregate socio-economic variables in each city was used to rank the cities in hierarchical order of development while the average household trip per week was used to rank ...

The socio-economic costs of the planned development of wind power energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bentzen, J.

1992-01-01

The socio-economic consequences of the Danish government's planned further development of wind power energy are discussed in detail. It is claimed that, currently, electricity produced by wind turbines is more expensive than that produced by power stations, if the relative environmental effects are not taken into consideration. It is expected that technological development will contribute to cost reduction by the year 2010 so that electricity produced by wind turbines will be competitive, but until then costs of wind power energy will be high and it is reckoned that losses will be in the range of 5-6 billion Danish crowns, minus 2.5 billion saved by lack of CO 2 emission. The socio-economic factors regarding windmills of various sizes (150 kW and 225 kW) are calculated and the planned development of wind power until 2010 is explained. The socio-economic costs of the development programme under various conditions, including the calculation of the saved emissions of carbon dioxide, are discussed. The author states that, in the light of these arguments, he is not in agreement with the governmental plan for the development of wind-turbine produced electricity. It is suggested that this plan could be postponed until such time as wind-power produced electricity should be more competitive in price, and that it should not be pursued during a period of economic recession. (AB)

Socio-economic differences in HIV/AIDS mortality in South Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Probst, Charlotte; Parry, Charles D H; Rehm, Jürgen

2016-07-01

To quantify socio-economic differences in the risk of HIV/AIDS mortality in South Africa for different measures of socio-economic status. Systematic literature search in Web of Knowledge and PubMed. Measures of relative risk (RR) were pooled separately for education, income, assets score and employment status as measures of socio-economic status, using inverse-variance weighted DerSimonian-Laird random effects meta-analyses. Ten studies were eligible for inclusion comprising over 175 000 participants and 6700 deaths. For income (RR 1.55, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.15-2.09), assets score (RR 1.63, 95% CI 1.12-2.36) and employment status (RR 1.52, 95% CI 1.21-1.92), persons of low socio-economic status had an over 50% higher risk of dying from HIV/AIDS. The RR of 1.10 for education was not significant (95% CI 0.74-1.65). Future research should identify effective strategies to reduce HIV/AIDS mortality and alleviate the consequences of HIV/AIDS deaths, particularly for poorer households. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN POLITICAL INSTABILITY AND ECONOMIC GROWTH: THE CASE OF TURKEY (1987-2006

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SELİM ŞANLISOY

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Economy and policy are always in mutual interaction. Especially the fact that sharp judgement between economical variables and democratization cannot be put forward shows that the relationship between political instability and economical variables should be analysed. In recent studies political stability or instability variables including more comprehensive variables instead of democratization variables have been used. The main aim of this study is to analyse the effects of political instability often experienced in Turkey’s conditions on economic growth. Here in terms of the analysis of variables (data time series a model with single equation was established and within the framework of this model some analyses were carried out with the help of main and control variables. To the findings, in accordance with the literature, it is verified that there is a reverse relationship between political instability and economic growth in Turkey and in the light of the findings, some policy suggestions are also made.

Socio-economic aspects of waste management facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruetter, H.

2008-01-01

Besides technical aspects and those of safety, it is the economic and social environment of a future underground geologic repository which plays a major role. Compared to other large scale technical plants, facilities for radioactive waste management must overcome incomparably greater obstacles. All the more care must be taken in clarifying the issues affecting the public and the economy in the region of a potential site. On behalf of the Swiss Federal Office for Energy (BFE), Ruetter + Partner conducted a basic study which, in a number of case studies, dealt with the socio-economic aspects of experiences with existing and planned facilities in Switzerland and abroad. The study focused on these main points, which are outlined briefly in the article: - Socio-economic issues in the site selection procedure. - Methodological approach. - Findings made in the case studies. - Factors influencing the acceptance of a repository. (orig.)

Political Instability and Economic Growth

OpenAIRE

Alberto Alesina; Sule Ozler; Nouriel Roubini; Phillip Swagel

1992-01-01

This paper investigates the relationship between political instability and per capita GDP growth in a sample of 113 countries for the period 1950-1982. We define ?political instability? as the propensity of a government collapse, and we estimate a model in which political instability and economic growth are jointly determined. The main result of this paper is that in countries and time periods with a high propensity of government collapse, growth is significantly lower than otherwise. This ef...

Bilingualism, Cultural Transmutation, and Fields of Coexistence: California's Spanish Language Legacy

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia, Sara

2006-01-01

This is an historical analysis of English Only programs in California and their impact on bilingualism as a natural acquisition process. Factors that propagate bilingualism such as a continual flow of Spanish speaking immigrants, and social, economic and ethnic isolation, are delineated for theorizing about key aspects of multilingualism, the…

Language Planning in the Spanish-Speaking World.

Science.gov (United States)

Sanchez, Aquilino; Duenas, Maria

2002-01-01

Reviews diffusion and promotion of the Spanish language from the first Spanish colonizers in the Americas to the present. Describes the situation of Spanish within Spain as a form of internal colonialization and reviews language policies. Analyzes present-day institutional efforts at maintaining language co-existence within different autonomous…

Extreme precipitation and floods in the Iberian Peninsula and its socio-economic impacts

Science.gov (United States)

Ramos, A. M.; Pereira, S.; Trigo, R. M.; Zêzere, J. L.

2017-12-01

Extreme precipitation events in the Iberian Peninsula can induce floods and landslides that have often major socio-economic impacts. The DISASTER database gathered the basic information on past floods and landslides that caused social consequences in Portugal for the period 1865-2015. This database was built under the assumption that social consequences of floods and landslides are sufficient relevant to be reported by newspapers, that provide the data source. Three extreme historical events were analysed in detail taking into account their associated wide socio-economic impacts. The December 1876 record precipitation and flood event leading to an all-time record flow in two large international rivers (Tagus and Guadiana). As a direct consequence, several Portuguese and Spanish towns and villages located in the banks of both rivers suffered serious flood damage on 7 December 1876. The 20-28 December 1909 event recorded the highest number of flood and landslide cases that occurred in Portugal in the period 1865-2015, having triggered the highest floods in 200 years at the Douro river's mouth and causing 89 fatalities in both Portugal and Spain northern regions. More recently the deadliest flash-flooding event affecting Portugal since, at least, the early 19th century, took place on the 25 and 26 November 1967 causing more than 500 fatalities in the Lisbon region. We provide a detailed analysis of each of these events, including their human impacts, precipitation analyses based on historical datasets and the associated atmospheric circulation conditions from reanalysis datasets. Acknowledgements: This work was supported by the project FORLAND - Hydrogeomorphologic risk in Portugal: driving forces and application for land use planning [PTDC / ATPGEO / 1660/2014] funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), Portugal. A. M. Ramos was also supported by a FCT postdoctoral grant (FCT/DFRH/ SFRH/BPD/84328/2012). The financial support for attending

National Integration, Citizenship, Political Participation

African Journals Online (AJOL)

USER

attainment of a successful democratization process and national stability. ... insecurity, sectarian violence, ethnic strifes, political instability and threats of .... of nation-states out of disparate socio-economic, religious, ethnic and geographical.

Growth pattern in Ethiopian infants - the impact of exposure to maternal HIV infection in relation to socio-economic factors.

Science.gov (United States)

König Walles, John; Balcha, Taye Tolera; Winqvist, Niclas; Björkman, Per

2017-01-01

Infants exposed to maternal HIV infection who remain HIV-uninfected (HIV-exposed/uninfected; HIV-EU) may be at increased risk of growth retardation, which could be due both to directly HIV-related effects and to socio-economic factors overrepresented among HIV-positive women. To investigate growth development at 9-12 months of age in HIV-EU infants participating in prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) care compared to HIV unexposed (HIV-U) infants in relation to socio-economic conditions. Anthropometric and socio-economic data were collected retrospectively from PMTCT registers (for HIV-EU infants), with HIV-U controls recruited at measles vaccination at public health facilities in Ethiopia. Growth was compared with regard to HIV exposure and socio-economic variables in multivariate regression analysis. The following growth measurements were found for 302 HIV-EU and 358 HIV-U infants at 9-12 months of age, respectively: mean weight-for-age z-score (WAZ) 0.04 and -0.21, p growth and higher mean WAZ than HIV-U controls. Poor growth development was associated with socio-economic factors. This suggests health benefits from PMTCT participation for infant growth. Similar interventions could be considered for Ethiopian infants, irrespective of HIV exposure, with a particular focus on children with poor socio-economic status.

SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES OF DEVELOPMENT OF REGIONS OF UKRAINE IN TERMS OF REFORMING THE ADMINISTRATIVE AND TERRITORIAL STRUCTURE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hrystenko О.

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction. The problem of reforming the territorial structure of Ukraine is current and significant. Although during the time of independence a number of projects have been formed, but unfortunately the problem remains unresolved. The region must not only provide benefits, but also create the necessary comfortable environment, attract the necessary resources, while ensuring their effective use, create the proper conditions for increasing socio-economic development. Purpose. The purpose of the article is to study the state of socio-economic development of regions and changes in the context of reforming the administrative and territorial structure, explaining the problems of the territorial structure of Ukraine, as well as the directions of its legal, democratic and economic improvement and development. Results. The models of reforming the administrative and territorial structure (ATS, the approaches to administrative and territorial reform, as well as the stages of reforming the ATS on the basis of decentralization are explored. The ways of transformation of relations in the field of management of social and economic development between central and regional authorities are presented. The article analyzes the rating of social and economic conditions of regions of Ukraine according to certain indicators. The obstacles in the administrative and territorial reform, as well as the socio-economic and legal consequences expected during the reform, are identified. Conclusions. One of the main problems of the regional economy is the search for options for the stability and prosperity of the socio-economic development of the territories, and overcoming and eliminating the signs of their depression. In order to do this, it is necessary to study the socio-economic consequences of the reform process. The main obstacle in overcoming the disbalanced development of the territories is the disproportionality of the administrative and territorial structure of

Socio-economic Factors Affecting Residential Land Accessibility in Akure Nigeria: A Gender Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mary Adebola Ajayi

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Land defines the social, economic and political relations in the society and is the most crucial factor of production. Access to land promotes the economic power of individuals and their contribution to the economy of the nation at large. It is both a resource and a focal point of social identity and solidarity. This paper is aimed at revealing the sources of gaining access to residential land in Akure by both male and female home owners with a view to engendering appropriate policy response towards female housing ownership. The sample size was determined from the 2006 population census figure of the Akure South Local Government Area. A total of three hundred and eighty one (381 questionnaires were administered to home-owners using systematic and stratified random sampling techniques and were found useful for analysis. The means of gaining access to residential land in the selected towns in the study area include purchase, inheritance, government allocation and gift. Discriminant Function Analysis was used to determine which socio-economic variables were the best predictors of how access to land can be gained. Occupation, income and education emerged as the best predictors out of all the socio-economic variables used. The paper recommends the provision of enabling environment to boost informal employment which is predominant in the study area as this will increase the income level of the citizens. There is also the need for public enlightenment on how to access land through government allocation which was very low in the study area.

Typified Memories of Francoism and the Spanish Transition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Víctor Sampedro Blanco

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Historical memory has become a really relevant topic in Spanish media and politics, particularly since the adoption in the Congress of Deputies of the law 52 of 2007, "by which rights are recognized and extended and there are measures established to benefit those who suffered persecution or violence during the civil war and dictatorship. " In this study we reflect on how the media propose a public debate on Francoism and the Spanish transition. We used 32 focus groups and analyzed how the media historization of the dictatorship and its socio-political legacy is assimilated in the social discourses of the audience. That is how we examined the mediated memory, the one that is built on the collective process in which historical events are negotiated. We also found empirically eight types of ideal memories in Spain, those whose memories are influenced by the sociopolitical environment, the generation and the degree of politicization.

Historical Significance of the Spanish Neutrality in the First World War

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Igor Yurievich Mednikov

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article deals with an insufficiently studied problem, Spanish neutrality during the First World War. The author analyzes its historical significance in the international context, as well in the context of political, economical and social evolution of Spain. Spain was one of the few major European Powers that maintained its neutrality throughout the First World War. Although all Spanish governments during the conflict declared strict neutrality, it was, in actual fact, benevolent towards the Entente Powers, and by the end of hostilities Spain turned into "neutral ally" of Entente. This benevolence towards the future winners and a wide humanitarian campaign supported and headed by the King Alfonso XIII enabled Spain to improve her position in the postwar system of international relations; Spain became one of the non-permanent members of the League of Nations Council. Nevertheless the Spanish neutrality had a negative impact upon the social, political and economical evolution of Spain. The social stratification was increased, the public opinion was deeply divided and the social conflicts were aggravated, that considerably affected the further evolution of the Spanish society.

Narrative competence in Spanish-speaking adults with Williams syndrome.

Science.gov (United States)

Diez-Itza, Eliseo; Martínez, Verónica; Antón, Aránzazu

2016-08-01

Williams syndrome (WS) is a genetic disorder associated with intellectual disability and characterised by displaying an atypical neuropsychological profile, with peaks and valleys, where language skills seem better preserved than non-verbal intelligence. This study researches the narrative competence of nine Spanish-speaking adults with WS. Oral narratives were elicited from a silent film, and narrative coherence was analysed as a function of sequential order of the events narrated at three structure levels, while narrative cohesion was assessed through the frequency of use and type of discourse markers. WS subjects were able to remember a significant proportion of the events from the film, but coherence of narratives, i.e., sequential order of events, was more impaired. Consistently with their linguistic abilities, cohesion of narratives was better preserved, as they used discourse markers to introduce a high proportion of events. Construction of mental models of the narratives may be constrained in WS by non-verbal cognitive abilities, but narrative competence is also determined by textual pragmatic abilities to organize discourse, which should be addressed by specific intervention in narrative competence.

Culture of socio-economic security of Ukraine: Challenges in XXIst Century

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olesya Ihorivna Datsko

2015-12-01

Full Text Available It is argued, that the culture of social- economic security has impact on the socio-economic development of state. It is formed at several levels of human interaction: with oneself, other people, work, environment, community groups, state, world, God. It is proved that low level of culture of socio-economic security of Ukraine's population, especially state leaders has a destructive effect on the economic development, labour potential, and increasing level of corruption. The necessity to develop a culture of social- economic security in the state economic policy is proved.

The socio-political conceptualization of Serengeti landscapes in Europe: The case of 'Western Iberia'

Science.gov (United States)

Arjaan Pellis; Martijn Felder; Rene van der Duim

2015-01-01

This paper reflects on the socio-political conceptualization of ‘Western Iberia', one of Rewilding Europe's first pilot areas. Drawing from Actor Network Theory and social theories discussing Politics of Scale, we illustrate how ‘Western Iberia' is continuously being negotiated through practices in different sites within / outside its geographical...

Crop farmers and pastoralists' socio-economic characteristics ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Crop farmers and pastoralists' socio-economic characteristics influencing ... Journal of Agricultural Research and Development ... family size and farm size) influenced positively and significantly crop farmers and pastoralists land use conflict.

Migration and health: a study of effects of early life experiences and current socio-economic situation on mortality of immigrants in Sweden.

OpenAIRE

Klinthäll, Martin; Lindström, Martin

2011-01-01

Objectives. Previous research has demonstrated mortality differences between immigrants and natives living in Sweden. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of early life conditions in the country of birth and current socio-economic conditions in adult life in Sweden on cardiovascular, cancer, all other cause and total mortality among immigrants and natives in Sweden. Design. The cohort data concerning individual demographic characteristics and socio-economic conditions stems fro...

Political non-speak. Gadfly: Norman Myers.

Science.gov (United States)

Myers, N

1992-01-01

Election years in Britain, the USA, France, and Italy have not granted the environment a high place on the political agenda even in the year of the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). The erosion of the natural resources base is not included as natural resource accounting in the computation of gross national product (GNP). In countries such as Germany, Australia, Indonesia, and Costa Rica, 50% of GNP growth annually is cancelled out by soil erosion, pollution, excessive logging, and other environmental degradation. The economic health of the country including recovery from recessions is related to environmental protection. The economic practices involve ecological deficit accounting. It has been suggested by Lester Brown of the Worldwatch Institute that an economical deflator is needed to gage economic progress. The ecological illiteracy of politicians prevents the American people from realizing the actual cost of ignoring the problems. Politicians fight against raising taxes on gasoline and ignore the cost of carbon dioxide emissions and destabilization of climate. Americans pay a 1/4 the price Europeans pay for gasoline. Energy conservation must be expanded from current levels. Improvements have been made since the first OPEC price hike in 1973; the economy saved $100 billion a year and improved efficiency and production. American conservation in line with European conservation would save $200 billion a year; matching Japanese conservation would generate a savings of $300 billion. This sum exceeds the Federal deficit or the Pentagon budget. It is enough to save 8 million children who die from preventable causes or provide $4.5 billion/year annually to the year 2000 for foreign aid for UN family planning programs. The savings compares favorable with the UNCED estimates of $125 billion/year for environmental protection in the South. The question is whether politicians really would be committing political suicide by listening less to oil and car

Socio-economic impacts - an overview based on coal mining projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singh, V.K.

1994-01-01

Socio-economic impacts of coal projects have assumed importance as new projects are affecting tribal/underdeveloped areas. The paper highlights the impacts on land uses and on life and culture of the habitats. It assesses socio-economic impacts and furnishes financial implications of rehabilitation. Some suggestions have also been given to neutralize the stresses developed due to development of coal fields

Transportation and quantitative analysis of socio-economic development of relations

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yun

2017-12-01

Transportation has a close relationship with socio-economic. This article selects the indicators which can measure the development of transportation and socio-economic, using the method of correlation analysis, regression analysis, intensity of transportation analysis and transport elastic analysis, to analyze the relationship between them quantitatively, so that it has the fact guiding sense in the national development planning for the future.

How economic growth affects emissions? An investigation of the environmental Kuznets curve in Portuguese and Spanish economic activity sectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moutinho, Victor; Varum, Celeste; Madaleno, Mara

2017-01-01

It is a disquieting reality that increased economic growth for many years now in the Western world is at odds with environmental degradation. In this paper the relationship between economic growth and environmental variables is analyzed under two non-linear specifications, a quadratic and a cubic specification. The study is conducted for Portugal and Spain in the period 1975–2012, using data for 13 sectors. GVA is used as proxy for income, while energy use and carbon dioxide account for environmental degradation. There is evidence for an inverted U-shaped EKC. However, there are also other inverted N–shaped functions that explain the relationship between economic growth and emissions. Altogether, empirical results do indicate particular differences between Portuguese and Spanish sectors. The results are of interest not only for researchers but also for policy-makers. Political mitigation measures are also analyzed. - Highlights: • We study the EKC hypothesis using economic activity sectors in the Iberian Market. • There is evidence for a clear N-shaped EKC in Portugal. • Inverted N–shaped function explains the economic growth and emissions relationship. • Positive and significant effect of energy consumption in emissions for sectors. • Promote renewables substitution and tax benefits are urgent to accomplish goals.

Harmonization of the conditions for reversionary rights and concession periods: tax and business political aspects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sunnevaag, Kjell J.; Rusten, Grete; Soergard, Lars

2002-01-01

In Norway, the right of reversion was introduced at a time of national upheaval with regained independence and increasing understanding of the importance of hydropower in the industrialization process. Reversion became an important political instrument for securing public control over a resource of great socio-economic importance. After one hundred years, this arrangement is now set under pressure. This report discusses various aspects involved in creating regulations that are neutral with respect to ownership

INFLUENCE SOCIO-ECONOMIC SITUATION ON THE EFFECTIVE USE OF MANPOWER AGRICULTURAL ENTERPRISES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oleksandr Lebid

2016-06-01

Full Text Available In the article, the socio-economic condition of the rural population of Ukraine is a potential basis for the formation of labor farms. Analyzes the quantity of the population of Ukraine. The experience of leading countries for the support of public authorities of the agricultural sector. Analyzes the rural development programs of developed countries and derived from their implementation results. The dependence of the social dimension of economic and determined that it is the main and fundamental, and is a driving force for social development. Key words: workforce, personnel, economic and social development, efficiency management, population, economically active population. JEL: Q 00

Socio-economic impact of African swine fever outbreak of 2011 and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

With our findings we can conclude that ASF is still an important transboundary animal disease (TAD) with enormous socio-economic impact that requires concerted efforts of all stakeholders in the enforcement of control and preventive measures. Key words: African swine fever, socio-economic impact, seroprevalence, Isoka ...

Socio-economic Impact of Sethusamudram Project

OpenAIRE

Kannan, Srinivasan

2007-01-01

Any major development project has both benefits and disadvantages to the society. Many development projects have very high economic benefit and at the same time lead to environmental hazard. One such project is Sethudamudram project initiated by Government of India. This is a project which aims at minimising the distance of navigation for the goods transport in the sea. This paper is an attempt to study the socio-economic impact of the project based on the secondary data.

How Do Children Ascribe Gender to Nouns? A Study of Spanish-Speaking Children with and without Specific Language Impairment

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Raquel T.; Lockowitz, Alison

2009-01-01

The purpose of this investigation was to identify how Spanish-speaking preschool children with and without specific language impairment (SLI) use the various cues available for ascribing a noun's inherent gender in the language. Via an invented word task, four types of cues were isolated and presented to each child: (1) two types of noun-internal…

THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL ASPECTS OF MONITORING OF REGION’S SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES:

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valentyna Yakubiv

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The article defines the nature of socio-economic development processes monitoring in a region on the basis of systematization of scientific works on economics. The terms of monitoring introduction into the processes of socio-economic development of a region are defined. The difference between monitoring and standard statistic technology is explained. The fact that socio-economic processes monitoring is primarily directed at collection, examination and preparation of information for making and analyzing of economic decisions at different management levels is proved. The indicators by the direction “renewable energy and energy efficiency”, which are evaluated in the process of monitoring, are outlined. Major tasks of monitoring are defined and principles of its information basis forming are determined. Key words: decentralization, information basis, renewable energy, monitoring, region, development, socio-economic processes.

La Economía Política y las Motivaciones de Participación Socio-Política de Jóvenes Chilenos: Una Interpretación de los Hallazgos de Martínez, Silva y Hernández (2010 Political Economy and Youth Motivations of Socio-Political Participation: An Interpretation of the Findings From Martínez, Silva and Hernández (2010

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eduardo Silva

2010-11-01

Full Text Available El artículo de Martínez, Silva y Hernández (en este número argumenta que los jóvenes chilenos se han distanciado de la participación sociopolítica convencional, porque perciben una falta de validación de las personas en el sistema sociopolítico actual, debido a la vulneración de derechos, inequidad social y falta de voz y poder de los ciudadanos. Esto choca con sus valores de fraternidad y desarrollo justo y digno de las personas. En este ensayo se examina si ese sentir tiene fundamentos reales en la estructura y lógica del modelo político-económico que ellos critican. Se aborda el tema desde el marco analítico de la economía política, que parte del supuesto de que las estructuras económicas y políticas determinan sujetos sociales, sus intereses y su poder relativo. Se encontró una asociación directa entre la lógica del modelo político-económico y los sentimientos de exclusión que expresaron los entrevistados.The article by Martínez, Silva, and Hernández (in this issue argues that Chilean youth have disengaged from participation in conventional socio-political institutions because they believe that the sociopolitical system does not validate the persons, violates their rights, is highly inequitable, and excludes them from having a real voice in public decision-making. This perception clashes with their values of fraternity and a just and dignified development for everyone. This essay examines if these beliefs have a real basis in the structure and logic of the economic and political model they criticize. This issue is analyzed from a political economy perspective, built on the assumption that economic and political structures determine social subjects, their interests, and their relative power. A direct association was found between the logic of Chile's political-economic model and the feelings of exclusion that the interviewees expressed.

The model of sustainable socio-economic development of the national economy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

O. A. Kalchenko

2016-01-01

Full Text Available According to the new "National security strategy of the Russian Federation, sustainable socio-economic development is the basis of national economic security. UN conceptual model of sustainable development is considered. The “Club of Rome” founder’s Aurelio Peccei point of view that world could be presented by interrelated but sufficiently stable elements: Nature, Man, Society, science-based Technique is mentioned (early 1980s. Today, sustainable socio-economic development of the national economy is determined by: Nature, Man, Society, Technology, Economy and Infrastructure. To support this opinion, statements of leading scientists, politicians, business representatives are given: A. Aganbegian, M. Friedman, V. Sidorov, V. Inozemtsev, G. Gref. The author's model of sustainable socio-economic development of the national economy is presented. The position of Russia according to the “2016 Global R&D Funding Forecast”, compiled by well-known scientific periodical “R&DMagazine” is presented. Classification of indicators groups, taken from the Russian and foreign statistical data books (Russian Statistical Yearbook, IRI, R&D Magazine, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, CIA Factbook, OECD, according to the elements of an integrated system of sustainable socio-economic development of the national economy is given. Implementation aggregating partial indices into an integrated index for each group and their population as a whole is proposed. For each private indicator is proposed to develop three levels of threshold values (acceptable, marginal and critical for sustainable socio-economic development of the national economy and security. Since innovation is a key mechanism for the concept of sustainable socio-economic development of the national economy in a new tenor of technology, the need for innovative development of all elements of the proposed integrated system is required.

Economic, Political and Communicative power in the neoliberal societies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura Bergés-Saura, Ph. D.

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The article analyses the relations between the economic, political and communicative powers in the socioeconomic model of neoliberal capitalism. Firstly, it examines the transformations in the economic power, to analyse later the various mechanisms linking this changing economic power to the media performance. Among these mechanisms, the article analyses the control of ownership and other external financial sources; the origin of commercial income; and business management techniques, while simultaneously investigating the relations between these variables and the transformations in the economic sphere. Following the political economy tradition, the article addresses the implications that the concentration of economic, political and communicative power have on democracy and freedom, taking into account the evolution of the socioeconomic and political system in the last decades.

Teaching Low-Income Spanish-Speaking Caregivers to Implement EMT en Español With Their Young Children With Language Impairment: A Pilot Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Peredo, Tatiana Nogueira; Zelaya, Maria Isabel; Kaiser, Ann P

2018-02-06

This study examined the effectiveness of teaching low-income Spanish-speaking caregivers of young children with language impairment a naturalistic language intervention, EMT en Español. A single-case, multiple-baseline, across-behaviors design replicated across 3 caregiver-child dyads was used to examine the effects of teaching core EMT en Español strategies. The training program utilized the Teach-Model-Coach-Review instructional approach to teach strategies to support children's language development in Spanish. All sessions were at home and in Spanish. Caregivers increased their use of matched turns, target talk, expansions, and a communication elicitation procedure following training on each specific skill. Additionally, caregivers generalized increased use of matched turns and target talk to an untrained activity during the intervention period and maintained their behavior 1 month after completing intervention. Two of 3 caregivers generalized their use of expansions, and 1 caregiver generalized her use of a communication elicitation procedure. Modest effects on the child's number of different words were observed for 2 of the 3 target children over the course of the intervention sessions. All 3 children demonstrated increases in total spontaneous words. Spanish-speaking caregivers were able to implement naturalistic language teaching strategies with their young children with language impairment in a relatively short-term intervention.

FEATURES OF THE SOCIO-POLITICAL PROCESS IN THE UNITED STATES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tatyana Evgenevna Beydina

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The subject of this article is the study of political and social developments of the USA at the present stage. There are four stages of the American tradition of studying political processes. The first stage is connected with substantiation of the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches of political system (works of F. Pollack and R. Sili. The second one includes behavioral studies of politics. Besides studying political processes Charles Merriam has studied their similarities and differences. The third stage is characterized by political system studies – the works of T. Parsons, D. Easton, R. Aron, G. Almond and K. Deutsch. The fourth stage is characterized by superpower and the systems democratization problem (S. Huntington, Zb. Bzhezinsky. American social processes were qualified by R. Park, P. Sorokin, E. Giddens. The work is concentrated on the divided explanation of social and political processes of the us and the reflection of unity of American social-political reality. Academic novelty is composed of substantiation of the US social-political process concept and characterization of its features. The US social-political process is characterized by two channels: soft power and aggression. Soft power appears in the US economy dominancy. The main results of the research are features of the socio-political process in the United States. Purpose: the main goal of the research is to systematize the definition of social-political process of the USA and estimate the line of its study within American political tradition. Methodology: in this article have used methods: such as system, comparison and historical analysis, structural-functional analysis. Results: during the research the analysis of the dynamics of social and political processes of the United States had been made. Practical implications it is expedient to apply the received results in the international relation theory and practice.

Socio-economic expenditure impacts report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2004-01-01

The direct and indirect employment and employment income that can result from lifting the moratorium on British Columbia's west coast were estimated. Jobs and income are the two socio-economic benefits that generate the most concern at the local, provincial and national levels. The estimates are based on the development scenarios of one natural gas project in the Hecate Strait, and one oil project in the Queen Charlotte Sound. It was noted that a significant component of the potential socio-economic benefits from offshore development in British Columbia will result from project investment expenditures. Statistics Canada's Input-Output Model was used to assess the total expenditure impacts at the national and provincial levels. The indirect impacts are relatively more important to the local economy because they deal mainly with accommodation, food, beverage, and transportation. The total impacts can be measured in terms of total revenues, gross domestic product, and wages and salaries. The nature of supplier services that may be required were also identified. It was estimated that with the combined impacts of construction and operations, the total Canadian gross domestic product will increase by $3.0 billion, most of which will accrue to British Columbia. refs., tabs., figs

Socio-economic drivers of large urban biomass cogeneration: Sustainable energy supply for Austria's capital Vienna

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madlener, Reinhard; Bachhiesl, Mario

2007-01-01

This paper provides a detailed case study on Austria's by far largest biomass cogeneration plant. The plant is located in the city of Vienna and scheduled to be put into operation by mid-2006. Given the urban location of the plant and its significant biomass fuel input requirements, fuel delivery logistics play an important role-not only from an economic point of view, but also in relation to supply security and environmental impact. We describe and analyse the history of the project, putting particular emphasis on the main driving forces and actors behind the entire project development process. From this analysis we deduce the following main socio-economic drivers and success factors for the realisation of large bioenergy projects in urban settings: (1) a critical mass of actors; (2) a priori political consensus; (3) the existence of a problem (and problem awareness) that calls for decisive steps to be taken; (4) institutional innovation and changes in the mindset of the main decision makers; (5) favourable economic conditions; (6) change agents that are actively engaged from an early stage of development; (7) intra-firm supporters at different hierarchical levels and from different departments; and (8) targeted study tours that help to reduce uncertainty, to enable leapfrogging in project planning and design, and to build up confidence in the project's feasibility and chance of success

Race, Class and Voting Patterns in South Africa's Electoral System ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

sulaiman.adebowale

2006-08-29

Aug 29, 2006 ... mainly crime, policing, and public order while those of the Indian and coloured .... and English-speaking whites respectively, developed electoral .... changing the political and socio-economic arrangements of society, the latter.

Oil: economic and political factors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ayoub, A.

1994-01-01

This article deals with the evolution of the international petroleum sector since 1973 with a special view to interdependence between the economic and political factors that influence it. Two issues are focused upon: (1) the effects of the nationalization of oil companies on the sharing of oil rents and on changes in the structure of the oil market; and (2) the determination of oil prices. The latter involves a discussion of, on the one hand, the political and economic behaviour of the United States and Saudi Arabia and, on the other, the combination of cooperation and conflict that has tended to characterize relations among OPEC countries. (author). 30 refs

The use of geographical information systems in socio-economic studies

OpenAIRE

Daplyn, P.; Cropley, J.; Treagust, S.; Gordon, A.

1994-01-01

Geographical information systems (GIS) have found wide and growing applications, as digital remote-sensing data and computer technology have become more sophisticated, more easily available and less expensive. NRI recently undertook preliminary research into potential socio-economic applications of GIS. The feasibility of utilizing spatial data, available in GIS, to model socio-economic relationships was examined. It included the following steps: (a) identification of hypothetical relationshi...

Mental health symptoms in relation to socio-economic conditions and lifestyle factors--a population-based study in Sweden.

Science.gov (United States)

Molarius, Anu; Berglund, Kenneth; Eriksson, Charli; Eriksson, Hans G; Lindén-Boström, Margareta; Nordström, Eva; Persson, Carina; Sahlqvist, Lotta; Starrin, Bengt; Ydreborg, Berit

2009-08-20

Poor mental health has large social and economic consequences both for the individual and society. In Sweden, the prevalence of mental health symptoms has increased since the beginning of the 1990 s. There is a need for a better understanding of the area for planning preventive activities and health care. The study is based on a postal survey questionnaire sent to a random sample of men and women aged 18-84 years in 2004. The overall response rate was 64%. The area investigated covers 55 municipalities with about one million inhabitants in central part of Sweden. The study population includes 42,448 respondents. Mental health was measured with self-reported symptoms of anxiety/depression (EQ-5D, 5th question). The association between socio-economic conditions, lifestyle factors and mental health symptoms was investigated using multivariate multinomial logistic regression models. About 40% of women and 30% of men reported that they were moderately or extremely anxious or depressed. Younger subjects reported poorer mental health than older subjects, the best mental health was found at ages 65-74 years. Factors that were strongly and independently related to mental health symptoms were poor social support, experiences of being belittled, employment status (receiving a disability pension and unemployment), economic hardship, critical life events, and functional disability. A strong association was also found between how burdensome domestic work was experienced and anxiety/depression. This was true for both men and women. Educational level was not associated with mental health symptoms. Of lifestyle factors, physical inactivity, underweight and risk consumption of alcohol were independently associated with mental health symptoms. Our results support the notion that a ground for good mental health includes balance in social relations, in domestic work and in employment as well as in personal economy both among men and women. In addition, physical inactivity, underweight

John Rawls' original position: a model for socio-political retooling of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The life prospects of all in society are, in part, determined by the socio-political situation in currency. It is, therefore, pertinent that the basic structure of society should be organized on a fair set of principles allowing for social justice. Nigeria, however, riddled with issues of large scale corruption, ethnicity, constitution and the ...

Inclusion and Implementation of Socio-Economic Considerations in GMO Regulations: Needs and Recommendations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rosa Binimelis

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Socio-economic considerations are included in the regulatory frameworks on genetically modified organisms (GMOs of many countries. This is a reflection of an increasing interest in and recognition of the necessity to consider a broader range of issues when conducting a GMO risk assessment. At the same time, there are discussions about how socio-economic considerations can be identified and how their assessment can be carried out. To provide an understanding of the advances achieved so far, we describe the state of the art of existing biosafety institutional frameworks, legislation and policies with provisions on socio-economic considerations. We analyse the scope of the socio-economic considerations that have been included, the methodological options taken and the role of participatory processes and stakeholders involvement in the GMO-related decision-making. Since many of the countries that have legislation for assessing socio-economic considerations lack implementation experience, we provide an analysis of how implementation has evolved in Norway with the intention to illustrate that the inclusion of socio-economic considerations might be based on a learning process. Norway was the first country to include broader issues in its GMO assessment process, and is at present one of the countries with the most experience on implementation of these issues. Finally, we emphasise that there is a great need for training on how to perform assessments of socio-economic considerations, as well as reflection on possible ways for inclusion of participatory processes.

Consciousness towards Socio-Economic Impact Propensity: The Langkawi Island

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Khadar Nur Zafirah

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This study evaluates the socio-economic impact of tourism development on the tourist perceptions in Oriental Village, Langkawi Island. Socio-economic impacts are the consequences of either the tourism industry development or the presence of tourists in a particular destination, which resulted from the host-tourist relationship. Data for this research was generated using quantitative techniques and divided into 3 parts of instruments. Part A includes the demographic profile of respondents, Part B contains perceptions and opinions in economic and social impatcs and the last part was Part C where consists tourism utility assessment in social, economy and transportation. Simple frequency of mean and paired sample -test analysis were used to analyse the data generated for the study. The findings of the analysis proved that tourism development had a significant effect on the socio-economic impact and on the tourists’ perceptions in Oriental Village, Langkawi Island. In addition, it is viewed that public participation must be encouraged by tourism developers and planners to ensure the sustainability of tourism development in the community. Thus, this paper aims to give emphasis on the establishment of standard social guidelines within the tourism development framework for the purpose of preserving and protecting the social and economic values.

Socio-Economic Factors Influencing Entrepreneurship Among ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Socio-Economic Factors Influencing Entrepreneurship Among Women In Fishing Communities In Ondo State, Nigeria. ... The study found that overall entrepreneurial rating of the study group is low, essential input can not be easily gotten in the area, the respondents has large household size thereby had a large dependents ...

Oral Health Conditions of Older People: Focus on the Balkan Countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chatzopoulos Georgios S.

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Oral health plays a pivotal role in general health, especially in older people. Oral diseases may affect the development of systemic conditions, such as diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, stroke and hypertension. The most important oral health conditions that have been recorded in dental literature for older population include tooth loss, dental caries, periodontal diseases, xerostomia (dry mouth and oral cancer. Edentulism influences social life, either causing aesthetic problems or affecting functional abilities, such as speaking, chewing and eating. Dental caries in older people is similar to that in people in their thirties. Socio-economic status and living area play a key role in the development of dental caries. In addition, the accumulation of several risk factors, such as plaque or systemic diseases, acts synergistically in the onset of periodontal disease in seniors. Furthermore, older people, mainly due to their medications, exhibit a reduced amount of saliva. Xerostomia causes difficulties in chewing, speaking and swallowing, and it has a substantial impact on older people’s lives. The prevalence of oral cancer is 1-10 per 100,000 patients, and several factors (smoking, alcohol, education, economic status play crucial role. Limited data exists today that evaluates oral health conditions of seniors in the Balkan countries. Aging and socio-economic status of seniors in the Balkans are significantly associated with oral health problems.

Cancer survival disparities worsening by socio-economic disadvantage over the last 3 decades in new South Wales, Australia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hanna E. Tervonen

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Public concerns are commonly expressed about widening health gaps. This cohort study examines variations and trends in cancer survival by socio-economic disadvantage, geographical remoteness and country of birth in an Australian population over a 30-year period. Methods Data for cases diagnosed in New South Wales (NSW in 1980–2008 (n = 651,245 were extracted from the population-based NSW Cancer Registry. Competing risk regression models, using the Fine & Gray method, were used for comparative analyses to estimate sub-hazard ratios (SHR with 95% confidence intervals (CI among people diagnosed with cancer. Results Increased risk of cancer death was associated with living in the most socio-economically disadvantaged areas compared with the least disadvantaged areas (SHR 1.15, 95% CI 1.13–1.17, and in outer regional/remote areas compared with major cities (SHR 1.05, 95% CI 1.03–1.06. People born outside Australia had a similar or lower risk of cancer death than Australian-born (SHR 0.99, 95% CI 0.98–1.01 and SHR 0.91, 95% CI 0.90–0.92 for people born in other English and non-English speaking countries, respectively. An increasing comparative risk of cancer death was observed over time when comparing the most with the least socio-economically disadvantaged areas (SHR 1.07, 95% CI 1.04–1.10 for 1980–1989; SHR 1.14, 95% CI 1.12–1.17 for 1990–1999; and SHR 1.24, 95% CI 1.21–1.27 for 2000–2008; p < 0.001 for interaction between disadvantage quintile and year of diagnosis. Conclusions There is a widening gap in comparative risk of cancer death by level of socio-economic disadvantage that warrants a policy response and further examination of reasons behind these disparities.

""Una Persona Derechita" (Staying Right in the Mind)": Perceptions of Spanish-Speaking Mexican American Older Adults in South Texas "Colonias"

Science.gov (United States)

Sharkey, Joseph R.; Sharf, Barbara F.; St. John, Julie A.

2009-01-01

Purpose: This study describes the perceptions of brain health among older Spanish-speaking Mexican Americans who reside in colonia areas of the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Design and Methods: In 2007, 33 Mexican American older adults (9 men and 24 women) were recruited by "promotoras" (community health workers) from clusters of…

Attitudes toward science: measurement and psychometric properties of the Test of Science-Related Attitudes for its use in Spanish-speaking classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Navarro, Marianela; Förster, Carla; González, Caterina; González-Pose, Paulina

2016-06-01

Understanding attitudes toward science and measuring them remain two major challenges for science teaching. This article reviews the concept of attitudes toward science and their measurement. It subsequently analyzes the psychometric properties of the Test of Science-Related Attitudes (TOSRA), such as its construct validity, its discriminant and concurrent validity, and its reliability. The evidence presented suggests that TOSRA, in its Spanish-adapted version, has adequate construct validity regarding its theoretical referents, as well as good indexes of reliability. In addition, it determines the attitudes toward science of secondary school students in Santiago de Chile (n = 664) and analyzes the sex variable as a differentiating factor in such attitudes. The analysis by sex revealed low-relevance gender difference. The results are contrasted with those obtained in English-speaking countries. This TOSRA sample showed good psychometric parameters for measuring and evaluating attitudes toward science, which can be used in classrooms of Spanish-speaking countries or with immigrant populations with limited English proficiency.

Object-oriented image analysis and change detection of land-use on Tenerife related to socio-economic conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Naumann, Simone; Siegmund, Alexander

2004-10-01

The island Tenerife is characterized by an increasing tourism, which causes an enormous change of the socio-economic situation and a rural exodus. This development leads - beside for example sociocultural issues - to fallow land, decreasing settlements, land wasting etc., as well as to an economic and ecological problem. This causes to a growing interest in geoecological aspects and to an increasing demand for an adequate monitoring database. In order to study the change of land use and land cover, the technology of remote sensing (LANDSAT 3 MSS and 7 ETM+, orthophotos) and geographical information systems were used to analyze the spatial pattern and its spatial temporal changes of land use from end of the 70s to the present in different scales. Because of the heterogeneous landscape and the unsatisfactory experience with pixel-based classification of the same area, object-oriented image analysis techniques have been applied to classify the remote sensed data. A post-classification application was implemented to detect spatial and categorical land use and land cover changes, which have been clipped with the socio-economic data within GIS to derive the driving forces of the changes and their variability in time and space.

The genetic architecture of economic and political preferences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Benjamin, Daniel J.; Cesarini, David; Van Der Loos, Matthijs J.H.M.; Dawes, Christopher T.; Koellinger, Philipp D.; Magnusson, Patrik K.E.; Chabris, Christopher F.; Conley, Dalton; Laibson, David; Johannesson, Magnus; Visscher, Peter M.

2012-01-01

Preferences are fundamental building blocks in all models of economic and political behavior. We study a new sample of comprehensively genotyped subjects with data on economic and political preferences and educational attainment. We use dense single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data to estimate the

The genetic architecture of economic and political preferences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

D.J. Benjamin (Daniel J.); D. Cesarini (David); M.J.H.M. van der Loos (Matthijs); C.T. Dawes (Christopher T.); Ph.D. Koellinger (Philipp); P.K. Magnusson (Patrik); C.F. Chabris (Christopher F.); D. Conley (Dalton); D. Laibson (David); M. Johannesson (Magnus); P.M. Visscher (Peter)

2012-01-01

textabstractPreferences are fundamental building blocks in all models of economic and political behavior. We study a new sample of comprehensively genotyped subjects with data on economic and political preferences and educational attainment. We use dense single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data to

Spanish and English Early Literacy Profiles of Preschool Latino English Language Learner Children

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez, Jorge; Pollard-Durodola, Sharolyn; Saenz, Laura; Soares, Denise; Davis, Heather; Resendez, Nora; Zhu, Leina

2016-01-01

Research Findings: The purpose of this study was to examine within-group individual differences in the code-related and oral language abilities of an economically stressed Spanish-speaking English language learner (ELL) preschool sample and to evaluate the predictive relationship of these differences to later listening comprehension. Latent class…

Political and moral consequences of science

CERN Document Server

Von Weizsäcker, Carl Friedrich

1988-01-01

In the first part, Prof. von WEIZSACKER deals with the political and moral situation for the scientists today. Then he speaks about the concrete problems of our times, often connected with science : social-economic problems, ecological problems and the problem of peace and war.

Perception of Risk for Developing Diabetes Among Foreign-Born Spanish-Speaking US Latinos.

Science.gov (United States)

Joiner, Kevin L; Sternberg, Rosa Maria; Kennedy, Christine M; Fukuoka, Yoshimi; Chen, Jyu-Lin; Janson, Susan L

2016-08-01

The purpose of the study was to describe perception of risk for developing diabetes among foreign-born Spanish-speaking US Latinos. Participants (N = 146), recruited at food-pantry distribution events and free clinics, were surveyed using the Risk Perception Survey for Developing Diabetes in Spanish. Type 2 diabetes risk factors measured included body mass index, physical activity, and A1C. Sample characteristics were mean (SD) age of 39.5 (9.9) years, 58% with less than a high school graduate-level education, and 65% with a family income less than $15,000/year. Prevalence of risk factors was 81% overweight or obese, 47% less than 150 minutes/week moderate/vigorous-intensity physical activity, and 12% A1C consistent with prediabetes. Of the 135 participants with complete data, 31% perceived a high/moderate risk for developing diabetes. In univariate logistic regression analyses, 9 of 18 potential variables were significant (P perception of risk. When these 9 variables were entered into a multiple logistic regression model, 5 were significant predictors of perception of risk: history of gestational diabetes, high school graduate or above, optimistic bias, worry, and perceived personal disease risk. Use of the Spanish-language translation of the Risk Perception Survey for Developing Diabetes revealed factors influencing perception of risk for developing diabetes. Results can be used to promote culturally acceptable type 2 diabetes primary prevention strategies and provide a useful comparison to other populations. © 2016 The Author(s).

Economic and political hybridity: Patrimonial capitalism in the post-Soviet sphere

OpenAIRE

Robinson, Neil

2013-01-01

Hybridity in non-democratic states can be economic as well as political. Economic hybridity is produced by the same kind of pressures that create political hybridity, but the relationship between economic and political hybridity has not been as much studied by political scientists. This article uses the concept of patrimonial capitalism to look at economic hybridity, its stability and relationship to political hybridity. Using examples from Russia and other former Soviet states it argues that...

Does Political Ideology Affect Economic Growth?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjørnskov, Christian

2005-01-01

This paper asks the question whether political ideology affects economic growth. Voters may demand inefficient levels of redistribution and government intervention, and they may care too little for aspects that really matter for the economy. Their norms and perceptions of society might, via...... their political ideology, affect economic performance. The paper presents evidence suggesting that rightwing societies have grown faster in the last decades than other democratic societies. Further analysis suggests that these societies develop better legal systems and less government intervention, which in turn...

The relationships among National Socio-Economic Indicators and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The objective of this study was therefore to use data reported by the United Nations to assess the relationships among national socio-economic statistics on education, economic performance, health care, nutrition, agriculture and demography, and infant and child mortality rates, from 129 countries. The methods used in the ...

Socio-political structure of Turkey in general elections (since 1950 up to 1980)

OpenAIRE

Ali Arslan

2007-01-01

This study aims to analyse socio-political structure of Turkish society at the basis of the results of Turkish General elections since 1950 up to 1980. Documentary and historical research techniques will be employed during the study.

Big Data: A New Empiricism and its Epistemic and Socio-Political Consequences

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rieder, Gernot; Simon, Judith

2017-01-01

The paper investigates the rise of Big Data in contemporary society. It examines the most prominent epistemological claims made by Big Data proponents, calls attention to the potential socio-political consequences of blind data trust, and proposes a possible way forward. The paper’s main focus is...

California Conference on High Blood Pressure Control in the Spanish-Speaking Community (Los Angeles, California, April 1-2, 1978). Summary Report.

Science.gov (United States)

National Institutes of Health (DHEW), Bethesda, MD. High Blood Pressure Information Center.

As part of the National High Blood Pressure Education Program effort, the conference explored the implications and impact of the prevalence of hypertension in Spanish-speaking populations in California. Approximately 150 experts in health fields, representing all levels of government, public and private health care providers, consumers, and health…

Socio/economic/ecological impacts of nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Golden, J.; Watson, J.

1975-01-01

A nuclear facility has both radiological and non-radiological effects on the environment. To minimize radiological effects, limits are set on releases of radioactive materials that will cause either direct or indirect exposure (such as the food chain). Exposure pathways for man and other organisms are described with comparisons of typical calculated doses and design objective doses. Non-radiological impacts of nuclear plants are classified as ecological-physical and socio/economic considerations, which include eighteen areas affected during each phase of the nuclear facility cycle. The ecological-physical environment is impacted in the areas of hydrology, terrestrial and aquatic ecology, and air and water quality. The socio-economic environment is impacted in areas of land use, tax base, employment, economic stimulus, relocation, lifestyle, demand for service, aesthetics, and power needs. Case studies of large construction projects are described in the appendix

Political freedom and the response to economic incentives: labor migration in Africa, 1972-1987.

Science.gov (United States)

Barkley, A P; Mcmillan, J

1994-12-01

This study examines the thesis that political institutions and the freedoms and civil rights generated by these institutions affect migration decisions. The hypothesis is based on one stated by Adam Smith in 1776, that economic conditions that reflect greater political freedoms and civil liberties harbor higher levels of resource mobility in response to economic incentives. Pooled cross-sectional and time-series analysis is based on data from the World Bank for 32 African countries during 1972-87. Findings support the hypothesis that migration rate is more affected by the expected returns ratio to labor in countries where civil liberties are greater than in nations with fewer civil liberties. The implication, from the inclusion of institutional factors in the model, is that civil liberties have an indirect impact on the rate of labor migration out of agriculture in Africa. The impact is a mix of economic incentives and civil liberties. In the political rights model, the most free countries had the largest migration elasticity. The findings on political rights impacts support findings by Friedman and McMillan that civil liberties are a more important determinant of economic growth than political rights. Further testing for measurement error confirmed that the data were flawed, but not so greatly that the basic findings were overturned. The migration out of African agriculture was found to be sensitive to the effect of price signals, which were conditioned by the degree of political rights and civil liberties. Policy makers are urged to consider both changes in pricing and institutions.

Economic Liberalization and Political Violence : Utopia or Dystopia ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

2010-08-06

Economic Liberalization and Political Violence : Utopia or Dystopia ? Couverture du livre Economic Liberalization and Political Violence : Utopia or Dystopia ? Editor(s):. Francisco Gutiérrez et Gerd Schönwälder. Publisher(s):. Pluto Press, CRDI. August 6, 2010. ISBN: 9780745330631. 360 pages. e-ISBN: 9781552504826.

State and business co-operation in settling socio-economic issues: forward to sustainable development of ecologically unfavorable regions

Science.gov (United States)

Bashkirova, N. N.; Lessovaia, S. N.

2018-01-01

The complexity of socio-economic issues of mono-cities located in the ecologically unfavorable regions of Eurasia was disclosed. The economically strategic role of city-forming mining enterprises and their impact on ecological situation was revealed. The general conception of settling the socio-economic problems of mono-cities located in ecologically unfavorable regions was worked out. Various approached to the concentration of financial resources for economic and ecological sustainable development of the regions located on the north of Eurasia holding nature protection actions were submitted. Based on performed critical analysis of the positive international experience of ecological taxation some approaches to reforming current Russian system of ecological taxation were suggested. It was revealed that increasing the social responsibilities of business in the field of waste recycling, environmental protection and monitoring of ecological conditions of territories and state and business co-operation are the most efficient opportunities in settling socio-economic issues of ecologically unfavorable regions.

Quantitative stability, qualitative change? Changing socio-economic status and value perceptions of Danish volunteers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frederiksen, Morten; Henriksen, Lars Skov; Qvist, Hans-Peter

2013-01-01

Changes in both socio-economic and cultural structures of societies are often assumed to have an impact on volunteering. Changing living conditions and changing values can affect both the level and the nature of volunteering. Most Western societies have over the last 30 years or more experienced...... changes in economic conditions, educational levels, and labor markets at the same time as cultural changes have taken place in relation to processes of individualization and reflexivity. Based on empirical data the aim of this paper is to investigate whether and to what extent changes in the structural...

Rethinking Spanish: Understanding Spanish Speakers Motivations and Reasons to Opt for Either an English Only or a Dual English-Spanish Educational Program

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Adrienne C.

2017-01-01

Spanish-speaking parents choose to enroll their children in either an English only or English-Spanish dual immersion program when presented with both choices. This ethnographic study explored parent's perceptions of the purpose, advantages, and disadvantages of learning in school in English only or in a dual English-Spanish. Through focus group…

Prevalence of Violence against Children in Families in Tripura and Its Relationship with Socio-economic Factors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Subhasis Modak

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Violence against children is a deep-rooted social problem in India. The problem is also related to economic as well as cultural beliefs and practices. The objective of this study was to ascertain the prevalence and nature of violence experienced by the children in families in Tripura, India and its relationship with socio-economic factors. Methods: A group of 320 children (160 males and 160 females studying in Class VIII and IX and aged between 14-19 participated in the study after obtaining their informed consent from eight randomly selected English and Bengali medium schools in Agartala, Tripura (India. Data were collected by using a specially designed ‘Semi-structured Questionnaire’. Results: Findings revealed that about 20.9% (67/320, 21.9% (70/230 and 18.1% (58/230 of the children experienced psychological, physical and sexual violence respectively. Male children were more likely to be victims of psychological and physical violence while female children experienced more sexual violence (p=sign. Further analysis of data revealed some relationship between violence against children and nuclear family (p=sign, uncongenial and/or disturbed family environment (p=sign and dominating, short-tempered and/or aggressive parent personality (p=sign, irrespective of the nature of the violence. Physical violence was found to be more prevalent in high income families (p=sign while children from the lower income group of families experienced more psychological violence (p=sign. Sexual violence was found to be equally prevalent in all socio-economic groups. The study also clearly indicated that academic performance of violence-experienced children, irrespective of nature of violence and socio-economic groups was poor compared to academic performance of non-violence-experienced children (p=sign. Conclusions: About one-fifth of the children under study did experience violence in Tripura. Findings speak in favor of an intervention program for

Perception of Risk for Developing Diabetes among Foreign-Born Spanish-Speaking U.S. Latinos

Science.gov (United States)

Joiner, Kevin L.; Sternberg, Rosa Maria; Kennedy, Christine M.; Fukuoka, Yoshimi; Chen, Jyu-Lin; Janson, Susan L.

2017-01-01

Purpose The purpose of this study was to describe perception of risk for developing diabetes among foreign-born Spanish-speaking U.S. Latinos. Methods Participants (N=146), recruited at food-pantry distribution events and free clinics, were surveyed using the Risk Perception Survey for Developing Diabetes in Spanish. Type 2 diabetes risk factors measured included: Body Mass Index, physical activity, and Hemoglobin A1C. Results Sample characteristics were mean age 39.5 (±9.9) years old, 58% with less than a high school graduate level education, and 65% with a family income less than $15,000/year. Prevalence of risk factors was 81% overweight or obese, 47% risk for developing diabetes. In univariate logistic regression analyses, 9 of 18 potential variables were significant (pperception of risk. When these 9 variables were entered into a multiple logistic regression model, 5 were significant predictors of perception of risk: history of gestational diabetes, ≥ high school graduate, optimistic bias, worry, and perceived personal disease risk. Conclusions This is the first study using the Risk Perception Survey for Developing Diabetes in Spanish in this population and reveals factors that influence perception of risk for developing diabetes. The results can be used to promote culturally acceptable type 2 diabetes primary prevention strategies and provide a useful comparison to other populations. PMID:27150605

Pirate political parties: New democracy or political utopia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karanović Bojana

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Modern society is changing under the influence of IT technologies, more and more we talk about 'digital revolution', and political and economic developments are shaped by computer networks. Undeniably, the Internet has opened new possibilities for socio-political expansion, networking and mobilization. Besides the political establishment, many social movements found their chance in cyberspace recognizing the IT technology as a platform for the development and improvement of their internal and external communication. In this article we will focus on the Pirate Party, movement that has been seriously growing on the European political stage for last several years. Following the example of German Pirate Party we will try to explain the characteristics of the movement, its goals and communication strategies, and political dilemmas which it brings.

Mothers' attitudes toward adolescent confidential services: development and validation of scales for use in English- and Spanish-speaking populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Tebb, Kathleen P; Pollack, Lance M; Millstein, Shana; Otero-Sabogal, Regina; Wibbelsman, Charles J

2014-09-01

To explore parental beliefs and attitudes about confidential services for their teenagers; and to develop an instrument to assess these beliefs and attitudes that could be used among English and Spanish speakers. The long-term goal is to use this research to better understand and evaluate interventions to improve parental knowledge and attitudes toward their adolescent's access and utilization of comprehensive confidential health services. The instrument was developed using an extensive literature review and theoretical framework followed by qualitative data from focus groups and in-depth interviews. It was then pilot tested with a random sample of English- and Spanish-speaking parents and further revised. The final instrument was administered to a random sample of 1,000 mothers. The psychometric properties of the instrument were assessed for Spanish and English speakers. The instrument consisted of 12 scales. Most Cronbach alphas were >.70 for Spanish and English speakers. Fewer items for Spanish speakers "loaded" for the Responsibility and Communication scales. Parental Control of Health Information failed for Spanish speakers. The Parental Attitudes of Adolescent Confidential Health Services Questionnaire (PAACS-Q) contains 12 scales and is a valid and reliable instrument to assess parental knowledge and attitudes toward confidential health services for adolescents among English speakers and all but one scale was applicable for Spanish speakers. More research is needed to understand key constructs with Spanish speakers. Copyright © 2014 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cancer Health Literacy Test-30-Spanish (CHLT-30-DKspa), a New Spanish-Language Version of the Cancer Health Literacy Test (CHLT-30) for Spanish-Speaking Latinos.

Science.gov (United States)

Echeverri, Margarita; Anderson, David; Nápoles, Anna María

2016-01-01

This article describes the adaptation and initial validation of the Cancer Health Literacy Test (CHLT) for Spanish speakers. A cross-sectional field test of the Spanish version of the CHLT (CHLT-30-DKspa) was conducted among healthy Latinos in Louisiana. Diagonally weighted least squares was used to confirm the factor structure. Item response analysis using 2-parameter logistic estimates was used to identify questions that may require modification to avoid bias. Cronbach's alpha coefficients estimated scale internal consistency reliability. Analysis of variance was used to test for significant differences in CHLT-30-DKspa scores by gender, origin, age and education. The mean CHLT-30-DKspa score (N = 400) was 17.13 (range = 0-30, SD = 6.65). Results confirmed a unidimensional structure, χ(2)(405) = 461.55, p = .027, comparative fit index = .993, Tucker-Lewis index = .992, root mean square error of approximation = .0180. Cronbach's alpha was .88. Items Q1-High Calorie and Q15-Tumor Spread had the lowest item-scale correlations (.148 and .288, respectively) and standardized factor loadings (.152 and .302, respectively). Items Q19-Smoking Risk, Q8-Palliative Care, and Q1-High Calorie had the highest item difficulty parameters (difficulty = 1.12, 1.21, and 2.40, respectively). Results generally support the applicability of the CHLT-30-DKspa for healthy Spanish-speaking populations, with the exception of 4 items that need to be deleted or revised and further studied: Q1, Q8, Q15, and Q19.

Socrates: Platonic Political Ideal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher P. Long

2012-08-01

Full Text Available This essay articulates the differences and suggests the similarities between the practices of Socratic political speaking and those of Platonic political writing. The essay delineates Socratic speaking and Platonic writing as both erotically oriented toward ideals capable of transforming the lives of individuals and their relationships with one another. Besides it shows that in the Protagoras the practices of Socratic political speaking are concerned less with Protagoras than with the individual young man, Hippocrates. In the Phaedo, this ideal of a Socrates is amplified in such a way that Platonic writing itself emerges as capable of doing with readers what Socratic speaking did with those he encountered. Socrates is the Platonic political ideal. The result is a picture of the transformative political power of Socratic speaking and Platonic writing both.

The Political Economy of Recent Economic Growth in India

OpenAIRE

Raghbendra Jha

2004-01-01

The political economy of India’s economic growth is an issue of abiding interest. Higher and sustained economic growth has, all over the world, been the surest and most time tested means of raising living standards and reducing poverty. Further, given that it is a functioning democracy, economic policy in India can often be dictated by political expediency as political parties indulge in competitive populism in the face of improvements in social indicators such as literacy, infant mortality a...

Socio-economic differences in prescription and OTC drug use in Dutch adolescents

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tobi, H.; Meijer, W.M.; Tuinstra, J.; de Jong-van den Berg, L.T.

2003-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To detect whether there were socio-economic differences in the overall use of prescription and OCT drugs among adolescents. METHODS: This study was a secondary analysis of questionnaire data collected to investigate socio-economic differences in health risk behaviour and decision-making.

Academic Literacies: Providing a Space for the Socio-Political Dynamics of EAP

Science.gov (United States)

Turner, Joan

2012-01-01

This article highlights the potential of academic literacies as a theoretical framework for EAP, encompassing not only work on texts, but the wider, socio-political, geopolitical, and institutional contexts and practices in and with which EAP operates. An academic literacies approach foregrounds social practices, and one particular practice, that…

Critical prophecy and political leadership in biblical, African and Islamic worldviews

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P.O. Abioje

2010-07-01

Full Text Available This article examines the socio-political influence of prophecy in traditional African and the biblical perspectives, in order to challenge contemporary African religious men and women to serve as the conscience of society. There is hardly any doubt that political leaders are usually prone to abuse of their positions and they need to be reprimanded and lampooned. A discussion on Islam is included, because, together with Christianity, it dominates, to a large extent, socio-political and economic leadership in Africa. It is the view of many scholars that neither Christianity nor Islam have been applied sufficiently to political leadership in Africa to have an impact on mass socio-political and economic welfare, although some heroic individual exceptions are noted. The materials were gathered through a literature study. The study is comparative in the sense that it compares prophecy in traditional Africa with what is obtained from the Bible and the church as we know it today. The study recommends critical prophecy in the two dominant Old Testament religions, namely Christianity and Islam, and in African Traditional Religion, for improved political leadership and development in Africa.

Economics, socio-ecological resilience and ecosystem services.

Science.gov (United States)

Farley, Joshua; Voinov, Alexey

2016-12-01

The economic process transforms raw materials and energy into economic products and waste. On a finite planet, continued economic growth threatens to surpass critical socio-ecological thresholds and undermine ecosystem services upon which humans and all other species depend. For most systems, whether such thresholds exist, where they lie and whether they are reversible cannot be known with certainty until they are crossed. We argue that our central economic challenge is to maintain the resilience of the current socio-ecological regime. We must reduce net impacts of economic activity to avoid critical ecological thresholds while ensuring economic necessities. Conventional economists pursue continuous growth as the central goal of economic activity, and assume that the price mechanism and technological breakthroughs ensure system resilience. Unfortunately, the price mechanism fails to address ecological thresholds because it ignores unowned ecosystem services, and fails to address economic thresholds because it ignores the needs of the poorest individuals, who live on the edge of them. Panarchy theory suggests that systems go through a cycle of growth, conservation, release and renewal. Managing a subsystem too long for growth or conservation-which many consider to be the goal of sustainability-actually threatens to collapse the higher-level system upon which that subsystem depends. Black Swan theory suggests we should seek to reduce the risk of catastrophic thresholds and promote the likelihood of technological breakthroughs. Economic degrowth, or planned release, is required to avoid catastrophic collapse. At the same time, publicly funded, open source information can help stimulate the technological breakthroughs economists count on to ensure resilience. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Socio-economic Scenarios in Climate Assessments (IC11). Synthesis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Drunen, M.; Berkhout, F.

2011-09-01

It is widely recognised that projections of social and economic futures are circumscribed by irreducible uncertainties and ignorance. A common analytical response is to develop scenarios that map a range of alternative possible outcomes. The application of scenarios in climate assessments in the Netherlands was investigated in this report, focusing on the use of the socio-economic scenarios 'Welvaart en Leefomgeving' (WLO - The Future of the Dutch Built Environment). This research was carried out within the Climate Changes Spatial Planning (CcSP) programme. WLO scenarios have been applied in climate assessment studies. WLO generates figures and data that are useful. Nevertheless we encountered several CcSP projects that did not apply any socio-economic scenarios, whilst this seemed necessary based on their objectives. In general, climate assessments make little sense if socio-economic developments are not taken into account. Interestingly, some of the studies that did apply socio-economic scenarios, picked only one or two of the scenarios generated by WLO. From a theoretical point of view this selective 'shopping' may lead to a tunnel vision, because it is impossible to estimate which scenario is more probable than the others. At the other hand it is often impractical to explore all four scenarios. The time horizon of WLO was in several cases too short for climate assessments. As it is probable that the structure of society has changed significantly by 2040, it is difficult to quantitatively support the storylines as was done in WLO, because many model assumptions are not correct anymore. Possibly it is better to take a backcasting approach for the second half of the century for the purpose of the CcSP programme. The two case studies described in this report provide examples of good practice that are likely to be useful in future projects that deal with scenarios. In addition, this study produced an interactive website (www.climatescenarios.nl) that provides key

The socio-economic and spatial transformation of Polish cities after 1989

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jerzy J. Parysek

2004-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to present the socio-economic and spatial transformation of Polishcities after 1989. The Polish changes reached the structures of the three basic subsystems ofthe state: political (power, social (society, and economic (the economy. The systemictransformation that has taken place in Poland after 1989 is most readily visible in towns,although it was introduced in the country as a whole. For the development and transformationof towns, the most important were the introduction of local government structures andthe market model of the economy. The restitution of local government has ensured townsan authentic manager authorised to perform his function by the local community. The introductionof the market model to the economy has resulted in its privatisation and the appearanceof enterprise and competition. Towns, especially the biggest cities, have becomeattractive locations for investment. Cities with a balanced economic structure and well-developedinfrastructure had much better chances for growth to start with. Unfortunately, thetransformation period has also had some detrimental effects, the most important being unemploymentand all kinds of social deviance. However, Polish cities are certainly differenttoday and resemble Western cities to a greater extent than did the so-called socialist townsbuilt along theoretically beautiful but practically ineffectual ideological lines.

Analyzing socio-economic impacts of tourism : Case of Lumbini region- Nepal

OpenAIRE

K.C., Shambhu; Gewali, Jhabindra

2014-01-01

The first objective of this Thesis is to identify, select, and analyze the socio- economic impacts of faith tourism in Lumbini region. The second objective is to present the impacts in context of changing business environment. And the last objective is to develop strategies for economic progress in a society. In this research work previous reports, theses, literatures and reviews were studied to get an idea about the socio-economic impacts of faith tourism in Lumbini region. In addition,...

Assessment of satisfaction with care and decision-making among English and Spanish-speaking family members of neuroscience ICU patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Hagerty, Thomas A; Velázquez, Ángela; Schmidt, J Michael; Falo, Cristina

2016-02-01

Patients' and family members' experiences of hospital care are important indicators of quality. "Black, Asian, and Hispanic patients are more at risk than White patients for decreased satisfaction with care." In addition, of any of these groups, Hispanic patients were most likely to report a lack of patient-centered care. In the intensive care setting, (ICU) previous research has indicated that the needs and satisfaction of family members of neurological ICU patients are different from those of family members of other types of ICU patients. The purpose of this study was to determine if there were any differences between English-speaking and Spanish-speaking family members of patients in a neurological ICU. This study was a single center prospective study conducted over a 10-month period from April 2013 to February 2014 in the 18-bed neuroscience ICU of a large, urban, academic medical center. The Family Satisfaction with ICU (FS-ICU) questionnaire was used; it provides an overall score and has two factors: satisfaction with care and satisfaction with decision-making. There was no statistical significance between the two groups in overall satisfaction or in satisfaction with care, however Spanish-speakers (n=22) were significantly less satisfied (p=.04) than English-speakers (n=50) with decision-making. There were three other discreet variables in which Spanish-speakers were also less satisfied: (a) management of patients' pain (OR 3.16, 95% CI [1.12, 8.9]) (b) management of patients' breathlessness (OR 3.5, 95% CI [1.23, 9.96]) as well as (c) ease of getting information (OR 3.25, 95% CI [1.09, 9.64]). Using a standardized survey it was found that Spanish-speakers were statistically less satisfied with decision-making than English-speakers. Additionally, Spanish-speakers were statistically less satisfied with management of patients' pain and breathlessness and ease of getting information. Based on these findings, increased vigilance is recommended regarding decision

Translating the Spanish Economic Discourse of the Crisis: Dealing with the Inevitability of English Loanwords

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

María Ángeles Orts Llopis

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Our current study aims at analysing and describing the plethora of English loans in the Spanish discourse of economy -in the shape of direct or indirect borrowings- as a result of the swift changes taking place in the course of the present Global Systemic Crisis. The need for precision and accurateness in the deployment of technical terms, or terms of art, in the Spanish discourse of Economics has triggered our scrutiny of an ad hoc corpus of economic news-items from a range of digital periodicals in the field of finance and economics. With the aid of three financial bilingual glossaries intended for the specialized Spanish-speaking community, and the deployment of a specific taxonomy on linguistic incorporations, we have developed a system of lexical selection, reuniting, analyzing and explaining a representative group of real data illustrating, somehow, the neologistic borrowing process during the above-mentioned financial havoc. Further, our study attempts to enlighten and facilitate the translator’s task when dealing with the economic language in Spanish and the English loans incorporated just before, during, and after the critical period under scrutiny.El estudio que aquí presentamos se dirige hacia el análisis y la descripción de la plétora de préstamos del inglés que, de forma directa o indirecta, se infiltran en el discurso económico en español, como resultado de los veloces cambios financieros que han surgido de la Crisis Global Sistémica. La necesidad de precisión y exactitud en el empleo y aplicación de términos especializados de corte financiero en el discurso de la economía española ha constituido nuestra fuente de inspiración para acometer el estudio de un corpus económico ad hoc, seleccionado de una gama de periódicos digitales de corte especializado, semiespecializado y divulgativo. Los términos analizados para su búsqueda y escrutinio han sido seleccionados con la ayuda de glosarios bilingües dirigidos a la

Changing Identities and Socio Economic Strategies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Singla, Rashmi; Fabricius, Anne Sophie; Holm, Anne

Changing Identities and Socio Economic Strategies: South Asian Diasporic Youth in Scandinavia   Rashmi Singla,  Anne Sophie Fabricius & Anne Holm This paper throws light on the rapid cultural transformations as well as continuity among the South Asian youth in Scandinavia, primarily in Denmark....... Based on two interdisciplinary empirical studies, it investigates some socioeconomic aspects of the South Asian diaspora in Denmark. The first longitudinal study explored young adults’ economic strategies in relation to their country of origin. The first wave investigation was conducted in the mid-1990s...

Economic Liberalization and Political Violence : Utopia or Dystopia ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Economic Liberalization and Political Violence : Utopia or Dystopia ? Couverture du livre Economic Liberalization and Political Violence : Utopia or Dystopia ? Directeur(s):. Francisco Gutiérrez et Gerd Schönwälder. Maison(s) d'édition: Pluto Press, CRDI. 6 août 2010. ISBN : 9780745330631. 360 pages. e-ISBN :.

Economic and Political Liberalization in Tanzania and its ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

With the onset of globalization one-party state regimes were forced to liberalize politically and economically. Liberalization was seen as beneficial for it opened up both the political and economic space for all actors in the development process. Liberalization was embraced because of its perceived advantages to all sections ...

A Multigroup Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 among English- and Spanish-speaking Latinas

Science.gov (United States)

Merz, Erin L.; Malcarne, Vanessa L.; Roesch, Scott C.; Riley, Natasha; Sadler, Georgia Robins

2014-01-01

Depression is a significant problem for ethnic minorities that remains understudied partly due to a lack of strong measures with established psychometric properties. One screening tool, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), which was developed for use in primary care has also gained popularity in research settings. The reliability and validity of the PHQ-9 has been well established among predominantly Caucasian samples, in addition to many minority groups. However, there is little evidence regarding its utility among Hispanic Americans, a large and growing cultural group in the United States. In this study, we investigated the reliability and structural validity of the PHQ-9 in Hispanic American women. A community sample of 479 Latina women from southern California completed the PHQ-9 in their preferred language of English or Spanish. Cronbach’s alphas suggested that there was good internal consistency for both the English- and Spanish-language versions. Structural validity was investigated using multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Results support a similar one-factor structure with equivalent response patterns and variances among English- and Spanish-speaking Latinas. These results suggest that the PHQ-9 can be used with confidence in both English and Spanish versions to screen Latinas for depression. PMID:21787063

An Agent-Based Dynamic Model of Politics, Fertility and Economic Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zining Yang

2016-08-01

Full Text Available In the political economy of development, government policy choices at a single point in time can dramatically affect a country's development path by impacting fertility, economic and political decisions across generations. Combining system dynamics and agent-based modeling approaches in a complex adaptive system, a simulation framework of the Politics of Fertility and Economic Development (POFED is formalized to understand the relationship between politics, economic, and demography change at both macro and micro levels. First, a new political capacity measurement is used; and the system dynamics model is validated with the latest data. Second, the endogenous attributes are fused with non-cooperative game theory in an agent-based framework to simulate the interactive political economic dynamics of individual intra-societal transactions. Finally, macro and micro levels are connected with policy levers of political capacity and political instability by merging system dynamics and agent-based components. This paper also explores the agent-based model's behavioral dynamics via simulation methods to identify paths towards economic development and political stability. This model demonstrates micro level human agency can act, react and interact, thus driving macro level dynamics, while macro structures provide political, social and economic environments that constrain or incentivize micro level human behavior.

Flipping between Languages? An Exploratory Analysis of the Usage by Spanish-Speaking English Language Learner Tertiary Students of a Bilingual Probability Applet

Science.gov (United States)

Lesser, Lawrence M.; Wagler, Amy E.; Salazar, Berenice

2016-01-01

English language learners (ELLs) are a rapidly growing part of the student population in many countries. Studies on resources for language learners--especially Spanish-speaking ELLs--have focused on areas such as reading, writing, and mathematics, but not introductory probability and statistics. Semi-structured qualitative interviews investigated…

A global water scarcity assessment under Shared Socio-economic Pathways – Part 1: Water use

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Hanasaki

2013-07-01

Full Text Available A novel global water scarcity assessment for the 21st century is presented in a two-part paper. In this first paper, water use scenarios are presented for the latest global hydrological models. The scenarios are compatible with the socio-economic scenarios of the Shared Socio-economic Pathways (SSPs, which are a part of the latest set of scenarios on global change developed by the integrated assessment, the IAV (climate change impact, adaptation, and vulnerability assessment, and the climate modeling community. The SSPs depict five global situations based on substantially different socio-economic conditions during the 21st century. Water use scenarios were developed to reflect not only quantitative socio-economic factors, such as population and electricity production, but also key qualitative concepts such as the degree of technological change and overall environmental consciousness. Each scenario consists of five factors: irrigated area, crop intensity, irrigation efficiency, and withdrawal-based potential industrial and municipal water demands. The first three factors are used to estimate the potential irrigation water demand. All factors were developed using simple models based on a literature review and analysis of historical records. The factors are grid-based at a spatial resolution of 0.5° × 0.5° and cover the whole 21st century in five-year intervals. Each factor shows wide variation among the different global situations depicted: the irrigated area in 2085 varies between 2.7 × 106 and 4.5 × 106 km2, withdrawal-based potential industrial water demand between 246 and 1714 km3 yr−1, and municipal water between 573 and 1280 km3 yr−1. The water use scenarios can be used for global water scarcity assessments that identify the regions vulnerable to water scarcity and analyze the timing and magnitude of scarcity conditions.

Socio-economic determinants of life expectancy in Nigeria (1980 - 2011).

Science.gov (United States)

Sede, Peter I; Ohemeng, Williams

2015-01-01

Attainment of 70 years life expectancy by 2020 is one of the millennium development goals in Nigeria. This study examined the socio-economic determinants of life expectancy in Nigeria using data from 1980-2011. Judging from the endogeneity feature of the variables, A VAR and VECM frameworks were employed. Socio-economic features were proxy by secondary school enrolment, government expenditure on health, per capita income, unemployment rate and the Naira foreign exchange rate. It was found that, the conventional socio-economic variables such as per capita income, education and government expenditure on health considered to be highly effective in determining life expectancy of developing countries are not significant in the case of Nigeria. The study however suggests that, life expectancy in Nigeria could be improved if attention is given to quality of government health expenditure, unemployment and measures to halt the depreciation of the Nigerian Naira against major foreign currency.

Listening to middle-school Spanish-speaking English language learners: A qualitative study of their perspectives of science

Science.gov (United States)

Lopez-Ferrao, Julio E.

The purpose of this study is to contribute to the understanding and explanation of the science achievement gap between Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs) and their mainstream peers. The sample of purposefully selected participants (N = 23) included students representing eight Spanish-speaking countries who attended three middle schools (grades 6th-8th), 11 boys and 12 girls, with different years of schooling in the United States, English proficiency levels, and science achievement levels. Data gathering strategies included individual interviews with participants, classroom observations, and analysis of secondary data sources on students' English language proficiency and science achievement. Data interpretation strategies using a critical-interpretive perspective consisted of coding and narrative analysis, including analyses of excerpts and case studies. Two major findings emerge from the study: (1) An inverse relation between participants' number of years of exposure to science learning in an English-only learning environment and their science achievement levels; and (2) specific participant-identified problems, such as learning the science vocabulary, writing in science, the use of mathematics in science, and the lack of sense making in the science classroom. Key recommendations comprise: (1) Acknowledging the value of dual language education; (2) supporting the science-literacy connection; (3) ensuring high-quality science through research-informed instructional strategies; and (4) assessing ELLs' science achievement.

Developmental Local Government as a Model for Grassroots Socio ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In the past five decades of political independence in Nigeria, local ... governments places a strong limitation on local autonomy and governance at the local level. ... negatively affecting grassroots socio-economic development in the Country.

Analyzing cognitive and spelling skills in Spanish-speaking English-language learners and English-speaking Canadian learners Analizando procesos cognitivos y de escritura en niños hispano-parlantes que aprenden inglés como segunda lengua y niños canadienses de habla inglesa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isabel O’Shanahan

2010-05-01

Full Text Available The principal purpose of this study has been to analyze the cognitive processes and spelling skills in Spanish-speaking English-language learners. A sample of English-speaking Canadian learners and Spanish-speaking English-language learners was selected from different Canadian schools in the Vancouver District within British Columbia's province. We examined cognitive and spelling skills of English-speaking students and Spanish-speaking English language learners in the primary grades. We hypothesized that there would be a positive transfer from cognitive and linguistic processes from L1 to L2 spelling skills development, if no significant differences were observed among native English speakers and Spanish-language learners on these measures. There were no significant differences between the English –language learners and the native English speakers on measures of phonological awareness and spelling skills. However, English-speaking Canadian learners performed better than Spanish-speaking English-language learners on vocabulary and syntactic awareness. El objetivo principal de este estudio ha sido analizar los procesos cognitivos y de escritura de niños hispano-parlantes que aprenden el inglés como segunda lengua. Para ello se seleccionó a una muestra de niños canadienses de habla inglesa y otra de hispano-parlantes que reciben instrucción en inglés como segunda lengua en escuelas canadienses del distrito de Vancouver en la provincia canadiense de Columbia Británica (British Columbia. Se tomaron medidas de competencia lingu?ística (vocabulario y conciencia sintáctica, memoria de trabajo, conciencia fonológica y escritura de palabras y pseudopalabras en inglés para el grupo de monolingu?es, y las mismas medidas en los idiomas inglés y español para el grupo de hispano-parlantes. Nuestra predicción es que si existe un efecto de transferencia de L1 sobre L2 entonces existiría relación entre los procesos cognitivos y de escritura que

Structural and Logical Stepwise Design of Mechanism of Implementing the Socio-Economic Policy of the Region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zadorozhneva Yuliya Vladimirovna

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The socio-economic policy of the region is characterized in two ways. On the one hand, it is an organizational form of interaction of the entities of regional socio-economic policy. This form defines the specifics of their relations, taking into account the existing conditions, resources and factors. On the other hand, it is a process of purposeful interaction between the entities and the impact on objects by the methods and tools. This process contributes to the spatio-temporal changes in the economic and social status of the regional economic system. Therefore, the structural and logical stepwise design of the mechanism of implementing the socio-economic policy of the region will allow to systematically present the content and the interconnections of its constituent entities. The author comes to the conclusion that the mechanism of implementing the socio-economic policy of the region, based on the subject-object and dynamic approaches, involves the allocation of: actors, objects, and the mechanism of actors interaction and the impact on objects within this policy. This mechanism includes the purpose, objectives, methods and tools for their achievement, as well as information and analytical system of monitoring and integrated evaluation, on the basis of which a decision is made on the effectiveness of socio-economic policy and the need for adjusting the initial goal and objectives, or choice of methods and tools for its implementation. This is reflected in the author’s structural and logical scheme of the considered mechanism, the practical significance of which lies in the ability to project in detail the main stages of implementation of socio-economic policy of the region on the basis of the principles of consistency, adequacy, resources integration, priority character, efficiency, responsibility. Each step of the suggested mechanism corresponds to the definite level of functional and structural organization – program

Influence of watershed topographic and socio-economic attributes on the climate sensitivity of global river water quality

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, Afed U.; Jiang, Jiping; Wang, Peng; Zheng, Yi

2017-10-01

Surface waters exhibit regionalization due to various climatic conditions and anthropogenic activities. Here we assess the impact of topographic and socio-economic factors on the climate sensitivity of surface water quality, estimated using an elasticity approach (climate elasticity of water quality (CEWQ)), and identify potential risks of instability in different regions and climatic conditions. Large global datasets were used for 12 main water quality parameters from 43 water quality monitoring stations located at large major rivers. The results demonstrated that precipitation elasticity shows higher sensitivity to topographic and socio-economic determinants as compared to temperature elasticity. In tropical climate class (A), gross domestic product (GDP) played an important role in stabilizing the CEWQ. In temperate climate class (C), GDP played the same role in stability, while the runoff coefficient, slope, and population density fuelled the risk of instability. The results implied that watersheds with lower runoff coefficient, thick population density, over fertilization and manure application face a higher risk of instability. We discuss the socio-economic and topographic factors that cause instability of CEWQ parameters and conclude with some suggestions for watershed managers to bring sustainability in freshwater bodies.

Economic and geopolitical dimensions of renewable vs. nuclear energy in North Africa

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marktanner, Marcus; Salman, Lana

2011-01-01

Addressing issues of renewable energy in North Africa must incorporate concerns regarding the compatibility of energy mixes with the nature of political regimes, their geopolitical relevance, and their socio-economic effects, in addition to economic cost-benefit deliberations. One important and under-researched aspect of nuclear energy refers to the trade-off between socio-economic development and political power conservation. Competing interests in North Africa's energy market as well as aspects of regional cooperation capacity are important when assessing the choice between renewable and nuclear energy. Therefore, the future course of meeting North Africa's energy needs is subject to a complex political and economic interplay between domestic and geopolitical development interests. The objective of this paper is to explore this complexity in more detail. We argue that the identification of any energy alternative as superior is hardly convincing unless certain standards of inclusive governance are met. We also find that it is important to highlight political-economic differences between energy importers like Morocco and Tunisia and energy exporters like Algeria, Libya, and Egypt. - Research highlights: → North Africa confronted with severe energy supply challenges in near future. → Trade-off between socio-economic development and political power conservation matters. → Economic and geopolitical dimensions of trade-off heterogeneous across North Africa.

[Intelligence, socio-economic status and hospital admissions of young adults].

Science.gov (United States)

Bosma, H; Traag, T; Berger-van Sijl, M; van Eijk, J; Otten, F

2007-05-12

To determine whether socio-economic differences in hospital admissions of adolescents and young adults are related to differences in intelligence. . Retrospective cohort study. The data were derived from a group of 10,231 young adults and adolescents who were followed for a total of 47,212 person years with regard to their hospital admissions. Intelligence was measured in the first year of secondary school by 2 non-verbal intelligence tests for fluid intelligence. Data from hospital admissions were matched to a large-scale educational and occupational cohort. Data were analysed with Cox proportional hazards analysis. Intelligence was not found to be related to hospital admissions. However, a low occupational and educational level of the young adults or their parents, was strongly related to heightened risk for hospital admissions. In particular, the low socio-economic status of a respondent was associated with heightened risk for hospital admissions due to accidents (relative risk: 3.49; 95% confidence interval: 1.91-6.39). The small extent to which the socio-economic differences in hospital admissions seem to be based upon fluid intelligence, at least in adolescents and young adults, as well as the heightened risks of hospital admissions in lower socio-economic status groups and the associated high costs for health care legitimise further study of the determinants of these differences.