On the Short- and Medium-Term Effects of Formalisation: Panel Evidence from Vietnam

This paper analyses the consequences of formalisation on the performance of informal firms, using a panel dataset from Vietnam. We find that switching firms (before switching) have higher profit and value added compared to non-switching firms; suggesting heterogeneity. Becoming formal leads to an additional increase in switching firms’ profit and value added. The benefits of formalisation materialise in the short-term (one year) and persist in the longer-term (three or more years). These benefits run through various channels such as better access to powered equipment or higher business association membership; but not better access to credit.     

Interparental Conflict,Parenting, and Childhood Depression in a Diverse Urban Population: The Role of General Cognitive Style

Research on the mechanisms by which interparental conflict (IPC) affects child depression suggests that both parenting and children’s conflict appraisals play important roles, but few studies have explored the role of general cognitive style or included both parenting and cognitions in the same design. Moreover, the effects of IPC on minority children are not well understood. In this longitudinal study, parenting was examined as a mediator of the relation between increasing IPC and change in depression. General cognitive style was included as a moderator. The combined influence of parenting and cognitions was also explored. A racially and ethnically diverse sample of 88 fifth and sixth graders from two urban schools reported their cognitive style, depressive symptoms, and perceptions of conflict and parenting at two time points separated by one year. Parental warmth/rejection mediated the relation between IPC and depression, and general cognitive style acted as a moderator. Parenting, cognitive style, and IPC did not significantly interact to predict change in depression over time. Findings indicate that both parenting and children’s general cognitive style play a role in understanding the impact of increasing IPC on children’s well-being.     

Validation of a method to detect cocaine and its metabolites in nails by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry

The objective of the present work was to compare previously published methods and provide validation data to detect simultaneously cocaine (COC), benzoylecgonine (BE) and norcocaine (NCOC) in nail. Finger and toenail samples (5mg) were cut in very small pieces and submitted to an initial procedure for external decontamination. Methanol (3 ml) was used to release analytes from the matrix. A cleanup step was performed simultaneously by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and the residue was derivatized with pentafluoropropionic anhydride/pentafluoropropanol (PFPA/PFP). Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to detect the analytes in selected ion monitoring mode (SIM). Confidence parameters of validation of the method were: recovery, intra- and inter-assay precision, as well as limit of detection (LOD) of the analytes. The limits of detection were: 3.5 ng/mg for NCOC and 3.0 ng/mg for COC and BE. Good intra-assay precision was observed for all detected substances (coefficient of variation (CV)<11%). The inter-assay precision for norcocaine and benzoylecgonine were <4%. For intra- and inter-assay precision deuterated internal standards were used. Toenail and fingernail samples from eight declared cocaine users were submitted to the validated method.     

Overlapping publics and the negotiation of legitimacy in South African and Namibian sexual politics

ABSTRACT

This article explores how and why social movement organizations negotiate their presence in, and demands on, multiple public spheres. We analyse the strategies of two social movement organizations, Free Gender in Cape Town, South Africa, and Sister Namibia in Windhoek, Namibia. Free Gender elected to withdraw participation from a governmental task team convened to address the issue of homophobic violence, despite the opportunity this offered the organization to participate in national politics. Sister Namibia, by contrast, decided to maintain its public presence despite experiencing political homophobia from the ruling party, the South West African People’s Organisation. We contribute to the literature on public spheres and social movements by demonstrating the need to consider the overlapping nature of public spheres in South Africa and Namibia at the local, national, and transnational levels to account for activists’ strategic decisions.     

Legislating Change? Responses to Criminalizing Female Genital Cutting in Senegal

Although the international community has recently promoted legislation as an important reform strategy for ending female genital cutting (FGC), there exist divergent views on its potential effects. Supporters argue that legal prohibition of FGC has a general deterrent effect, while others argue legislation can be perceived as coercive, and derail local efforts to end the practice. This study examines the range of responses observed in rural Senegal, where a 1999 anti‐FGC law was imposed on communities in which the practice was being actively contested and targeted for elimination. Drawing on data from a mixed‐methods study, we analyze responses in relation to two leading theories on social regulation, the law and economics and law and society paradigms, which make divergent predictions on the interplay between social norms and legal norms. Among supporters of FGC, legal norms ran counter to social norms, and did little to deter the practice, and in some instances incited reactance or drove the practice underground. Conversely, where FGC was being contested, legislation served to strengthen the stance of those contemplating or favoring abandonment. We conclude that legislation can complement other reform strategies by creating an “enabling environment” that supports those who have or wish to abandon FGC.     

Exogenous Lipoid Pneumonia as a Contributory Factor in a Drug‐related Death

Postmortem investigation often reveals various conditions, which may or may not have played a part in the death of the individual. The case of a 32‐year‐old woman is reported, with a long history of drug addiction. She was found dead in her bed. The autopsy revealed diffuse pulmonary edema with congestion of the lungs, brain, liver, and spleen. Microscopic examination of the lungs showed multiple intra‐alveolar and interstitial foamy macrophages and extracellular fat droplets surrounded by polynuclear giant cells. Death was attributed to acute polydrug intoxication. As microscopic examination had revealed severe pulmonary lesions, lipoid pneumonia was considered as a contributing factor to death. Lipoid pneumonia is an uncommon entity with the characteristic radiograph features and histologic findings of alveoli filled with vacuolated, lipid‐laden histiocytes. It can be either exogenous or endogenous in cause, based on the source of the lipid. Exogenous lipoid pneumonia usually results from aspiration or inhalation of fat‐like material, such as mineral oil or petroleum‐based lubricants and decongestants, resulting in pulmonary inflammatory reactions.     

Is corruption distasteful or just another cost of doing business?

Public Choice - Using data from a lab experiment carried out in Kenya, we show that while “legitimate” costs and costs imposed by corruption both deter investment, the latter is no more...     

Intersectional citizenship,violence, and lesbian resistance in South Africa

Abstract

There is a growing body of literature on intersectionality and citizenship, with scholars positing a need to analyze multiple identities simultaneously in order to understand both the legal incorporation and embodied experience of citizenship for marginalized groups. Building upon this central insight, I contribute to this literature by articulating the components of an intersectional citizenship framework to better understand the way multiple identities mediate citizenship, with particular reference to black lesbians in South Africa. Based on in-depth interviews with eighteen members of the black lesbian organization Free Gender, in Khayelitsha, Cape Town, I argue that Free Gender’s organizational goals can usefully be understood as asserting the commensurability of the identity “black lesbian” with “community member,” “African,” and “woman.” In applying a theoretical framework of intersectional citizenship to South Africa, it becomes clear that Free Gender’s activism reveals differential access to identities necessary to be seen as citizens entitled to rights. More than just extending juridical citizenship, black lesbians must have socially and politically legitimate access to multiple identity categories simultaneously in order to live free of violence.