Moderating effects of self-esteem on the use of ethnicity and academic standing as determinants of interpersonal acceptance

The influence of self-esteem on the use of status considerations as determinants of interpersonal acceptance was studied in a sample of 722 Israeli students from integrated junior high schools. The students completed a self-esteem questionnaire as well as the Interpersonal Relation Assessment Technique, a measure assessing willingness to engage in activities of increasing intimacy with classmates. Data analysis indicated a general preference for targets of higher educational level and high-status ethnic origin. These categorical preferences were more pronounced among high rather than low self-esteem students, irregardless of their own educational standing or ethnic origin. The findings were consistent with the thrust of cost-benefit analyses suggested by social exchange theories, in which self-esteem is viewed as one's globalized perception of social worth. The results suggest that individuals with high self-esteem may be more likely to see themselves as equals to higher status others and seek out their company than would their low self-esteem counterparts. Alternately, those with high self-esteem may be more motivated by social ambition and less by fear of rejection.Received doctorate from UCLA. Studies issues related to self-esteem and social relationships, as well as stress and coping in childhood and adolescence.Received doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin. Research deals with interethnic relations, religious education, and post traumatic stress disorders.     

Gender differences associated with young people's emotional reactions to sexual intercourse

The differences between male and female adolescents' emotional reactions to their most recent occasion of sexual intercourse were examined. The sample included 932 sexually active Australian secondary school students who completed a self-report questionnaire concerning their sexual behavior. The majority of young people reported that they felt happy or good following their most recent occasion of sex. Females were more likely than males to report negative emotions such as feeling bad and used, but there was no difference between the percentage of males and the percentage of females who reported feeling guilty. Girls were more likely to feel bad, used, or guilty last time if they were drunk/high or had sex with someone who was not a steady partner. Boys who had sex with someone other than a steady partner last time were more likely to feel guilty. Peer and parental influences were also associated with feelings of guilt. Girls who were more confident that they could talk to one of their parents/guardians about sex, and boys who believed that most of their peers were sexually active, were less likely to have felt guilty.Received B.A. (Hons) from University of Queensland. Research interests include adolescents mental and sexual health.Received B.A.(Hons) from University of Queensland. Interested in the areas of sex roles and sexual behavior among adolescents.Received Ph.D. from Murdoch University. Research interests include population studies of sexual behavior and mental health.Received M.B.B.S., M.D. from University of Sydney. Research interests include adolescent health, psychological response in disasters, coping with grief and loss and living with HIV/AIDS.     

The effects of cashing-out food stomps on household food use and the cost of issuing benefits

The recent report produced by Vice President Gore's committee on government efficiency highlights the importance of streamlining government operations. But often there are trade-offs between administrative streamlining and accomplishing substantive program objectives. This article examines these tradeoffs in the context of the Food Stamp Program, an important component of the United States' safety net for providing low-income assistance. We estimate impacts on both administrative costs and substantive outcomes (participant food expenditures) resulting from issuing program benefits in the form of checks rather than the usual food coupons. The findings, which are based on experimental tests of the cashout approach in parts of Alabama and California, suggest that significant cost savings can be attained through cashout but that these savings may be achieved at the cost of weakening the program's ability to achieve its substantive objective of encouraging food use.     

The State of American Federalism, 1994-1995

Federalism, as a concept and as a reality, received assistancefrom a variety of sources during 1994–1995. Opinion pollsrevealed a public strongly supportive of shifts in the balanceof power between federal and state governments. The new Republican-controlledCongress, bent on devolving authority to the states, busieditself with an ambitious legislative agenda. The DemocraticPresident pursued his principles of federalism and intergovernmentalrelations by supporting the unfunded mandates bill and by increasingthe use of the administrative waiver. The U.S. Supreme Courtbolstered federalism with its rulings in cases such as Lopez,a state challenge to the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act.The new mood in Washington, D.C. was complemented by state leadersanxious to take on the challenges of a rebalanced federal system     

Win,lose, or withdraw: A categorical analysis of career patterns in the House of Representatives, 1948–1978

The literature on incumbency advantage has focused on margin as an indicator for electoral security. But while electoral margin is a goodex ante measure, it is a poorex post measure of security. Further, existing work has not integrated the choice of retirement with changes in the level of security. To improve the specification and definition of “marginality”, a multinomial LOGIT model is proposed where the dependent variable is categorical. Account is therefore taken of all the ways a Representative's term in office can end, including reelection, defeat, retirement, or pursuit of other office. The sample includes all U.S. Representatives elected for the first time between 1948 and 1978. The results indicate that (1) margin in the previous election is a significantex ante proxy for the probability of electoral defeat, and (2) while the electoral safety of all incumbents in the House has been increased, the increases are greater for members elected for the first time in the period since 1965.     

EVERYONE'S DOING IT! CODES OF ETHICS AND NEW SOUTH WALES PARLIAMENTARIANS‘ PERCEPTIONS OF CORRUPTION

Abstract: Everyone is doing a code of ethics. But when can codes do good? To find out we interviewed New South Wales parliamentarians about their perceptions of corruption in 10 scenarios weighted from least to most corrupt. The cases were drawn from John Peters and Susan Welch's theory of corruption. We note similar studies in the United States and Canada. There is confusion about ethics, and we note that the episodes of corruption in the 1980s suggest ethical standards could be elevated. Perhaps the most significant conclusion is that parliamentarians come to think alike about corruption in the middle of their careers. Those who want to see ethics enhanced should aim at induction, education, and counselling within parliament. Here codes, if supported, have a role to play. Improvement will not be achieved by searching for a saintly parliamentarian. We found those most sensitive to corruption to be the least and most senior members.     

Manging state government operations: Changing visions of staff agencies

Centralized staff agencies embody the early 20th century bureaucratic reform vision of good government. The behavior of these agencies, as well as the conception of administration contained in the bureaucratic reform vision, are often criticized. Feasible alternative conceptions of staff-line-overseer relations are only beginning to emerge through the contextual development of public management ideas and incremental innovation. This article draws on experience in Minnesota state government in order to formulate a “post-bureaucratic” conception of staff-line-overseer relations. In addition, strategies embedding this conception in the practice of the purchasing, staffing, information policy, and internal service functions are briefly explored.     

HEALTH CARE RATIONING AND COST CONTAINMENT ARE NOT SYNONYMOUS

Much public discussion about health care assumes, explicitly or implicitly, that only by denial of potentially beneficial care (called "rationing") can cost containment be achieved. This piece critically examines the various current usages of "rationing," and argues that it is being misapplied. Fur- ther, the call for rationing may be deflecting us from fruitful exploration of non-rationing alternatives to cost control. Two of these are briefly sketched as examples: physician fee controls and practice guidelines.