Labor market policy: A comparative view on the costs and benefits of labor market flexibility

I review theories and evidence on wage‐setting institutions and labor market policies in an international comparative context. These include collective bargaining, minimum wages, employment protection laws, unemployment insurance (UI), mandated parental leave, and active labor market policies (ALMPs). Since it is unlikely that an unregulated private sector would provide the income insurance these institutions do, these policies may enhance economic efficiency. However, to the extent that unemployment or resource misallocation results from such measures, these efficiency gains may be offset. Overall, Scandinavia and Central Europe follow distinctively more interventionist policies than the English‐speaking countries in the Northern Hemisphere. Possible explanations for such differences include vulnerability to external market forces and ethnic homogeneity. I then review evidence on the impacts of these policies and institutions. While the interventionist model appears to cause lower levels of wage inequality and high levels of job security to incumbent workers, it also in some cases leads to the relegation of new entrants (disproportionately women, youth, and immigrants) as well as the less skilled to temporary jobs or unemployment. Making labor markets more flexible could bring these groups into the regular labor market to a greater extent, at the expense of higher levels of economic insecurity for incumbents and higher levels of wage inequality. © 2011 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.     

SETTLEMENT‐FOCUSED PARENTING PLAN CONSULTATIONS: AN EVALUATIVE MEDIATION ALTERNATIVE TO CHILD CUSTODY EVALUATIONS

The divorce mediation field has recently seen the development of several “hybrid” alternative dispute resolution approaches to child custody disputes. The “settlement‐focused parenting plan consultation” (SFPPC) is a form of evaluative mediation, conducted by a “parenting plan consultant” (PPC), who possesses the combined expertise of a mediator and child custody evaluator. This hybrid model is a more expedient and considerably less expensive approach than a child custody evaluation, but preserves the hallmark mediation principle of self‐determination. The article describes the theory underlying the SFPPC, delineates the role requirements, procedures, and techniques of the parenting plan consultant, and addresses legal and ethical issues.     

Misinterpreting Danger? Stereotype Threat,Pre-attack Indicators,and Police-Citizen Interactions

This paper compares police trainings and materials on pre-attack indicators in police-citizen interactions with similar behavioral indicators of stereotype threat, which is not necessarily a sign of danger. Stereotype threat is a social identity threat in which individuals feel that they may be judged or treated negatively based on a social group stereotype (Steele 1997). This psychological threat can increase the target’s anxiety, physiological arousal, and decrease cognitive capacity. We hypothesize that symptoms of stereotype threat might be similar to pre-attack indicators being taught to police in the USA, which can lead police to potentially misinterpret a citizen’s actions. Using a deductive content analysis, three coders analyzed a sample of pre-attack indicator police trainings for three indicators of stereotype threat: anxiety, arousal, and reduced cognitive capacity. Results found significant overlap between danger indicators taught in trainings and stereotype threat indicators. All 15 identified trainings contained at least one of the three indicators of stereotype threat, and 13 contained at least two indicators. None of the trainings discussed stereotype threat. We argue that stereotype threat should be taught in addition to relevant indicators of danger in trainings, lest officers misinterpret citizens’ stereotype threat-related behaviors solely as manifestations of imminent danger.     

Attributions of Blame and Responsibility in Sexual Harassment: Reexamining a Psychological Model

Kelley’s (Nebr Symp Motiv 15:192–238, 1967) attribution theory can inform sexual harassment research by identifying how observers use consensus, consistency, and distinctiveness information in determining whether a target or perpetrator is responsible for a sexual harassment situation. In this study, Kelley’s theory is applied to a scenario in which a male perpetrator sexually harasses a female target in a university setting. Results from 314 predominantly female college students indicate that consistency and consensus information significantly affect participants’ judgments of blame and responsibility for the situation. The authors discuss the importance of the reference groups used to derive consensus and distinctiveness information, and reintroduce Kelley’s attribution theory as a means of understanding observers’ perceptions of sexual harassment.