Critical Review of Research Evidence of Parenting Coordination's Effectiveness

Parenting coordination (PC) has been in use since the mid‐1980s, but research on its effectiveness is sorely lacking. We review the extant research organized by three themes: (1) parenting coordinators’ perceptions of their role and function; (2) professionals’ and parents’ views and perceptions of PC; and (3) outcomes of PC, including some measures of effectiveness of the PC process. While these studies provide some insight into PC effectiveness, there is still a lack of research that uses objective outcome measures of efficacy and that considers characteristics of the co‐parent dyad, personality difficulties, or the professional discipline of the parenting coordinator. Future research recommendations are discussed.     

Adapting the environmental impact statement process to inform decision makers

The environmental impact statement (EIS) process is central to the assessment of environmentally significant actions. Yet decisions about what matters in the environment and what gets studied as part of an EIS are based on values that are largely implicit and come primarily from technical experts. In this article we propose using the techniques of decision analysis (DA) to articulate values explicitly and make the EIS process more effective as an aid to decisionmakers in developing defensible environmental policies. We identify five major sources of problems with the current EIS approach, propose a new environmental decision process that incorporates DA in the EIS framework, and consider the merits, problems, and feasibility of implementing the suggested policy improvements.     

Drug abuse's smallest victims: in utero drug exposure

The social and economic impact of drug use on our global population continues to increase leaving no geographical, social or cultural group untouched. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), in one of the few large surveys of maternal abuse, found that 5.5% of mothers reported taking an illicit substance during gestation. These figures certainly are underestimates due to the stigma of drug use during pregnancy and the accompanying legal, ethical and economic issues. Although drugs of choice and routes of administration vary by country, exposure of our most valuable resource, our children, to the developmental effects of drugs is an enormous problem. In utero drug exposure can have a severe impact not only on the development of the fetus, but also on the child during later stages of life. More than 75% of infants exposed to drugs have major medical problems as compared to 27% of unexposed infants. The cost of treating drug-affected infants was twice the cost of non-affected infants. Obstetrical complications including placental insufficiency, miscarriage, intrauterine death, and increased incidence of infectious and sexually-transmitted diseases are higher in the drug-abusing mother. Treatment for pregnant addicts should be a high priority for our governments. Increased awareness and improvement in our understanding of drug abuse in the medical, legal and social realms will enable us to reduce the barriers to treatment for this important population.Accurate identification of in utero drug exposure has important implications for the care of the mother and child, but can raise difficult legal issues. Society discourages prenatal care with the infliction of harsh criminal penalties. Maternal drug use during pregnancy can be monitored with urine, sweat, oral fluid and/or hair testing. Detection of in utero drug exposure has traditionally been accomplished through urine testing; however, the window of detection is short, reflecting drug use for only a few days before delivery. Monitoring exposure through testing of alternative matrices, such as neonatal meconium and hair, offers advantages including non-invasive collection and detection earlier in gestation. There are many unresolved issues in monitoring in utero drug exposure that urgently require research. These can be divided into research to definitively differentiate drug exposed and non-drug-exposed fetuses, determine the most efficient methods to routinely monitor women's drug use, and determine how these drug test results relate to neonatal and maternal outcomes. Research in this area is difficult and expensive to perform, but necessary to assess accurately drug effects on the fetus. By increasing our understanding of the physiological, biochemical and behavioral effects of gestational drug exposure, we may ultimately provide solutions for better drug prevention, treatment and a reduction in the number of drug-exposed children.     

Currency convertibility, cost of capital control and capital account liberalization in China

This paper provides a synthetic view of the capital account liberalization, capital control and currency convertibility issues in China. A quantitative analysis following Henry’s study¹ fails to provide clear links between liberalization, diminishing capital controls and Chinese stock market returns. An institutional explanation is then offered to complement the quantitative analysis. We suggest that the property rights regime is an indispensable institutional variable when studying this topic. Originating from the current property rights regime; price distortion, moral hazard and monetary overhang are the main impediments towards capital account liberalization and full convertibility. Therefore, property rights reform should be given the first priority in Chinese economic reform. He is the author ofProperty Rights, Renminbi Full Convertibility and Economic Development [Chanquan Zhidu, Renminbi Ziyou Duihuan yu Jingji Fazhan] (Wuhan, China: Wuhan University Press, 2003). This research is supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Project No. 70273030). The authors thank Dr. Sujian Guo, Mr. Robin Child and two anonymous referees for their helpful comments and Miss Cate Bain and Mrs. Patricia Merton for their proofreading. The authors are responsible for any remaining errors.     

B. Reviews and notes bibliographies and works of reference

INDEX ISLAMICUS 1665–1905: A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF ARTICLES ON ISLAMIC SUBJECTS IN PERIODICALS AND OTHER COLLECTIVE PUBLICATIONS. Compiled by W.H. BEHN. Millersville, Adiyok, 1989. xxx, 870pp. US$ 125.— or DM 225.— or £72.00.

CATALOGUE OF THE ARABIC MANUSCRIPTS IN THE DAIBER COLLECTION, INSTITUTE OF ORIENTAL CULTURE, UNIVERSITY OF TOKYO. By HANS DAIBER. Tokyo, Documentation Center for Asian Studies, Institute of Oriental Culture, University of Tokyo, 1988. vii, 181pp.

MIDDLE EAST AND ISLAM: A BIBLIOGRAPHICAL INTRODUCTION. SUPPLEMENT 1977–1983. Edited by PAUL AUCHTERLONIE [for the] Middle East Libraries Committee. (Bibliotheca Asiatica, 20.) Zug, IDC, 1986. vi, 244pp. SFr. 90.—.

LE MONDE ARABE: BIBLIOGRAPHIE SÉLECTIVE ET ANALYTIQUE. Établie par FAROUK MARDAM‐BEY [et al.]. (Références documentaires, No. 43.) Paris, Centre National de Documentation Pédagogique, 1987. 123pp.

LIBYA. Compiled by RICHARD I. LAWLESS. (World Bibliographical Series, 79.) Oxford, Clio Press, 1987. 243pp. Map. £32.50.

A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THE IRAN‐IRAQ BORDERLAND. By K.S. McLACHLAN and R.N. SCHOFIELD. Wisbech, MENAS Press, 1988. 383pp. £26.00.

INDIAN OCEAN. Compiled by JULIA J. GOTTHOLD with DONALD W. GOTTHOLD. (World Bibliographical Series, 85.) Oxford, Clio Press, 1988. xxix, 328pp. Map. £43.50.

AL‐MAR'A: BIBLIYUGHRAFIYYA. Compiled by FA'IQ FUDULI. Baghdad, Al‐Ittihad al‐'Amm li‐Nisa’ al‐'Iraq, 1985. 322pp. £4.00.

T.E. LAWRENCE: A BIBLIOGRAPHY. By PHILIP O'BRIEN. Winchester, St Paul's Bibliographies, 1988. 724pp. £45.00.

ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF ISLAM, New Edition, vol. V: KHE‐MAHI. Leiden, Brill, 1986. xvii, 1263pp. 59 plates. HF1. 620.—.

THE CAMBRIDGE ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA. Executive Editor TREVOR MOSTYN. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1988. 504pp. Photographs, maps, tables. £30.00.

GESCHICHTE DER ARABISCHEN WELT. Herausgegeben von ULRICH HAARMANN. Munich, Verlag C.H. Beck, 1987. 720pp. 14 maps. DM 138.—.

THE MIDDLE EAST. Edited by MICHAEL ADAMS. (Handbooks to the Modern World.) New York & Oxford, Facts on File, 1988. xviii, 839pp. Maps. £30.00.

THE CAMBRIDGE ATLAS OF THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA. Edited by GERALD BLAKE, JOHN DEWDNEY and JONATHAN MITCHELL. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1987. 126pp. £45.00.

PLANOS Y MAPAS HISPANICOS DE ARGELIA: SIGLOS XVI‐XVIII/PLANS ET CARTES HISPANIQUES DE L'ALGÉRIE: XVIème‐XVIIIème SIÈCLES. VOLUMEN I: ESTUDIO, CATÁLOGO E INDICES/VOLUME I; ÉTUDE, CATALOGUE ET INDEX. By MIKEL DE EPALZA and JUAN BTA. VILAR. [Madrid,] Instituto Hispano‐Árabe de Cultura, 1988. 399, [5]pp. 497 plans and maps (24 in colour). 5,500 Ptas.

A MAGYAROK TÖRTÉNETE: TARIH‐I ÜNGÜRÜSZ; MADZSAR TARIHI. By MAHMUD TERDZSÜMAN etc. Translated with notes by JÓZSEF BLASKOVICS. Revised and introduced by ELOD VASS. Budapest, Magveto Könyvkiadó, 1982. 523pp. Ft. 35.—.

LE DEBUT DE L'IMPRIMERIE ARABE A ISTANBUL ET EN SYRIE: EVOLUTION DE L'ENVIRONNEMENT CULTUREL (1706–1787). BIDAYAT AL‐TIBA'A AL‐'ARABIYYA FI ISTANBUL WA‐BILAD AL‐SHAM: TATAWWUR AL‐MUHIT AL‐THAQAFI (1706–1787). By WAHID GDOURA (WAHID GADURA). (Publications de lTnstitut Superiéur de Documentation, 8; Manshūrat al‐Ma'had al‐A'la li‐l‐Tawthiq, 8.) Tunis, Institut Superieur de Documentation, 1985. 312, 7pp.

ORIENTAL PRESSES IN THE WORLD. By NAZIR AHMAD. Lahore, Qadiria Book Traders, 1985. 272pp., incl. 39 facsimiles. Pak.Rs. 175.—

AL‐SIHAFA AL‐ISLAMIYYA AL‐JAZA'IRIYYA MIN BIDAYATIHA ILA SANAT 1930. LA PRESSE MUSULMANE ALGÉRIENNE DE 1830 [Agrave] 1930. By ZAHIR IHADDADIN (ZAHIR IHADDADEN). Algiers, Entreprise Nationale du Livre, 1986. 53, 51pp. DA17.50.

KITAB TATQIF AL‐TA'RIF BI'L‐MUSTALAH AL‐?ARIF. By TAQI AL‐DIN ‘ABD AL‐RAHMAN IBN NAZIR AL‐GAY?. Edited by RUDOLF VESELÝ. Cairo, Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale, 1987. vi, 249, XXVIpp. 8 plates.

WATHA'IQ AL‐KHALIJ AL‐'ARABI 1968–1971: TUMUHAT AL‐WAHDA WA‐HUMUM AL‐ISTIQLAL. Edited by RIYAD NAJIB AL‐RAYYIS (RIAD N. EL RAYYES). London, Riad El Rayyes Books, 1987. 712pp. £67.00.

PLANTS OF DHOFAR. By ANTHONY G. MILLER and MIRANDA MORRIS; illustrated by SUSANNA STUART‐SMITH. [Muscat,] Office of the Adviser for Conservation, 1988. xxvii, 361pp. Numerous illustrations, two end‐paper maps. £35.00. [Also published in Arabic as NABATAT ZUFAR.]

JESUITES AU PROCHE‐ORIENT: NOTICES BIOGRAPHIQUES. By HENRI JALABERT. Beirut, Dar el‐Machreq, 1987. 512pp.

FONDOS AFRICANOS Y ARABES: GUIA PROVISIONAL DE BIBLIOTECAS Y CENTROS DE DOCUMENTACION. Compiled by Departamento de Referenda, Servicio de Information Bibliográfica: Africa y Mundo Arabe. [Madrid,] Biblioteca Nacional, 1988. 32ff.

ARABIAN GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC SERVICES 1988. Milton Keynes, Matrix, 1988. 255pp. English, 156pp. Arabic. £49.00.

GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMS AND COURSES IN MIDDLE EAST STUDIES IN THE UNITED STATES, CANADA, AND ABROAD: 1987 DIRECTORY. Tucson, Middle East Studies Association of North America, 1988. 239pp.

ZAHIDAN AND SOUTHEASTERN IRAN. Edited by LUDWIG W. ADAMEC. (Historical Gazetteer of Iran, Volume 4.) Graz, Akademische Druck‐ u. Verlagsanstalt, 1988. 481pp. Maps and diagrams. ÖS. 450.—.

MU'JAM AL‐AGHLAT AL‐LUGHAWIYYA AL‐MU'ASIRA = A DICTIONARY OF COMMON MISTAKES IN MODERN WRITTEN ARABIC. By MUHAMMAD AL‐'ADNANI. Beirut, Librairie du Liban, 1984, repr. 1986. xviii, 870pp. £25.00.

THE OFFICE DICTIONARY. QAMUS AL‐MAKTAB. Compiled by MULTI‐LINGUAL INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHERS LIMITED. Oxford, Oxford University Press, [1987?]. 207 + 201pp. £10.95.

A DICTIONARY OF DATA PROCESSING AND COMPUTER TERMS (ENGLISH‐FRENCH‐ARABIC). By E.W. HADDAD. Beirut, Librairie du Liban, 1987. 421pp. £25.00.

THE COMBINED NEW PERSIAN‐ENGLISH AND ENGLISH‐PERSIAN DICTIONARY. By ABBAS and MANOOCHEHR ARYANPUR‐KASHANI. Lexington, Mazda Publishers, 1986. 273pp. (English‐Persian); 307pp. (Persian‐English). US$ 45.00 ('Library’ ed.); US$ 36.00 ('Text’ ed.).

KARS ?L? AGIZLARI, SES B?LG?S?. By AHMET B. ERC?LASUN. Ankara, Gazi Üniversitesi, 1983. 386pp.

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ARMENIAN ILLUMINATED GOSPEL‐BOOKS. By V. NERSESSIAN. London, The British Library, 1987. xi, 100pp. Ill., map. £14.95.

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METALWORK OF THE ISLAMIC WORLD: THE ARON COLLECTION. By JAMES W. ALLAN. London, Sotheby's, 1986. 168pp., numerous illustrations, 57 line drawings. £45.00.

ISTANBUL: A GLIMPSE INTO THE PAST. By EKMELEDD?N ?HSANOGLU. Istanbul, Research Centre for Islamic History, Art and Culture, 1987. 103pp. 43 illustrations. US$ 20.—.     

Coming to grips with corporate governance in local government

Local government, the tier of government closest to the people, provides services and infrastructure which impact daily on the well‐being of local communities. Despite the Australian state‐based regulatory framework, governance dysfunction regularly results in dismissal of councils. This paper seeks to gain an insight into what is understood by corporate governance at the local government level, an area not addressed in previous research. The methodology was a case study of one local municipality in Tasmania using explanatory sequential mixed methods. Findings revealed a narrow compliance‐based understanding, with effective accountability strategies not included in that understanding. Diverse information sources, such as previous employment experience and industry‐based training, led to embedded beliefs about the meaning of corporate governance which were not necessarily shared by all. This study has implications for state governments seeking to find long‐term solutions for dysfunctional councils, and to bring about positive change.     

Citizenship as a gift: how Syrian refugees in Belgium make sense of their social rights

While citizenship scholars have documented the increasing moralisation of immigration and integration policies, relatively few have explored how immigrants themselves make sense of their (partial) membership of European welfare states. Drawing on semi-structured interviews and participant observation with Syrian refugees, this article documents how they interpret and act upon the partial and limited citizenship status they are given in Belgium. We focus on one dimension of their experiences: their stigmatic dependency upon the Belgian welfare state. While their accounts can be partly understood as reproducing neoliberal discourses, we argue that they are also a strategic reaction against the dependency that is inadvertently created by European welfare states. From our respondents’ perspectives, their social rights thus appear not so much as entitlements to be claimed, but as a continuation of the humanitarian logic of the (unreciprocated) gift.