Social indicators for health planning and policy analysis

The concept of health involves two dimensions: The level of function at a point in time and the probability of transition to other levels at future times. By applying measured social values to the distribution of the population among a set of levels, a Function Status Index aptly summarizes the Level-of-Well-Being of a population at a point in time. By incorporating empirically determined transition probabilities into a simple stochastic model, a Quality-Adjusted Life Expectancy can be computed that approximates a comprehensive social indicator for health. The indicators possess the statistical properties required for time series and interpopulation comparisons, for studying outcomes and quality of medical care, and for health system optimization in planning and policy analysis.     

The Commission on the Relations between Universities and Governments: summary report!

Abstract. The Report of the Commission on the Relations between Universities and Governments was published in June 1970, in both English and French. The Commission was created by the university community rather than by government, and its members were Professors René Hurtubise and Donald Rowat. In this article, Dr Rowat summarizes the Commission's main findings and recommendations, and comments on the rising cost of post-secondary education. The Report deals with the role of the university in society, the relations between universities and provincial governments, the role of the federal government in higher education and research, and problems of interprovincial coordination. So as to protect university independence in the face of growing provincial supervision, the Report recommends the creation of provincial university coordinating commissions, with members from government, the universities and the outside public. The Report also argues that the federal government's role in higher education should be more limited, and that its role in university research should be co-ordinated with that of the provinces. To promote interprovincial coordination, the Council of Ministers of Education should be strengthened and there should be created under its aegis an interprovincial commission on higher education. Rapidly rising costs will force us to face basic questions regarding how many should go to university, what kind of higher education is to be given, and how it should be organized. Sommaire. Le Rapport de la Commission sur les relations entre les universités et les gouvernements a été publié en juin 1970, à la fois en anglais et en français. La Commission avait été créée par le Communauté universitaire plutôt que par le gouvernement, et ses membres étaient les professeurs René Hurtubise et Donald Rowat. Dans cet article, le Dr Rowat resume les principales conclusions et recommandations de la Commission et fait le point sur le coût croissant de l'éducation post-secondaire. Le Rapport traite du rôle de l'université dans la société, des relations entre les universités et les gouvernements provinciaux, du rôle du gouvernement fédéral dans l'enseignement supérieur et la recherche, ainsi que des problémes de coordination interprovinciale. Afin de maintenir l'indépendance des universités face à une intervention provinciale toujours plus grande, le Rapport recommande la création de Commissions de coordination universitaires provinciales formées de membres du gouvernement, du corps universitaire et du public. Le Rapport soutient également que le rôle du gouvernement fédéral dans l'enseignement supérieur devrait être plus limité et que son rôle du point de vue de la recherche universitaire devrait être coordonné avec celui des provinces. Pour favoriser la coordination interprovinciale, il faudrait augmenter le pouvoir du Conseil des ministres de l'éducation et créer, sous son égide, une Commission interprovinciale de l'enseignement supérieur. La montée en flèche des frais nous obligera bientôt à considérer des questions fondamentales: le nombre de jeunes gens à admettre dans les universités, le genre d'éducation supérieure à fournir et la façon de l'organiser.     

‘How we think they think’: thought styles in the management of international aid

Aid administration is characterised by high moral objectives and often frustratingly low achievements. This article explores the idea that the problem lies not in inadequate policy or instruments as such but in the thinking processes that emerge within policy circles, at delivery levels within aid administration and at the interface between donor and recipient, to which the trade likes to apply the notion of ‘partnership’. Cultural Theory identifies three distinct and often contradictory ways of thinking that reflect individualist, group and hierarchical value premises. It is adopted here to explore how these types of thinking apply within aid administration, finding that the policy process is a surprisingly ‘groupie’ kind of activity, emphasising the sharing of values and understandings within donor circles. Delivery agents (donor field offices) by contrast are under hierarchical pressure to turn the outcomes into packaged deliverables, whether the ‘good’ is packageable or not. Supported by NPM orthodoxies, these agents seek control through linear programming and performance monitoring. A third contradiction is revealed when the donor attempts to bring such packages into a partnership relationship with recipient governments. Partnership is about sharing and dealing. But what the recipient is offered is a package with Henry Ford type characteristics: ‘any colour you like (social aspiration), as long as it is black (PRSP formula)’. The article is biased; from the perspective of a consultant caught in the middle; but if there is truth in the findings it might just open the door to new styles of aid relationship and novel delivery vehicles. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Actor, situation, and context: A framework for delinquency theory integration

Survey data are presented and discussed as they relate to juvenile involvement in serious and violent delinquency. Juveniles confined in two detention centers were administered self-report questionnaires (n=127). An integrated model that combines social structural variables (i.e., neighborhood disorganization and strain) with social process variables (i.e., parental control, social bond, and delinquent peer associations) was tested by way of path analysis. The data generally support the integrated model, explaining as much as 44% of the variance. Two variables, delinquent peer associations and an overall social bond indicator, directly and significantly predict serious delinquent behavior. Delinquent peer associations are significantly related to neighborhood disorganization, while the social bond is significantly related to parental control and strain. Thus, the data support a systems approach to explaining delinquent behavior, where social structural variables affect social process variables. Earlier versions of this paper were presented at the annul meeting of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, Albuquerque, NM, 1998 and at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology, Washington, D.C., 1998.     

Laissez-faire in campaign finance

In this paper we analyze the impact of campaign contribution limits on government expenditures. The theory is based on the proclivity of geographic-based legislators to support wealth transfers from the polity at large to finance benefits for local constituents. It predicts that laissez-faire in contributions will lead to less government spending on budgetary redistribution and to a greater output of laws by the legislature. The theory is tested using data on U.S. State governments.     

Book reviews

Computer Law (4th edition) Colin Tapper Longman ISBN CSD 0 582 05932 1 £22.50 PPR 0 582 02491 1 £35.00

Further Computer Contracts M‐T Michèle Rennie Sweet and Maxwell 1989. ISBN 0 421 40330 6

Formalism in AI and Computer Science Philip Leith Ellis Horwood 1990. ISBN 1 3325549 2

Electronically Recorded Evidence ‐ A Guide to the Use of Tape and Video Recordings in Criminal and Civil Proceedings Sybil Sharpe Fourmat Publishing 1989. ISBN 1 85190 071 3

Computer Law Chris Reed(ed) Blackstone Press Limited 1990. ISBN 1 85 431037 2

EDI and American Law: A Practical Guide Benjamin Wright Electronic Data Interchange Association 1989. ISBN 0 96 238750 9

Computer Software Protection and Semiconductor Chips Dr Dirk Schroeder (Butterworth's Current EC Legal Developments Series) 1990. ISBN 0 406 04021 4

Computers and the Law David I Bainbridge (Pitman) 1990. ISBN 0 273 03170 8