A Psychosocial Risk-Targeted Intervention to Reduce Work Disability: Development, Evolution, and Implementation Challenges

Research has been consistent in showing that certain psychosocial variables can increase the risk for prolonged work disability. Four psychosocial variables have emerged as robust predictors of disability across a wide range of debilitating health and mental health conditions. These include catastrophic thinking, symptom exacerbation fears, disability beliefs, and perceived injustice. The Progressive Goal Attainment Program (PGAP) is a psychosocial risk-targeted intervention that was developed to reduce psychosocial barriers to work resumption in individuals with debilitating health or mental health conditions. This paper describes the conception, developmental process, and the evolution of the PGAP. Research studies are summarized that have played a significant role in the developmental trajectory of the PGAP. Some of the legal and legislation-relevant challenges that were faced in the development and implementation the PGAP are discussed.     

The poor in Singapore: Issues and options

This article examines the changing patterns of poverty in Singapore. As Singapore's population ages, the poor increasingly includes the elderly. It appears that ascribed factors, such as gender and race, have significant influence on financial security at old age. As the population ages, the adequacy of existing anti-poverty policy is challenged.     

Book reviews

Poverty, Progress and Exclusion: an Economic History of Latin America in the Twentieth Century. By Rosemary Thorp. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press for the Inter‐American Development Bank and the European Union, 1998. Pp.xiv + 369. £20.50. ISBN 1 886938 35 0

Economic Dynamism in the Asia‐Pacific: The Growth of Integration and Competitiveness. Edited by Graham Thompson. London: Routledge, 1998. Pp.402. £50 and £14.99. ISBN 0 415 17273 X and 17274 8

India and Pakistan: The First Fifty Years. Edited by Selig S. Harrison, Paul H. Kreisberg, and Dennis Kux. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Pp.xii + 217. £32.50 and £10.95. ISBN 0 521 64185 3 and 64585 9

Agencies in Foreign Aid: Comparing China, Sweden and the United States in Tanzania. Edited by Goran Hyden and Rwekaza Mukandala. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1999. Pp.ix + 246. $69.95. ISBN 0 312 22098 7

Market Integration, Regionalism and the Global Economy. Edited by Richard E. Baldwin, Daniel Cohen, Andre Sapir and Anthony Venables. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Pp. xix + 344. £45 and £16.95. ISBN 0 521 64589 1 and 0 521 64181 0

Instruments of Change: Motivating and Financing Sustainable Development. By Theodore Panayotou. Earthscan in association with the United Nations Environment Programme, 1998. Pp.240. £19.95. ISBN 1 85383 467 X

Famine in Africa: Causes, Responses and Prevention. By Joachim von Braun, Tesfaye Teklu and Patrick Webb. Baltimore, MD and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999. Pp.xvii + 218. £32.50. ISBN 0 8018 6121 7

The East Asian Welfare Model: Welfare Orientalism and the State. Edited by Roger Goodman, Gordon White and Huck‐ju Kwon. London and New York: Routledge, 1998. Pp.206. £17.99. ISBN 0 415 17211 X

Critical Development Theory: Contributions to a New Paradigm. Edited by Ronaldo Munck and Denis O'Hearn. London and New York: Zed Books, 1999. Pp.xx + 217. £39.95 and £22.50. ISBN 1 85649 637 6 and 638 4

Streetlife China: Transforming Culture, Rights and Markets. By Michael Dutton. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Pp.xvi + 304. £13.95 (US$19.95) and £37.50 (US$54.95). ISBN 0 521 63719 8 and 63141 6     

Analyzing the Multidirectional Relationships Between the President,News Media,and the Public: Who Affects Whom?

In order to study presidential leadership and responsiveness, this research focuses on the role of the news media and examines the multidirectional relationships between the president, the news media, and the public. One of the purposes of this study is to examine competing theoretical expectations about the causal direction between the three actors by focusing on their issue stances. The potentially reciprocal influences between the three actors are estimated by using vector autoregression and moving average representation simulations. According to the statistical results, the news media significantly interact with the public and the president. In contrast, the direct relationship between the president and the public is weak or insignificant.     

Gender and E-Participation in Local Governance: Citizen E-Participation Values and Social Ties

Drawing on motivation theories and social network literature, this research analyzes the relationship between each gender’s perceived intrinsic and instrumental value of participation and the strength of offline social ties and active e-participation in a local governance setting. Based on E-Participation Survey data collected from the members of an e-participation program run by local government in South Korea, the study finds that male participants who perceive greater instrumental value of e-participation are more likely to use e-participation actively. On the other hand, women who perceive a greater intrinsic value of e-participation are more likely to be active users. Female respondents were also more likely to use e-participation when they were connected to offline social groups through weak rather than strong ties, presumably because they use e-participation as a supplementary channel to their social networks. There was no significant relationship between male respondents’ social ties and their active e-participation.     

Promoting Positive Youth Development by Examining the Career and Educational Aspirations of African American Males: Implications for Designing Educational Programs

African American males experience poor academic performance, high absenteeism at school, and are at increased risk of being involved in violence than other racial groups. Given that the educational outlook for African American males appears bleak, it is important to assess the aspirations of these adolescent males in order to find the gap between aspirations and educational attainment. In order to promote positive development within this population, it is essential that factors that affect African American males be identified. A survey was administered to male students attending elementary, middle, and high schools in a local school district. A cross-sectional study was conducted to examine the career and educational aspirations of African American males. A total of 473 males were surveyed: 45% African American, 22% Caucasian, 13% biracial, and 19% Other (including Asian American, Hispanic, Native American). The results revealed that African American males aspired to attend college at the same rate as other ethnic groups. Also, African American males were more likely to aspire to be professional athletes than males from other ethnic groups. Important factors to consider when designing a program are discussed as well as future research and limitations.     

Oriental medicine professionals' duty to inform patients

Oriental medicine has constituted a significant portion of health care in Korea, but discussion regarding the legal duties of Oriental medicine professionals has been marginalized. This article proposes the first step in discussing the duty of Oriental doctors and pharmacists to inform their patients about the medicine they provide. It begins by introducing the only decision the Supreme Court of Korea has made regarding the legal obligation of Oriental medicine professionals, where the Court held that the Oriental medicine retailer had a duty to provide information about the medicine being sold. This article supports that decision of the Supreme Court and further argues that other primary providers of Oriental medicine-Oriental doctors and pharmacists-should also bear the duty to inform. The conclusion is driven from the fundamental principle of the Korean Constitution: that everyone is entitled to the right to self-determination. In discussing the scope of information doctors and pharmacists should provide, this article notes the unique features of Oriental medicine used in Korea. The author concludes that Oriental doctors and pharmacists should inform their patients of the nature and effect of the medicine being provided, detailed usage instructions, potential risks associated with the medicine, and information regarding combined use with conventional medicine. As for restorative Oriental medicine, doctors and pharmacists should particularly provide instructions regarding its unique restorative purpose.     

内地仲裁裁决在香港法院执行中的公共政策问题

公共政策是《纽约公约》框架下拒绝承认和执行外国仲裁裁决的传统抗辩事由,但由于其理论具有一定模糊性,导致实践中的不确定性。《安排》引入了公共政策机制,以调整内地与香港仲裁裁决的相互执行程序。在各国法院对公共政策进行严格解释的大趋势下,由于两地道德观念相通、国家主权相同,为了更有效地促进两地司法协助的开展,两地在相互承认与执行仲裁裁决中应取消公共政策机制的束缚。     

Promoting positive youth development by examining the career and educational aspirations of African American males: implications for designing educational programs

African American males experience poor academic performance, high absenteeism at school, and are at increased risk of being involved in violence than other racial groups. Given that the educational outlook for African American males appears bleak, it is important to assess the aspirations of these adolescent males in order to find the gap between aspirations and educational attainment. In order to promote positive development within this population, it is essential that factors that affect African American males be identified. A survey was administered to male students attending elementary, middle, and high schools in a local school district. A cross-sectional study was conducted to examine the career and educational aspirations of African American males. A total of 473 males were surveyed: 45% African American, 22% Caucasian, 13% biracial, and 19% Other (including Asian American, Hispanic, Native American). The results revealed that African American males aspired to attend college at the same rate as other ethnic groups. Also, African American males were more likely to aspire to be professional athletes than males from other ethnic groups. Important factors to consider when designing a program are discussed as well as future research and limitations.     

Assessing the health behaviors of African American emerging adults

The purpose of this article was to assess the overall health behaviors of African American emerging adults who live in a Midwestern city. Two hundred participants, ages 18-25, completed a 129-item survey. Results indicate that African American emerging adults are engaged in relatively healthy behaviors (i.e., physical activity, low substance use). The results also showed that within the emerging adult developmental period, there are differences in behavior for those who are in the younger (18-20) versus those that are older (21-25) in the developmental period. Limitations, future research, and implications for practice will also be discussed.