Religion and Political Action in Postcommunist Europe

Patterns of political identification in postcommunist Europe are still weakly formed. The churches, however, command high levels of confidence, in sharp contrast to political parties. Representative surveys in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Ukraine in late 1997 and early 1998 indicate high levels of confidence in the churches in three of these nations, but not in the Czech Republic for reasons that appear connected to its forced conversion to Catholicism. The religious, as in other countries, are disproportionately female, but attenders in postcommunist Europe are not more likely to be elderly or resident in the countryside. There was little difference between church attenders and national populations in attitudes to the market, NATO membership, or the current government; there were rather larger differences between the countries, with Bulgarians the most favourable to the market, NATO and pro-market parties, and Ukrainians the least favourable. A multiple regression analysis found that church attendance of itself had little effect on attitudes or party preferences in either the Czech Republic or Slovakia; it did, however, increase support for the market, for joining NATO and for pro-market parties in Bulgaria and Ukraine. The relatively modest effects of overt religiosity are likely to be helpful to the formation of a democratic political culture, although account must also be taken of a strong association between the Muslim minorities in these countries and the political parties that seek to represent their interests.     

Helpful local surtaxes? Florida and disadvantaged families

Well-intended tax policy often produces unintended consequences. In this article, we look at one such tax policy, specialised surtaxes in the State of Florida. Surtaxes are frequently adopted to provide financial assistance to poverty-based local programmes and services. Despite the intended benefits, we show that the contributors of the tax have been able to capitalise the cost into the residential property market, ultimately placing the burden of the surtax upon the population its revenue intends to help.     

The impact of compulsory voting on inequality and the quality of the vote

Abstract

Democratic elections imply that the electorate holds incumbents accountable for past performance, and that voters select the party that is closest to their own political preferences. Previous research shows that both elements require political sophistication. A number of countries throughout the world have a system of compulsory voting, and this legal obligation boosts levels of voter turnout. Under such rules, citizens with low levels of sophistication in particular are thought to turn out to vote in higher numbers. Is it the case that the quality of the vote is reduced when these less sophisticated voters are compelled to vote? This article investigates this claim by examining the effect of compulsory voting on accountability and proximity voting. The results show that compulsory voting reduces stratification based on knowledge and level of education, and proximity voting, but it does not have an effect on economic accountability. The article concludes with some suggestions on how systems of compulsory voting might mitigate the strength of political sophistication in determining the quality of the vote decision process.     

A qualitative analysis and eleven-factor typology of hypothesized factors encouraging or discouraging the development of problem solving courts in various countries

Journal of Experimental Criminology - Whereas the USA has numerous problem solving courts (e.g., drug courts, mental health courts), other countries do not have such courts, have altered versions...     

Invited Commentary: Broadening the Evidence for Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health and Education in the United States

Scientific research has made major contributions to adolescent health by providing insights into factors that influence it and by defining ways to improve it. However, US adolescent sexual and reproductive health policies—particularly sexuality health education policies and programs—have not benefited from the full scope of scientific understanding. From 1998 to 2009, federal funding for sexuality education focused almost exclusively on ineffective and scientifically inaccurate abstinence-only-until-marriage (AOUM) programs. Since 2010, the largest source of federal funding for sexual health education has been the “tier 1” funding of the Office of Adolescent Health’s Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative. To be eligible for such funds, public and private entities must choose from a list of 35 programs that have been designated as “evidence-based” interventions (EBIs), determined based on their effectiveness at preventing teen pregnancies, reducing sexually transmitted infections, or reducing rates of sexual risk behaviors (i.e., sexual activity, contraceptive use, or number of partners). Although the transition from primarily AOUM to EBI is important progress, this definition of evidence is narrow and ignores factors known to play key roles in adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Important bodies of evidence are not treated as part of the essential evidence base, including research on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth; gender; and economic inequalities and health. These bodies of evidence underscore the need for sexual health education to approach adolescent sexuality holistically, to be inclusive of all youth, and to address and mitigate the impact of structural inequities. We provide recommendations to improve US sexual health education and to strengthen the translation of science into programs and policy.     

Dating Violence, Bullying, and Sexual Harassment: Longitudinal Profiles and Transitions Over Time

Although there is growing recognition of the problem of dating violence, little is known about how it unfolds among young adolescents who are just beginning to date. This study examined classes (subgroups) and transitions between classes over three time points based on dating violence, bullying, and sexual harassment perpetration and victimization experienced by youth. The sample was ethnically diverse, consisting of 795 seventh-grade students from schools that were part of a multi-site, longitudinal evaluation of a dating violence initiative (50 % female; 27 % White, 32 % African American, 25 % Latino, 16 % other or multiple races). Results from latent transition analyses revealed five classes of students with distinct behavioral profiles: multi-problem (victimization and perpetration), bullying and sexual harassment (victimization and perpetration), bullying (victimization and perpetration) and sexual harassment (victimization only), bullying (victimization and perpetration), and a least problem group. The majority of classes were characterized by reports of both perpetration and victimization for at least one behavior. Girls were more likely to be in the less problematic classes. Class membership was fairly stable across the three time points. When students transitioned to a different class, the shift was most often from a more problematic to a less problematic class, particularly for girls. The findings support understanding dating violence within a dynamic, developmental process that recognizes related behaviors within and across individuals. Overall, the findings highlight the utility of person-oriented approaches to enhance our understanding of longitudinal profiles and transitions over time for dating violence and related behaviors.     

Racial and Socioeconomic Status Differences in Depressive Symptoms Among Black and White Youth: An Examination of the Mediating Effects of Family Structure,Stress and Support

Stress research shows that race, socioeconomic status (SES), and family context significantly impact an adolescent’s psychological well-being, yet little is known about the mediating effects of family context on racial and SES differences in depressive symptoms among Black and White youth. We investigate these associations using a sample of 875 (45% female) from a South Florida community-based study of youth mostly between the ages of 19 and 21. Ordinary least squares (OLS) analyses find that Blacks and lower SES youth have more depressive symptoms than Whites and those in higher SES families. Racial disparities are partially mediated by family related stressors and SES differences are fully explained by family stressors and emotional support. We also find that emotional family support conditions the relationship between race and depressive symptoms such that Whites experience more depressive symptoms at lower levels of emotional support but Blacks have more symptoms at higher levels. The findings highlight the importance of identifying factors within the family context that influence a youth’s psychological well-being and ability to cope with adversities.     

The effects of welfare reform on the academic performance of children in low‐income households

During the 1990s, U.S. welfare policy underwent dramatic reforms aimed at promoting employment and reducing dependence. Although the immediate effects on adult labor supply and family income have been studied extensively, this paper is the first to evaluate the long‐run effects on children's well‐being. Using a decade of national math achievement data and controlling for contemporaneous changes in education policy and environment, we associate welfare reform with relative test score improvements for low‐income students. Greater gains occur in states with larger initial welfare caseloads and larger caseload reductions.© 2009 by the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.     

Procedural Justice in Family Conflict Resolution and Deviant Peer Group Involvement Among Adolescents: The Mediating Influence of Peer Conflict

The involvement of adolescents with deviant peer groups is one of the strongest proximal correlates to juvenile delinquency and stems from a variety of causes. Past research has linked ineffective parenting with peer variables, including deviant peer group involvement and peer conflict during adolescence. In this study, adolescents’ appraisals of procedural justice within the family (adolescents’ appraisals of how fairly they are treated by parents in the process of resolving family conflict) were examined as one aspect of effective parenting that may relate to deviant peer group involvement in early adolescence. Data from 1660 middle school students (ages 11–14, mean = 12.6) indicated that higher appraisals by adolescents of procedural justice during family conflict resolution were related to lower levels of both peer conflict and deviant peer group involvement. A structural model was tested in which the relationship between adolescents’ appraisals of procedural justice in the family and deviant peer group involvement was partially mediated by measures of peer conflict. This model was found to have adequate fit to the data, indicating that part of the relationship between procedural justice appraisals and deviant peer group involvement can be explained by levels of peer conflict. Implications of these findings are discussed.