A response to charles t. goodsell

Goodsell's definition of rituals and administration logically and experientially rings true. Formalizing the relationship between them was both unique and obvious, since we all have an intuitive sense that some of our administrative habits are ritualistic; we regularly complete paperwork, stop for coffee, make phone calls, etc. However, Goodsell has afforded us the opportunity to refer to some of these habits, such as red tape (immigration procedures) or administrivia (staff meetings) as rituals which help promote the social continuity. Similarly, we can rationalize that our comfortable administrative habits need not be changed because they unify.

Yes, the concept of rituals can be applied to many aspects of administration, but to what end? Ritualists suggest some rituals “work” while others do not, so we know little about when or how rituals are effective. To simply state that the concepts and philosophies of rituals offer a means to better understand administration leaves one cold. Goodsell provides little help in discerning how and why rituals are important to understanding administration. Since he links administration to rituals without an explicit purpose for doing so, he contributes to the perception that bureaucracies consist of meaningless tasks and tangles that prevent efficient government operations.     

Re‐reading the city: Deregulation and neighbourhood change

Abstract

Processes of deregulation and privatisation have been gradually transforming the familiar residential and tenurial structures of English cities. Patterns of access to housing have changed and, to varying degrees, the social composition and social roles of neighbourhoods. This paper explores some aspects of these changes in three types of residential area, examines some of the interconnections and indicates the ways in which these changes link to broader and more fundamental social transformations.     

A FEMINIST CASE AGAINST NATIONAL FAMILY POLICY: VIEW TO THE FUTURE

This paper examines the goals of current family policy proposals from a feminist perspective. It reveals the fundamental pronatalist values that are inherent in such proposals. It reviews recent research that raises questions regarding the actual impact of Scandinavian family policies (which are often used as a model), in terms of actually achieving the stated objective of enhancing equality between the sexes. It briefly explores the family policy that already exists in the United States, having been judicially enacted by the Supreme Court, and finally, it shows how most current family based policy proposals serve to maintain inequality rather than to promote equality, both in society and the home.
The paper attempts to raise issues that policymakers need to consider in order to establish a long range policy goals that will truly benefit women and their families.     

Turn-taking in mother-adolescent conversations about sexuality and conflict

The current study examined the nature and style of mother-adolescent conversations, how these conversations differ by subject matter, and dyadic and individual differences. Thirty-one mother-adolescent dyads (17 boys, 14 girls) with a child between the ages of 11 and 14 had a nonstructured conversation, and conversations about conflict and sexuality. They also completed questionnaires on beliefs about acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Conversations were measured for turn taking, total number of words, and conversational dominance, as well as nonverbal measures of affiliation, shame, and contempt. Conversations about sexuality involved less turn taking, fewer words, and more mother dominance than nonstructured conversations. Conversations about conflicts involved less turn taking but more words than nonstructured conversations. Some gender and age differences were found. More interactive conflict conversations contained higher levels of affiliation, and lower levels of child shame than conversations with fewer turns or higher mother dominance. In addition, children in more interactive dyads possessed a larger percentage of their mother's AIDS knowledge, and worried about AIDS a moderate amount.This research was supported by National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development Grant No. HD27035.Received M.A. from UCLA. Current research interests include parent-adolescent relationships, adolescent peer relations, and adolescent sexuality.Received Ph.D. from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Major research interest is in parent-adolescent communication and emotional development.Received Ph.D. from Boston University. Major research interest is in parent-child affective communication.     

Labor market experiences of low-income black women in middle-class suburbs: Evidence from a survey of gautreaux program participants

This article reports on a highly unusual experiment in racial and economic integration, the Gautreaux program. This program helps black families who are either current or former residents of public housing move into subsidized housing in Chicago and its suburbs. Surveying a random sample of 332 participants, we find that suburban movers are significantly more likely to have a job post-move than city movers, even among those who had never had a job before moving. Multivariate analysis shows that these differences are significant even after controlling for respondents' previous work history, human capital, and personal characteristics. These results suggest that low-income urban blacks experience significant gains in employment by moving to middle-class suburbs. Thus, housing assistance may be an effective alternative to traditional welfare-to-work programs.