Gender-differential patterns of adolescent socialization in three arenas

The study examines gender-differential socialization within and across the three major socialization arenas during adolescence—the home, the school, and the informal youth association. The point of departure for this comparative analysis is Erikson's theory of institutionalized moratorium. Elaborating upon the sociological dimension of that theory, institutionalized moratorium is defined here as an open social arrangement that allows for free experimentation and temporary deviation within lenient—albeit normative—boundaries of social control. Accordingly, we delineate three structural components of socialization arenas—openness, control, and deviation—focusing upon the degree to which the levels of openness and control predict the level of deviation in each arena and for each gender. Data were obtained from self-reports of 220 Israeli adolescents who responded to a closed questionnaire designed to assess perceptions of socialization structure. The findings suggest that the deviation of boys is a stronger and more sensitive function of openness and control than that of girls. This gender difference is largest in the school and smallest in the youth movement. Beyond gender differences, the results indicate a common pattern of socialization underlying the three arenas; more specifically, deviation was found to be related to both openness and control. This pattern is most salient in the home and least salient in the youth movement.This paper was written with the support of the NCJW Research Institute for Innovation in Education, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.She has a Ph.d. in Sociology of Education from the Hebrew University. Her research interests are sociology of education and youth, informal organizations, and gender socialization.     

Experimental Results of a Residential House Fire Test on Tenability: Temperature,Smoke, and Gas Analyses

A fire experiment conducted in a British 1950s‐style house is described. Measurements of temperature, smoke, CO, CO₂, and O₂ were taken in the Lounge, stairwell, and front and back bedrooms. The front bedroom door was wedged open, while the door to the back bedroom was wedged closed. Contrary to expectations and despite the relatively small fire load, analysis and hazard calculations show permeation of toxic fire gases throughout the property with lethal concentrations of effluent being measured at each sampling point. A generally poor state of repair and missing carpets in the upper story contributed to a high degree of gas and smoke permeation. The available egress time was calculated as the time before the main escape route became impassable. Given known human responses to fire, such an incident could have caused fatalities to sleeping or otherwise immobile occupants.     

Inside a News Item: A Dispute Over Framing

Trust in serious journalism is based on our belief in the professionalism of journalistic practice. We expect televisions evening news to select the most significant events of the day and tell them in a fair and accurate manner. Whereas academic research agrees that news value or newsworthiness should be the guiding principle for selectivity, the principle is rarely spelled out in detail. Occasional attempts to infer these values empirically from what gets published or from whats left on the floor conceal the process of negotiation and disagreement that goes on in the newsroom and between professional journalists and the interests of the channels private or public owners. The case study presented here uses inside information that emerged during the course of a public debate following the broadcasting of a news item on Israels Public Television featuring football fans at a victory celebration welcoming Prime Minister Netanyahu with racist shouts. The analysis demonstrates that the same event may evoke several competing frames and thus may be included or dropped, or appear at various spots in the lineup for different reasons. The paper raises the question of whether the authority of the news might not be enhanced on occasion by sharing competing frames with viewers.     

“What a Relief”: When the Press Prefers Celebration to Scandal

Performing the citizen's role in an enlightened manner requires information and interpretation that are not dependent on government sources. Therefore, the major role assigned to the press by democratic theory is to provide such alternative views of reality. This task becomes particularly difficult in what is defined as a security crisis, where journalists must decide on giving voice to the establishment in the national interest; satisfying the public, which may prefer not to know; or providing oppositional readings. Analysis of television and press coverage of a failed terrorist attack on an Israeli beach shows how evidence of chaos and sheer luck can be discerned in a narrative of ostensible planning and purposiveness. Five framing mechanisms are deconstructed: prioritizing the army's version of the event; moving the spotlight from the tactical to the strategic; ignoring the critical potential of naive witnesses, who authenticate hegemonic framing; resorting to the myth of existential danger to Israel; and turning a miracle for the army into a miracle for the lews.     

The Quest for the Lost Story: feminist reading of Julia Margaret Cameron's ‘Mountain Nymph Sweet Liberty’

This article suggests a feminist reading of the photograph ‘Mountain Nymph Sweet Liberty’ created by the early Victorian photographer, Julia Margaret Cameron. Examining this photograph in its historical context, it analyzes the unique encounter between Cameron, an upper-middle-class Anglo-Indian photographer, and her female model-subject, who came from the English lower classes. Whereas Cameron's biography is well researched and her artistic endeavors are fully acknowledged, the information on the photographed model, Annie Keene, is scarce. This article aims to reconstruct the model's life story. To fill the holes in the archival record, fiction is used to tell a detailed story of the unique professional meeting between Cameron and her sitter. The following is a feminist project intended to recover female subjectivities, whose relationships have been erased by art and history.     

The Law and Economics of Consumer Finance

This survey of the law and economics of consumer finance discusseseconomic models of consumer lending and evaluates the majorconsumer finance laws in light of them. We focus on usury laws;restrictions on creditor remedies, such as the ban on expansivesecurity interests; bankruptcy law; limitations on third-partydefenses, such as the holder-in-due-course doctrine; informationdisclosure rules, including the Truth in Lending Act; and antidiscriminationlaw. We also discuss the empirical literature.